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Bella Ragone to Notre Dame: Irish women's basketball gets first 2026 commit

IMG_9992by: Tyler Horka05/22/25tbhorka
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Photo from @bella_ragone | Instagram

In many ways, Notre Dame’s recruiting class of 2026 is the most important of the Niele Ivey era. The Fighting Irish don’t want to be in the same spot a year from now that they’re in now — not being anywhere close to filling up all of their roster spots.

They got one step closer to a full 2026-27 roster Thursday — in a major way. Class of 2026 recruit Bella Ragone committed to Notre Dame.

Ragone, a 6-2 wing from Hoschton (Ga.) Mill Creek High School, is the No. 25 overall prospect in her class according to ESPN. She was the Georgia player of the year as a junior for averaging 23.2 points and 11.1 rebounds per game. She committed to Notre Dame over offers from Georgia, Georgia Tech, Iowa, Illinois, TCU, Louisville, Baylor, UCLA and many others.

Ragone visited Notre Dame in April. She called her time in South Bend “amazing,” per a social media post,  and said she was “so appreciative of the staff and girls for making it an awesome experience.”

Ragone’s got good ball skills and a nice jumper. She could play the two in a pinch, but she projects as more of a wing than a shooting guard. Her primary position at the college level would ideally be the three, and she’s played some four in high school given her comparatively tall stature for the preps ranks. She’s versatile, which is always a good fit for head coach Niele Ivey‘s transition-heavy system at Notre Dame.

As aforementioned, it’s a big recruiting cycle for the Irish. This has to be the one in which Ivey is able to seal the deal on three to five signees, and Ragone is a good start. Notre Dame has joined Kentucky and Michigan State as programs with commitments from top 25 players so far. Twenty-two of the top 25 recruits in this class have not committed yet.

The Irish have also hosted the No. 2 player in the class, 5-10 point guard Kate Harpring, on a visit. That took place back in October. She’s flaunted visits to Duke, North Carolina, USC, UCLA and South Carolina since then. She’s been to UCLA twice.

Whether it’s Harpring, someone else at the top of the class or even players outside of the top 30 or so, it would behoove Ivey and the Irish to keep stacking 2026 recruits. Four of the eight players on the 2025-26 roster are exhausting their eligibility after the upcoming season.

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