Last season, the NYU women’s basketball team finished in the Elite 8, its best playoff run in the past decade. The Violets soared past teams in the University Athletic Association play, finishing with a 13-1 overall record. 

The team played tremendously on offense — the Violets stayed patient and made those extra passes, all while maintaining pace and aggression. Putting the ball in the basket was no struggle for the Violets, as they finished with a field goal percentage of 44.9, the highest in program history. Unfortunately, NYU came up short against Hope College in the NCAA tournament, and the Flying Dutch went on to win the NCAA Division III Women’s Basketball Championship. 

As the Violets head into the next season, they look to continue their winning streak with a core group of returning players.

“I am really excited to get back on the court with my girls for starters,” Pellecchia said. “It’s redemption season. I am looking forward to UAA play and making another deep run in the tournament.” 

As a first-year, Pellecchia was a major impact player for NYU — she led the team in scoring with 13.0 points per game. She made her presence felt on the defensive end, leading the team with approximately 2.7 steals per game. The guard capped off the season winning UAA Rookie of the Year, UAA Defensive Player of the Year and All-UAA.

Along with Pellecchia, the team will feature its second leading scorer, All-American power forward Jenny Walker, who led the team in rebounds with 7.9 per game. The senior captain will look to add to her list of accolades including UAA Player of the Year, First Team All-UAA, ECAC Player of the Year and First Team All-Met.

“We have a great returning group that is more motivated than ever to make a deep tournament run as well as play in the highly competitive UAA,” Walker said. “I am looking forward to playing high level basketball with a highly skilled group of players.”

This season, the Violets will continue to be led by head coach Meg Barber. From the moment she was hired as head coach in 2018, Barber had a positive effect on the team, especially record-high three-point and free-throw percentages. The head coach finished last season with her best record at NYU, and looks to continue that upward trajectory all the way to another postseason run.

NYU’s upcoming season will open with several tough preseason matchups, including Tufts University on Dec. 11 and Bowdoin College on Dec. 30. With the return of multiple star players and strong team chemistry, the Violets enter the season bringing resilience to every game.

Contact Kyle Yuan at [email protected].