Courtney Banghart has her first catch of the offseason in the transfer portal.

Grace Townsend, who spent her last four seasons at Richmond, committed to Carolina out of the portal on Monday night. She will have one year of eligibility with the Tar Heels.

Townsend, a five-foot, five-inch point guard, has started 95 games for the Spiders in the past three seasons. In the 2023-24 season, Townsend averaged a career-best 13.5 points per game and shot 83.9 percent at the free throw line (UNC ranked 14th in the ACC in team free-throw percentage this season). With Townsend leading the way, Richmond won 29 games and qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 19 years. Townsend was named first team All-Atlantic 10 and made the conference’s All-Academic Team.

For her career, Townsend averages 4.7 assists per game. No Tar Heel averaged more than 3.6 this past season. She posted a 2:1 assist-to-turnover ratio as a senior, which would have tied for second in the ACC last season and would have led Carolina comfortably.

Townsend’s commitment comes on the same day of Carolina guard Deja Kelly’s entry into the transfer portal. She is the second Tar Heel guard (after Paulina Paris) to enter the portal. Kayla McPherson, Reniya Kelly and Sydney Barker are UNC’s current returners, while Jordan Zubich and Lanie Grant will join as part of the freshman class.

 

Featured image via Richmond Athletics

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