Oct. 25, 2017
Come Watch Us Play SUNDAY at 2 pm vs. Marian (Ind.)
With just about two weeks left until the season-opener Commodore fans will get their first look at the team as the Dores host Marian (Ind.) in its lone exhibition game on Sunday Oct. 29 at 2 pm at Memorial Gym. There will be a Purdue connection on Sunday at the head coach of the Marian team, Katie Geralds, is also a Purdue graduate as are Vanderbilt head coach Stephanie White and assistant coach Kelly Komara.
Wear Your Costume
In addition to getting to see your Commodore squad in action on Sunday, you can also debut your Halloween costume. Children, and children at heart, are encouraged to come to the game dressed in costume. At halftime, we will have a parade of costumes and will do some crowd voting with the winner getting a marketing prize pack. #HalloweenFun
Commodores Impress at SEC Media Day
The unofficial kickoff of basketball season comes with the annual SEC Media Days and this year was no different. The Commodores were represented by head coach Stephanie White, senior Rachel Bell and sophomore Kayla Overbeck. The trio went through a series of photo shoots, production shoots and media interviews which served as the official kickoff to the upcoming 2017-18 season.
[SEC Media Day Recap ]
#AsOne
This season the Commodore women’s basketball team will use #AsOne as its season theme. In year two under the direction of head coach Stephanie White and her coaching staff, the Vanderbilt team looks to play for the person next to them because when the person next to you succeeds so does the entire team.
Preseason Home Stretch
The Vanderbilt women’s basketball team is a mere 17 days away from its first game on Nov. 10 at 6 pm against Middle Tennessee State. The Commodores will be the first game of a doubleheader with the Vanderbilt men’s team who will take on Austin Peay at 8:30 pm.
A Few Notes about the Middle Tennessee State Game
-This will be the first meeting between the teams since 2012 when the Commodores hosted the Blue Raiders in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, earning a 60-46 win.
-The season-opening meeting between the Commodores and Blue Raiders is the first regular-season meeting between the teams since the 1991-92 season.
-The teams enter the season with the all-time series deadlocked at 8-8.
Get to Know Our Newcomers
As we lead up to the season-opener, VUCommodores.com will run a weekly “Get to Know” with our newcomers. We kicked the series off with Blessing Ejiofor.
Get to Know
Oct. 3 – Blessing EjioforOct. 10 – Paige WarrenOct. 17 – Chelsie HallOct. 24 – Mariella Fasoula
Practice is Underway
The Commodores officially kicked off the 2017-18 season on Oct. 1 with the first official practice. The team is in its second full week of practice and continues to get better. As we march toward the season-opener on Nov. 10 check out some of our storylines for this season.
[ 2017-18 Storylines]
2017-18 Marks 25th Anniversary of 1993 Final Four Team
Vanderbilt will be celebrating its 1992-93 team throughout the 2017-18 season as we recognize the 25th Anniversary of Vanderbilt’s run to the NCAA Final Four. VUCommodores.com will feature content on this team throughout the year and all Vanderbilt women’s basketball social media sites will feature throwback content to that season. The team will be formally recognized the weekend of Feb. 3-4 when the Commodores host Tennessee.
Welcome to the Commodore Family
The Commodores will have plenty of new faces for fans to see this season. The women’s hoops team welcomes six new faces to the team this year. True freshmen Chelsie Hall (Seffner, Fla./Seffner Christian), Autumn Newby (Lawrenceville, Ga./Archer). Paige Warren (Dublin, Ohio/Dublin Coffman) and Blessing Ejiofor (Ebonyi, Nigeria/Eastside [N.J.]) will all suit up for the Commodores this season. The team will also gain the services of two transfers in Bree Horrocks (Buford, Ga./Purdue) and Mariella Fasoula (Athens, Greece/Boston College). Horrocks will take to the court this season after transferring in as a graduate transfer and will have two years of eligibility. Fasoula will sit out in 2017-18 and will have two years of eligibility when she hits the hardwood in 2018-19. Welcome to the Vanderbilt women’s basketball family!
Full Schedule on Tap in 2017-18
The Commodores have a loaded schedule in 2017-18 and will play nine opponents who played in the NCAA Tournament in 2016-17. Vanderbilt will be road tested in the non-conference with seven of their first 10 games coming in the form of road contests. Vandy kicks off the season on Nov. 10 against local rival, Middle Tennessee State. It will be the first meeting between the teams since the 2011-12 season with the all-time series deadlocked at 8-8. The team will also head to Washington, D.C., for the Paradise Jam which was relocated to D.C. after Hurricanes Irma and Maria over the Thanksgiving weekend which will feature games against George Washington, Syracuse and Wisconsin. Other highlights include a matchup with Iowa State in the Big 12/SEC Challenge on Dec. 2 in Nashville and a home game against NC State on Dec. 19. The always challenging SEC slate will see Vanderbilt open conference play on Dec. 31 at LSU before hosting Georgia on Jan. 4. The Commodores will also host 2017 national champion, South Carolina, and Final Four participant Mississippi State.
[Full Schedule]
Plenty of TV Time on Deck for Commodores
There will be plenty of opportunities to see the Commodores on television this season. Vanderbilt’s Big 12/SEC Challenge matchup with Iowa State on Dec. 2 will be televised on SEC Network and is the first of eight games set to air on the SEC’s flagship. The Commodores will have four home games televised on the SEC Network: Iowa State (Dec. 2). Kentucky (Jan. 15), Texas A&M (Jan. 28) and Mississippi State (Feb. 15). Road games televised on the SEC Network include: at LSU (Dec. 31), at Tennessee (Jan. 7), at Auburn (Feb. 12), at Florida (Feb. 18). The Commodores home game with Tennessee on Feb. 4 will air on ESPNU.
Follow Us on Social Media
For more information on the Vanderbilt women’s basketball team check them out on the website at www.vucommodores.com,Twitter at @VandyWBB., Instagram at @VandyWBB and on Facebook at Vandy Hoops. Fans can also follow head coach Stephanie White on Twitter at @StephanieWhite