Lady Vols basketball is bringing in another Power Four conference guard to its roster. On Friday, Penn State guard Shaelyn Steele announced her commitment to Tennessee, she announced on her Instagram.
Steele will have two years of eligibility remaining after playing a pair for the Nittany Lions. This past season, as a sophomore, she appeared in 27 games and started in eight. During this time, she averaged 1.8 points per game on 25.8% shooting from the field and 9.5% shooting from three.
The 5-foot-6 guard also contributed 2.7 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 1.1 steals per game during the season. She played an average of 12.0 minutes per appearance.
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As a true freshman, Steele played in 19 games, all off the bench. In an average of 5.8 minutes per outing, she posted 1.2 points per game on 33.3% shooting from the field and 42.9% on threes. She also contributed 0.8 rebounds, 0.5 assists and 0.5 steals per game.
Steele is from Ashland, Kentucky, about a four-hour drive from Knoxville. She was a six-year member of the Russell High School women’s basketball program and ranked as the top recruit out of the state in the 2024 class. The team won two regional titles with her on the team and made it to the Elite Eight in the state championship.
This now makes nine commitments in the transfer portal for the Lady Vols. Kim Caldwell and her staff have already landed Liberty guard Avery Mills, Northern Arizona guard Naomi White, Stanford forward Harper Peterson, Georgia forward Zhen Craft and guard Rylie Theuerkauf, Auburn guard Harissoum Coulibaly, Texas A&M forward Fatmata Janneh and Maryland guard Kaylene Skinner.
Tennessee also brings in two high school signees from the 2026 class. Gabby Minus, a four-star recruit and top-50 prospect, stayed true to her signing despite being the only one signed up to play for UT after the transfer portal exodus and Oliviyah Edwards’ release. The Lady Vols also signed former Boston College signee Irene Oboavwoduo this offseason.
