The only certainty during a transfer portal-era offseason is uncertainty, and nobody knows that more than Cleveland State right now.
After an initial wave of outbound portal entries that included All-Horizon League forward Jordana Reisma, the Vikings’ list is now up to seven players, following the recent additions of freshman forward Brenae Jones-Grant and sophomore guard Jannah Eissa. Given that two additional players, Sara Guerreiro and Grace Ellis, are out of eligibility, at least nine of the 14 members of the 2024-25 CSU roster won’t be back next season.
The exceptions, right now, are the three most recent HL Players of the Year, guards Destiny Leo, Mickayla Perdue, and Colbi Maples, as well as every-game starter Macey Fegan and Jones-Grant’s classmate, Sarah Hurley.
Eissa’s planned departure was reported by On3, while Jones-Grant released a social media statement.
The latter, a Plainfield, NJ native, appeared in 12 games, generally as cameos late in blowouts. She did play in two contests for more than five minutes, including December 21st against Puerto Rico-Mayaguez (six points, four rebounds, two assists, and three steals in 15 minutes) and January 25th against Ohio Christian (seven points, five rebounds, and three steals in nine minutes), showing promise as a long and versatile frontcourt player.
She was previously a highly-regarded prep prospect at Immaculate Conception High School in Montclair, NJ, and a multi-category standout on one of the state’s top teams.
“This was not an easy decision, but I believe it’s the best step for my personal growth and future in both academics and athletics,” Jones-Grant said in her statement. “I’m truly grateful for the opportunity to have been a part of Cleveland State University.”
Eissa, who is from Cairo, Egypt, is seeking her third collegiate stop, after a freshman year at NC State that included a run to the 2024 Final Four, coincidentally held in Cleveland. She mostly did spot duty on that Wolfpack squad, seeing action in 11 games, though Eissa did manage a couple minutes of NCAA Tournament experience in NCSU’s opening-round victory over Chattanooga.
At CSU, the engineering student saw the court 14 times, most significantly in those UPR-Mayaguez and Ohio Christian games that also stood as Jones-Grant’s longest appearances. Eissa scored 16 points during the season, mostly on a 4-for-9 line from three-point range, including a bomb against Robert Morris on February 22nd. She scored a season-high eight points and added a pair of steals in the OCU contest.
Of Cleveland State’s now-seven portal entries, only Reisma and Filippa Goula played more than ten minutes per game. Still, it’s not common for a winning program with coaching stability to need to rebuild its roster on the scope that now faces Chris Kielsmeier and his staff, and the coming weeks will be crucial in shaping the 2025-26 Vikings.
