The Richmond Spiders put together quite the historic 2024-25 campaign which culminated in the program's first ever NCAA Tournament win.
Now, Richmond enters the 2025-27 season ranked No. 24 -- the Spiders' first appearance in the AP poll in program history. The team was also picked to place atop the Atlantic 10 Conference’s preseason poll, voted on by the league's 14 head coaches. Richmond captured nine of the first-place votes.
“Obviously a different team this year,” Richmond coach Aaron Roussell previewed. “(I am) very grateful we’ve got the three starters we have back, a lot of experience there. I also know we graduated a lot. Addie Budnik was a stallworth on our team and helped lead us to the success we’ve had. I feel good about the group we have; there’s a lot of inexperience and a lot of question marks but looking forward to start attacking those.”
Here is a look at the Spiders:
Coach- Aaron Roussell - 7th season
Last year- Richmond was 28-7 overall and 17-1 in A-10 play. The Spiders won each of their last 16 conference games which also saw non-conference triumphs over Fairfield, William & Mary, Oklahoma State and Columbia, all of which were NCAA Tournament teams. In the 17 conference victories, Richmond’s average margin of victory was 18.35 points. The Spiders earned a double bye for the Atlantic 10 Women's Basketball Championship, winning in the quarterfinals but falling in the semifinals by a single point. Richmond made it to the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive time and fifth overall, this time as an at-large choice. The Spiders won an NCAA Tournament game for the first time in program history against Georgia Tech and led after one quarter against UCLA in the second round before ultimately falling short.
They’ll miss- Addie Budnik (10.7 ppg/4.1 rpg/48.7% FG/81.8 % FT), Katie Hill (6.4 ppg/51% FG), Faith Alston (4.4 ppg/44.2% FG)
Impact returners- Maggie Doogan (17 ppg/7.1 rpg/55.5% FG/40.6% 3’s/133 assts/40 blks), Rachel Ullstrom (15.3 ppg/5 rpg/53.8% FG/42.3% 3’s, 84.9% FT/50 stls), Ally Sweeney (7.9 ppg/47.1% FG/44.3% 3’s/117 assts)
Newcomers of note-Tierra Simon (8.8 ppg/8.9 rpg/43.9% FG/80.9% FT at Saint Louis), Skylah Travis (5.6 ppg/6.6 rpg/60.3% FG at Louisiana)
Reasons to be optimistic: The Spiders return a talented trio in in Maggie Doogan, Rachel Ullstrom and Ally Sweeney.
Doogan ranked 25
th in ESPN’s top 25 players list, solidifying her status as one of the top players in the nation. The defending Atlantic 10 Player of the Year also was named to the Becky Hammon Player of the Year Preseason Watch List.
She expressed the importance of viewing film and how crucial it is to her game. That knowledge allows for her to read screens better and make similar passes, something she hopes to improve on as she builds on her skillset as a leader.
“I feel like I learned a lot of resilience last year,” Doogan observed. “I think we hit a little adversity later in the season, usually you kind of hit it midway through the season, but I think we bounced back from that, and I just learned how to be an outlet for my teammates if they need it, just trying to be a better leader. I have to give some credit to Addie Budnik, she was a great leader for me, but I learned a lot from her, so I observed from her and am bringing it to this year.”
Between her and Ullstrom, Roussell praised their work ethic and says the amount of time both have spent in the gym has reached the point he would lock them out if he could on certain occasions.
Ullstrom was recently named to the Ann Meyers-Drysdale Award Preseason Top 20 Watch List and before that, the Becky Hammon Player of the Year Preseason Watch List alongside Doogan.
“The respect that our players have for Rachel, you can’t be the elite shooter that she is without time in the gym,” exhibited Roussell. “She does that but as far as that next step, we’ve worked on coming off ball screens and adding that component to it. I think Maggie Doogan’s one of the best ones I’ve ever had as far as reading screens, maybe it is Maggie’s influence, but Rachel is there now too. The IQ she now plays with, she’s just a tough cover. When you have an elite shooter like that, it’s exciting as a coach to have that in her tool belt. She’s physically a different player than she was last year. People don’t give her enough credit as a finisher.”
Sweeney took a big jump from freshman to sophomore season and hopes to do so again in year number three.
Roussell recalled seeing her in high school and stating that she could be a difference maker in his program.
“Because of the talent we had a couple of years ago, maybe some people didn’t see that her freshman year, so to a lot of others it might have been ‘oh my gosh where did she come from,’” he posited. “The great growth that she showed freshman to sophomore year was something I feel we as a staff knew all along that she was going to shine and complement her teammates, our style. One of the biggest things is how much our players enjoy playing with her. When you look at her, she can sometimes be a little bit unassuming, but she’s probably one of the toughest kids I’ve coached in 22 years.”
X Factor- Tierra Simon said yes to the Spiders upon entering the transfer portal from fellow A-10 program Saint Louis.
Simon, a Cheryl Miller Award Preseason Top 20 Watch List member, was someone who a season ago scored 19 points on 8-of-9 shooting from the field against Richmond and Roussell did not forget.
“When you see her name in the portal, that’s one that jumped out at us. The style of play for us, she’s very versatile and she hit two threes against us. For us we don’t maybe use positions or numbers, but when you have “big kids” that can stretch the floor and play inside and out, I think that was attractive for us. Along with what we have with Sam (Dewey), looking for someone that can play alongside and complement Maggie well and that’s what Tierra and Sam can do. The physical strength that Tierra plays wit, her rebounding is huge for us while still being able to stretch the floor. She’s been great, she’s been everything we wanted her to be and the more she gets comfortable, it’s been an aha moment for her and us, an eye opener, to what she can do. Really excited about what she will be for us.”
Circle the date- Richmond has nine non-conference opponents that made postseason play. Seven made the NCAA Tournament in Texas, William & Mary, Columbia, TCU, Green Bay, Fairfield and Liberty. Another pair in Navy and Alabama A&M competed in the WNIT.
Bottom line: There is a lot of belief on Richmond’s side and a clear respect across the board for what the Spiders have built. Richmond has also seen plenty of growth which will allow new players to settle into roles and work to find continued success.