For most years, ODAC women’s basketball coaches looked down their schedule and put a “W” next to where Hollins University was listed. Well, it appears those days are over and three Lord Botetourt graduates are a big part of it.
Hollins recently completed the basketball season with a 16-10 record and an 8-8 record in Old Dominion Athletic Conference play. That was good enough to make the ODAC tournament for the first time since 2003. The 16 wins is a school record and eight conference wins tied the school record.
Three recent Lord Botetourt graduates are on the team. Forward Gracie Huffard and guard Grayson Alfano were sophomores for Hollins and Abby Kingery was a freshman guard.
“Recruiting is the lifeline of any collegiate program,” said Hollins coach Emilee Dunton. “I’ve known Gracie and Abby since their middle school days and met Grayson during her freshman year of high school. Coach Brim, our assistant, coached them in travel basketball for many years, so the relationships were built very early in their life. From the beginning, I made it clear how much I would love to see them wear the green and gold.”
Alfano was the first to arrive on campus. She played in 24 games her freshman season, 2024-25, and scored 135 points and pulled down 71 rebounds while averaging just over 20 minutes per game on the floor. This season, however, a broken ankle limited her to just two games.
“Grayson battled injury this season, but her impact on our program has been significant,” said Dunton. “As a freshman, she was in the sixth man role for our team, a consistent three-point shooter and gave us strong rebounding minutes.”
Huffard transferred to Hollins after playing for the University of South Carolina-Aiken in 2024-25. She made an immediate impact on the team, leading Hollins in rebounding at 7.6 boards per game. She played in all 26 games and averaged 24.4 minutes per contest with 31 assists and 32 steals, and she was the team’s best free throw shooter at just under 80 percent. At 6’3” she was the tallest player on the team.
“Gracie is one of the most agile post players in the league,” said Dunton. “She can guard the perimeter and defend inside at her size.”
Kingery was a true freshman after playing for the Lord Botetourt VHSL Class 3 state championship team in 2025. She came off the bench and averaged 16 minutes a game while playing in every game this season. She averaged three rebounds a game during that time and contributed 26 assists.
“All three have played an important role in the continued growth of our program,” said Dunton. “One of my favorite parts is seeing their families in the stands, their consistent support adds so much to our game-day atmosphere.”
Lord Botetourt High coach Renee Favaro is excited to see three of her former players helping build the Hollins program in near walking distance from LB.
“Grayson, Gracie and Abby are, first and foremost, great people,” said Favaro. “They are all great players, and each brings something different to the court. They understand what it means to be part of winning teams, as they all experienced a lot of wins during their time at LB. When you build a team with great people who value winning and kids who all have different strengths, you are destined for success.”
Dunton sees no limits to what the program can accomplish. There are 12 women’s teams in the ODAC and it had been 23 years since Hollins was in the top eight, qualifying for the post-season tournament. This year they not only made the tournament, but their sixth place finish put them in the top half of the standings overall.
“Each year, our goal has been steady progress in the standings,” said Dunton. “Over the past four seasons we’ve improved our win total every year, and finishing in the top six this season is a reflection of that growth. We believe we’re building one of the best game-day environments in the ODAC, and we’d love to see those who supported Botetourt girls’ basketball continue that support at Hollins next year.”
Favaro is a big fan, and sees bright days ahead for the program.
“I think Hollins has done a great job of finding all the pieces they need to win and putting them together,” said the LB coach. “I have enjoyed watching many of their games online this year, and it was apparent early that they were going to have a great year. It was tough to only see Grayson play a game and then a few minutes due to an ankle break, so I cannot wait to see all of them on the court together next year.”
