Army West Point Athletics
Tade, Smith Named to Preseason All-Patriot League Team; Army Picked Second in Preseason Poll
October 01, 2026 | Women's Basketball
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Army West Point women's basketball seniors Camryn Tade and Kya Smith were named to the five-member Preseason All-Patriot League Team, and the Black Knights were picked to finish second in the Patriot League Preseason Poll, the league office announced Thursday afternoon.
Army is the only program with two selections on the preseason all-league team. The Black Knights totaled 71 points in the poll, finishing behind Navy (81 points) and ahead of Lehigh (67 points). It is the second straight season Army has been picked second in the preseason poll.
Tade enters her senior season after earning First Team All-Patriot League and All-Defensive Team honors in 2025-26. The Southlake, Texas, native averaged 12.9 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game.
Smith, a team captain, returns after being named Second Team All-Patriot League and to the All-Defensive Team last season. The Lubbock, Texas, native averaged 13.7 points, 10.2 rebounds and 1.6 steals per game.
Army returns 12 players and four starters from a 2025-26 team that went 26-8 overall and 14-4 in Patriot League play, finishing tied for second in the league standings. The 26 wins were the second most in program history. The Black Knights defeated NJIT and La Salle in the WNIT to become the first Patriot League team to reach the WNIT Great 8.
Joining Tade and Smith among Army's returners are captain Fiona Hastick, a 2025 Third Team All-Patriot League pick and 2025-26 Preseason All-Patriot League selection, and sisters Brooke and Taylor Wilson. Sophomore Reganne Reardon is also back after earning a spot on the Patriot League All-Rookie Team as a freshman.
Head coach Katie Kuester enters her second season at West Point after being named the 2026 Spalding® Maggie Dixon NCAA Division I Rookie Coach of the Year by the Women's Basketball Coaches Association. She is the first Army head coach to receive the honor, which is named for the late Maggie Dixon, who led the Black Knights to the 2006 Patriot League title and the program's first NCAA Tournament appearance. Kuester's 26 wins in 2025-26 are the most by a first-year head coach in program history.
Army opens the 2026-27 season on October 25, 2026 in an exhibition at 2025 National Champion and perennial power UConn at Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, Connecticut.
2026-27 Patriot League Women's Basketball Preseason Player and Defensive Player of the Year
Zanai Barnett-Gay, Navy, Sr., G
2026-27 Patriot League Women's Basketball Preseason All-Patriot League Team
Camryn Tade, Army West Point, Sr., G
Kya Smith, Army West Point, Sr., F
Teresa Kiewiet, Lafayette, Sr., G
Leia Edwards, Lehigh, So., F
Zanai Barnett-Gay, Navy, Sr., G
2026-27 Patriot League Women's Basketball Preseason Poll
- Navy – 81 (9 first-place votes)
- Army West Point – 71
- Lehigh – 67 (1)
- Holy Cross – 53
- Lafayette – 52
- Bucknell – 37
- Boston University – 26
- Colgate – 22
- Loyola Maryland – 21
- American – 20
About Army West Point Women's Basketball
The Army West Point women's basketball program competes in the Patriot League and plays its home games at Christl Arena in West Point, N.Y. For more information, visit GoArmyWestPoint.com and follow @ArmyWestPointWBB on Instagram and @ArmyWP_WBB.
Media Contact
Contact Toni Bianco, Army West Point Assistant Director of Athletic Communications, for all media inquiries.
tonibianco518@gmail.com | (516) 941-6310
Army West Point Athletic Association, Inc. (AWPAA)
AWPAA is an IRS code 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation established to execute the United States Military Academy's intercollegiate athletics program. AWPAA is led by a board of directors that provides guidance to the director of athletics, who serves as the primary advisor to the USMA Superintendent and the USMA leadership on all NCAA operations. The AWPAA mission is to recruit, educate, train and inspire leaders of character who are committed to the Army values through an extraordinary Division I athletic experience.
