Boston College Women’s Basketball: Meet the 2023-24 Freshmen

The Eagles round out their 2023-24 roster with 4 freshmen. The Eagles have some good offensive talent with Dontavia Waggoner, Jojo Lacey, T’Yana Todd, and the return of Kaylah Ivey, but will need a couple freshmen to step up if they want a chance of being a truly competitive team. This year’s rookies are Nene Ndiaye, JaKayla Thompson, Jayda Johnson, and Lili Krasovec.

Ndiaye, a 6’1 forward, comes to BC from Senegal by way of Orangewood Academy in California and Arizona Compass Prep. She has played for the Senegal U18 team, and is one of 2 international players in the year’s freshman class. With her height and reach, Ndiaye can be an asset both offensively and on the boards.

Thompson is a 5’8 guard out of Kentucky and will join Kaylah Ivey as the shortest player on BC’s roster. Thompson has show huge improvements as a player in her junior and senior seasons of high school ball, and has averaged at least 15 points a season both years. She was a Kentucky All-Star team honoree both seasons as well. As long as she can figure out how to compete with the increased height she’ll see on opposing NCAA teams, Thompson could be a valuable player to come in off the bench for Ivey.

Johnson comes to BC from Connecticut, where she captained the basketball team at Hamden Hall. She’s a strong defender, and also has a solid 3 point shot. The biggest weak point in Johnson’s game is her strength, which should be an easy fix once she begins working with a college strength and conditioning team.

Krasovec will add some good height to the BC roster, as she clocks in a 6’3. The Hungary native comes to BC via Winston-Salem Christian. She has played for Hungary’s U16, U19 and U20 teams, and played in Italy for the Stella Azzurra Basketball Academy from 2020-2022. She averaged 7 points per game and 5.9 rebounds per game in her most recent outing with the U20 team at the U20 European Championship, including an 11 point outing against Finland. With her height, she should be able to get some minutes off the bench this season, and if she settles in quickly could see more minutes as the season progresses.