UWGB women’s basketball roster is ready to contend again in 2025-26 with key additions

GREEN BAY – The University of Wisconsin-Green Bay women’s basketball team had a memorable 2024-25 season, going 29-6 overall and winning both the Horizon League regular-season and tournament championships.

UWGB’s 22-game winning streak finally end with a loss to Alabama in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.

Although the Phoenix lost seven players to graduation, second-year coach Kayla Karius and her coaching staff hit several home runs in the NCAA transfer portal.

It was no surprise when UWGB was picked to finish first in the Horizon preseason poll.

UWGB’s Jenna Guyer (30) is expected to be one of the top players in the Horizon League this season.

Karius offered comments on each of her 14 players entering the season, which starts Nov. 3 against UW-Stevens Point at the Kress Center.

The Phoenix beat UW-Platteville 72-34 in its only exhibition game Oct. 18.

Kamy Peppler, sr., 5-foot-7

The former Hortonville star guard signed with UWGB as a graduate transfer after earning her college degree in May from UW-Milwaukee.

Peppler started 73 of 94 career games with the Panthers.

She ranked second in the 11-team Horizon last season in assists (4.7 apg), fourth in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.3), 13th in steals (1.4 spg), 14th in minutes (30.6 mpg) and 25th in scoring (9.3 ppg).

She scored in double figures 12 times and had a season-high 26 points against IU Indy in February.

“She was the experienced point guard that we needed,” Karius said. “She is really dynamic. A distributor, a scorer. On the defensive end, she is a bulldog. She is a great rebounder, and I think at the point guard spot that’s not always the case. That’s a really fun addition to her game.

“She has great leadership skills, and she is going to know when to push the pace and know when to have a little bit more poise and keep the team in control. Her experience as a college player, and within our league, is going to help tremendously.”

Lily Hansford, sr., 6-2

Local high school basketball fans remember the guard from her days at Appleton East and Ashwaubenon.

Hansford spent her first two collegiate seasons at Oregon State before transferring to Iowa State last year.

She is known for her 3-point shooting, including shooting 44.9% during her sophomore season at Oregon State.

“Lily is exciting to us at 6-2, but came in as more of a specialty-type player,” Karius said. “She really has one very, very strong attribute, and that’s shooting the 3. But this program really encourages and develops players into doing more than one thing. She had to learn how to score around the rim, how to take people off the dribble, how to defend.

“A lot of it was out of her comfort zone. It’s not what the prior programs needed from her. We need more from her, and she has responded every time we have challenged her. I’m excited to see her progress throughout the year, because she has already grown so much.”

Maddy Skorupski, sr., 5-8

UWGB landed perhaps the best player of any Horizon team in the transfer portal in Skorupski, who was a star for Oakland and recently was named a preseason first-team all-conference player.

Skorupski averaged 16.1 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.1 assists last season and led the league with 2.8 steals.

Her most notable performance came against Detroit in February, when she scored 38 points. It tied the most points in a Horizon game since the 2012-13 season.

“Maddy is a dynamic scorer,” Karius said. “She is a great midrange pull-up kid. Reminds me of (former UWGB standout) Nat(alie) McNeal. Really comfortable in the gray area. Offensively, she is really difficult for anybody on our team to guard. The rest of the league knows that.

“She is going to have a big role for us. She is the silent leader. She is the lead by example kid. She is going to go do it and she is going to expect people to follow her lead.”

Maren Westin, so., 5-8

The guard appeared in 11 games last season before missing the rest of 2024-25 with a torn anterior cruciate ligament in a knee.

She averaged 3.3 points, 2.6 rebounds and shot 41.7% in her limited time.

“She is looking great,” Karius said. “Don’t know timeline, but has mixed into practice when she can and is handling her comeback really well. When you have a bunch of new players in and as a returner, you want to be on the floor showing people what we do and how we do it. She hasn’t been able to be that person, but to stay really engaged on the sideline, she has a coach’s mindset. She knows where people should be. She can watch a drill and get in the huddle and tell people how it should be different.

“Being on the sideline has forced her to take more of that role, but she’s handling it really great. We are looking forward to having her back.”

Sophie Lahti, so., 6-1

Lahti played in 20 games last season after redshirting her first year. She shot 2-for-13 overall and had eight rebounds.

“Sophie has had a great offseason,” Karius said. “As one of the returners, we explained to them that they have a lot of Green Bay Way burden to carry as far as showing the newcomers how hard we practice and how intensely we do everything, not just for short periods of time.

“That still stands out to me in the month of June. Nobody will remember this because they wouldn’t have seen it and I don’t know if months down the road we can recall this, but I know right now how important it was that Sophie was practicing as hard as she was.

“There were a lot of newcomers that weren’t practicing at the same level that Sophie was. She was flying to the offensive glass. She was working hard on the defensive end. That still stands out to me. I don’t know as far as role goes, but I know she has a tremendously positive attitude and she is like, ‘Whatever the team asks of me, I will do.’”

Julianna Ouimette, fr., 5-10

Ouimette redshirted last season after transferring from Lehigh. She was a star in high school at Lakeland Union, finishing with 2,349 career points, 727 assists, 713 rebounds and 757 steals. She was named the player of the year three times in the Great Northern Conference.

Ouimette averaged 20 or more points three times in four years, including 21.1 points as a senior to help lead Lakeland Union to a WIAA Division 2 state semifinal at the Resch Center.

“She is such a dynamic scorer, I mean, look at what she did in high school,” Karius said. “Her career scoring record was only broken by her sister. She is really capable. She battled some injuries her first two years. She is actually a third-year freshman, which is going to be great to have.

“Works extremely hard. Great culture kid. Really pushes everybody in practice to be better. This summer, really made a name for herself on the offensive glass. We were watching pickup games or 4-on-4 or even now in the preseason, she is high motor. As soon as you think the possession is done, Julianna is tracking down the offensive rebound.”

Madison Hoffmann, fr., 6-1

On a team with so many veterans, the former Grayslake Central (Illinois) star is one of the few true freshmen.

Hoffmann averaged 12.6 points, 5.9 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 2.7 steals and was the Northern Lake County Conference player of the year for the second straight season last season after helping her team qualify for a Class 3A supersectional.

Hoffmann did not play in the exhibition game because of an injury, and it’s not known what her timeline is for a return.

“I really like Madison,” Karius said. “She is a 6-1, versatile kid who is the all-time assists leader at her high school. To have a 6-1 kid who can pass in our offense, those are things we look for.

“She is learning a ton right now freshman year and trying to figure things out, but has had a great attitude doing that. As this program does develop people, she is in that developmental phase, as most freshmen are. I’m excited about her.”

Carley Duffney, sr., 5-10

It should be a fun homecoming for the former Green Bay Preble star in her final season of collegiate basketball after spending her first four years at South Dakota.

It included playing for Karius as a freshman and sophomore.

Duffney started 61 of 96 games at South Dakota, averaging 9.6 points and 3.5 rebounds in 26.1 minutes per game while shooting 43.2% overall.

“I know Carley’s game probably better than anyone else on the team having coached her for two years,” Karius said. “I still think Carley is going to get better. She is a great fit for us. She is a versatile 4-5, can guard the 5, can really play the 5. Can also step out and shoot it, too. Yeah, I’m excited about her.

“I think they call her Auntie Carl. She is one of the oldest ones, but I don’t think they want to call her Grandma. But she is Auntie Carl, and that fits her. She is going to be a great fit for us.”

Kallie Peppler, so., 6-0

The younger Peppler sister joined Kamy at UWM as a freshman.

Kallie played 32 games for UWM last season, averaging 3.1 points and 1.3 rebounds in 13.6 minutes per game.

She scored a career-high 12 points in a career-high 25 minutes at Oakland in February.

“I didn’t know a lot about Kallie’s game, I didn’t recruit her,” Karius said. “I only really watched her last year. I think I wasn’t totally sure of what she was capable of, and when I saw it in summer workouts, I was like, ‘You are such a great fit here. I can see why they recruited you the first time.’

“She has great feet defensively. She is a great athlete, and she is long. That is going to bode really well for her. Now, it’s just learning off-the-ball positioning, but she picks things up really quickly. Offensively, I think she has a lot of great skills, too.

“She is in the learning phase and the development phase. Right now, when you are thinking so much, you are not moving as fluidly as you want. I can tell she really wants to learn and develop quickly because she wants to be on the floor. She is going to have a really good career.”

Hortonville's Kallie Peppler (22) blocks a shot by Green Bay Notre Dame's Gracie Grzesk (24) during a Feb. 13, 2024, game. The two high school stars are now on the same side after transferring to UWGB. — Hortonville’s Kallie Peppler (22) blocks a shot by Green Bay Notre Dame’s Gracie Grzesk (24) during a Feb. 13, 2024, game. The two high school stars are now on the same side after transferring to UWGB.

Gracie Grzesk, so., 5-11

Like Duffney, UWGB couldn’t land Grzesk out of high school. But all good things are worth waiting for, and the Phoenix signed the former Green Bay Notre Dame standout out of the transfer portal after she spent one season at Wisconsin.

“Coach’s kid, smart player, natural leader, versatile,” Karius said. “She shoots it, scores it inside, drives it. Continuing to develop the defensive side and standard. They probably all are in some respects. As a group, we are ahead offensively.

“Happy she is here.”

Ellie Buzzelle, sr., 5-8

Played 22 games her first season with the Phoenix after transferring from Eastern Illinois.

Buzzelle totaled 25 points, 12 assists and 7 steals in 155 minutes.

She sustained an injury against Platteville, and the team doesn’t know when she will return.

“Didn’t play a lot last year, didn’t need her to,” Karius said. “Learned the system, what a great way to take that time to learn and support everybody else.

“Steps in, and it was pretty evident early on that she wanted a bigger role. She was really becoming one of those defensive leaders for us, guarding the right way, showing other players how we guard. Having just great intensity on that end of the floor.

“She is going to be great for us. I don’t know what role that is, but being a senior leader, she really is one of our smartest players. Understands the offense and is going to continue to help people get to the right spots.”

Jenna Guyer, sr., 6-2

Like a few others, Guyer sustained an injury against Platteville but should return soon. She is being counted on this season after shooting 51.4% as a junior while averaging a career-high 7 points and 3.1 rebounds.

“A big role is really different for her, but we are navigating that and she’s accepting that,” Karius said. “I think she’s a natural leader. She is becoming more and more comfortable with holding her teammates accountable and becoming a reliable player day in and day out.

“She became that last year. She became a lot more consistent and reliable. She is ready for this year, mentally to carry this team and physically with what she does on the floor.”

Kristina Ouimette, fr., 6-1

The younger sister of Julianna, Kristina easily was one of the best prep players in the state last season at Lakeland Union.

She averaged 29.5 points, 5.9 rebounds, 4.4 assists and shot 50.6%.

“She can get her shot off very quickly, she can score it inside with a very high release, which is difficult to guard,” Karius said. “She is a smart player, a great passer. Still learning our defensive system. When you are a freshman, everything is brand new.

“Looks very comfortable. She is just very naturally gifted.”

Meghan Schultz, so., 6-4

Played 22 games last season after redshirting her first year. Schultz scored 41 points and had 18 rebounds in just fewer than 100 minutes.

“Really excited about Meghan’s development,” Karius said. “Just in the time that I’ve been here, last year she didn’t really have to be somebody we relied on because we had Jas (Kondrakiewicz) and Jenna. She got some minutes, just wasn’t super significant, but continued to get better against those guys every day in practice.

“We are seeing flashes of greatness with Meghan. There are days where nobody can guard her, she is making really easy passes that are great decisions. There are other days where she is still trying to figure it out. She is becoming more consistent, and it will be fun to see her in game action.”

This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Coach Kayla Karius breaks down 2025-26 UWGB women’s basketball roster

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