The Virginia Tech women's basketball team begins the 2025-26 season on Tuesday night at home against Towson with a bigger, deeper, and hopefully more talented roster than Megan Duffy had in her first season in Blacksburg. A full offseason to build the roster with transfers, retention, and incoming freshmen has fans excited for the season to begin.
Now that they have made it through the grueling month of October and it's time for games, let's take one last look back at last month in the latest Virginia Tech Women's Basketball News.
Welcome home Elizabeth Kitley
Last season, former Virginia Tech star Elizabeth Kitley had her number retired to the rafters at Cassell Coliseum in January. After she struggled through her first WNBA season, where she played for multiple teams after recovering from an ACL injury, Kitley is coming home to Blacksburg.
Duffy announced that Kitley is returning to join her staff as the Assistant to the Head Coach, External Operations. She will also have broadcasting roles on the Virginia Tech Sports Network radio and ACC Network Extra broadcasts. It should also be noted that she is still going to be working out, looking to continue her WNBA career in 2026. It's going to be great to see her around the program.
Katie Sears season-ending injury
There is a lot to like about the Class of 2025, including Katie Sears. However, Hokies' fans are going to have to wait a whole year before they can see her play, as Duffy announced this week on the Tech Sideline podcast that Sears had season-ending surgery.
According to Duffy, she had surgery last week on her foot and will watch and learn as the season goes along. She won't lose a year of eligibility, and the Top 100 recruit will be a big part of the program going forward.
Samyha Suffren returns from season-ending injury
Last season, the Hokies took a hit when Samyha Suffren was lost to a season-ending injury; it was a tough blow to the roster for Duffy. This year, Suffren is back healthy and ready to make a big impact this winter.
"Yeah, I'm just thrilled for her,'' said Duffy. "We've talked a lot with Samyha about just the gratitude to be back. The shoulder surgery and injury she had last year were just long and tedious, and you couldn't speed up the process. And so, now for her to be in practice every day with her teammates, just growing as a young player, I think people forget how young she really is, still."
Suffren will be a nice addition to add to the rotation this season for Duffy off the bench.