Trio of former Beavers players compete in Sweet 16 in Spokane
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) -- Oregon State was one of the NCAA Tournament darlings last year, as their women’s basketball team advanced to the Elite Eight and nearly knocked off eventual champion South Carolina.
After that experience, over a half dozen players transferred due to the Pac-12 as we know it dissolving.
Now in Spokane this week, a trio of former Beavs are back repping their new squads in Raegan Beers, Talia von Oelhoffen, and Timea Gardiner.
“I’m like ‘Oh my goodness! Me, Talia, and Timea are all here,” said Beers, who realized on Thursday night that all three would be in the Lilac City.
Beers is with third-seeded Oklahoma, von Oelhoffen with # 1 seed USC, and Gardiner with the #1 overall seed in the tournament, UCLA.
“We were a really great team at OSU, and we were all great players individually, so it’s really cool to see us flourish in the places that we all ended up,” said Gardiner.
“We all went to Oregon State because we wanted to win, so I think transferring schools, that goal doesn’t change, so it’s not a surprise to me that we’re all in high seeds doing big things and playing big roles, so I’m excited for them,” said von Oelhoffen.
“That just goes to show what an amazing program Oregon State is and Scott’s ability to bring in really good players,” said Beers. “It was hard for a lot of us to say goodbye to Oregon State because we did love where we were at, but it’s so cool to see T and TG here thriving on their teams and here in the Sweet 16 in the same spot. It’s truly fun.”
Even though the trio are now in different locales, that does not mean that they don’t keep tabs on their former home.
All three said they were thrilled when the Beavs advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
“I was like, ‘Oh my goodness, they made it!’” said Beers, who also said she watched both OSU’s semi and championship wins in the WCC Tournament. “I was just, I was beyond proud of them and what Scott did and what my friends and old teammates did there. It was phenomenal.”
OSU head coach Scott Rueck said during a press conference this month that he never judged the players who left the Beavers because they were put in an unfair situation.
They all echoed that they still love both their former program and former head coach.
“He supported us fully. There’s no hard feelings at all,” said Gardiner. “All of us, I think, ended on really good terms with him. He knew we made decisions for what’s going to help us individually, and he just wants all of us to succeed. He’s just a really great guy and a really good coach.”
“I have nothing bad to say about Scott, about that program, very happy for them. I’ll be visiting Corvallis. I’m an alum. That’s my school,” said von Oelhoffen “I wasn’t surprised about their success at the end of the season and won’t be surprised for them to do even bigger things going forward.”