Women’s basketball lands Santa Clara transfer Tess Heal

Tess Heal, a sophomore at Santa Clara University, announced her move to Stanford for the 2024-25 women’s basketball season. The 2023 West Coast Conference Newcomer of the Year is a promising transfer for the women’s basketball program, with two more years of eligibility for Stanford.

As a freshman at Santa Clara, Heal splashed into the college basketball scene. She tallied 562 total points in her first season, the fourth-most in a single season in school history, and along the way she was named West Coast Conference Freshman of the Week for a record-breaking 12 times. Heal started in all 32 regular season games, averaging 17.6 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game.

Heal’s sophomore year was another historic season. Heal set program records for points (663) and free throws made (191). Heal’s stellar season once again earned her conference recognition as she was named West Coast Conference Player of the Week six times throughout the season. Her best game of the season came against Pacific University when she torched their defense en route to a 40 point performance, matching a program record.

Heal is only the second undergraduate transfer in Stanford’s program history, with the other being Brooke Smith in 2003. While still reeling from the loss of Kiki Iriafen, the women’s basketball program can now shift focus to welcoming Heal ahead of the 2024-25 season.

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