"It just felt right": Miami women's basketball lands 2025 forward Natalie Wetzel

Miami landed a commitment from Class of 2025 women’s basketball recruit Natalie Wetzel, she announced Sunday afternoon. The 6-foot-3 forward out of Canonsburg (Pennsylvania) Peters Township High School received 30 D-I offers, but ultimately chose the Hurricanes, one of the latest programs to offer the rising senior.

Wetzel received offers from programs including Princeton, Seton Hall and Georgetown but it came down to two in the end: Miami and Richmond. 

“We went and visited Miami a couple of weeks ago,” Wetzel told On3. “My expectations were really high already. But [the visit] still managed to exceed them. The campus is just so beautiful, the facilities are really nice and I love the coaching staff. It just felt right.” 

Although Wetzel had originally planned to wait until after the July live periods, her visit cemented it. Miami felt like home. 

“I was like, ‘What am I waiting for?” Wetzel said. “Because I can’t really think of any school I would rather have an offer from than Miami.” 

What were key factors in Natalie Wetzel’s pick?

One key factor in Natalie Wetzel’s decision was her familiarity with the coaching staff. She’d been offered by Toledo when Tricia Cullop was leading that program, so after she made the move to Miami, Wetzel had already formed a solid relationship with her and her staff. 

“I couldn’t name a better coaching staff,” Wetzel said. “They’re all so down to Earth and nice. They genuinely want the best for all of their players.”

Wetzel is ecstatic to become a Hurricane and feels that her game will transition nicely to the next level, although there are a few things she plans to work on during her final high school season. 

“I always say I’m versatile because I can stretch the floor, I can post up because of my height, but I can also shoot and drive,” Wetzel noted. “One of the biggest things that [the coaching staff] talked to me about is that I need to put on some muscle… But I also want to develop some more posters, because I’ll be playing a 4 or 5, so I need to sharpen up my post skills and sharpen up some of my ball handling and guard skills because I’m going to need both.”