Since arriving in Blacksburg, Megan Duffy, a first-year basketball coach for the Virginia Tech women’s team, has had some recruiting success, already having commitments for the Class of 2025 from four-star guard Katie Sears and four-star forward Amani Jenkins.

With recruitment for the class of 2026 picking up steam this summer, rising juniors are in for a big recruiting season. On Thursday night, a highly sought-after defensive lineman from Minnesota released her top six, and Virginia Tech was among them.

Minnesota’s Class of 2026 guard Tori Oehrlein announced her top six on Thursday night, and Virginia Tech was on the list alongside Minnesota, Utah, Michigan, Maryland and Florida. It will be interesting to see where the Hokies land when they recruit, and their home-state Gophers are also in the mix.

Oehrlein is a rising player in the class of 2026 and is ranked 46th in her class according to ESPN HoopGurlz Recruiting Rankings Super 60. Last season as a sophomore, she became the fastest Minnesota high school player in state history to score 3,000 points in January. The 6-foot-1 junior from Crosby-Ironton posted 114 points, 43 rebounds, 13 assists and 15 steals in her school’s three state championship games last season.

Duffy is headed for a great first season as the Hokies’ head coach. Recruiting with the class of 2025 has started well and Oehrlein has been ranked in the top six, which is another positive step for the program. In two years, she would be a great asset to the program considering what Duffy is building in Blacksburg.