Kate Koval will be able to play for new team this upcoming women’s college basketball season.
The former LSU center is in the transfer portal under a “legislative relief waiver,” three people with direct access to the transfer portal confirmed to USA TODAY Sports.
Koval, who is Ukrainian, explained in a social media post last week that she left Kim Mulkey’s Tigers near the end of August because of how she was informed that LSU was signing a Russian player. Koval’s father, Oleksandr, is a drone operator for the Ukrainian military as it remains at war with Russia.
“For me, this war is not distant or abstract,” Koval wrote. “People close to me have been killed and wounded in Russian attacks, and places where I grew up and first began playing basketball
have been destroyed by missile strikes.
“The timing of this situation and the deeply personal effect it has had on me, my family, and those we care about who continue to live through and fight this war ultimately made me question whether LSU remained the right place for me. This decision has not been easy. While I understand and respect that roster decisions are a part of college basketball. I have to remain true to myself, my values, and my country.”
According to the three people with direct access to the transfer portal, Koval indicated her decision to transfer on Aug. 27. She was able to enter the portal outside of the active window for women’s college basketball because the NCAA granted her an exception, awarding her a legislative relief waiver which was approved on Sept. 8.
In her social media post last week, Koval wrote that she hoped “the NCAA recognizes the circumstances surrounding my situation and understands the seriousness and deep nature of this matter.”
Had Koval not been awarded this waiver, she likely would have been forced to sacrifice a year of eligibility and wait until April — after this season — to join a new team. Now, she’ll be someone that many Power 4 coaches will pursue if they have an open roster spot with less than 60 days until the start of the season.
Koval is coming off a sophomore season at LSU where she started 17 of 35 games and was second on the team in rebounds (6.3) and blocks (1.2) per game. Koval also averaged 8.3 points per game on 56% shooting from the floor. She ranked 20th nationally in offensive rebounding rate (17.4%) and 14th in defensive rating (72.2).
Before Mulkey brought in Anna Minaeva — a 6-foot-5, 17-year-old from Russia who LSU’s staff had never seen play in person before she stepped on campus in Baton Rouge last month — it seemed like Koval was in line for a starting role with the Tigers this upcoming season.
In an interview in August with nola.com, Mulkey said she discussed Minaeva potentially joining the team with Koval before her signing was official. Mulkey said she told Koval she wasn’t going to make a recruiting decision based on “a conflict between two countries." According to research by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, casualties for the conflict between Ukraine and Russia — which began in 2022 — are estimated to have surpassed 2 million people.
Koval left Ukraine in 2021 to play basketball at a high school in Long Island, New York. There, she blossomed into a five-star recruit, ranked as the fifth-best overall prospect in the 2023 class by ESPN, a player that nearly every Power 4 school wanted. A 6-foot-5 post, she signed with Notre Dame and made the ACC’s All-Freshman team as a rookie in the 2024-25 season. She then transferred to LSU and played a key role for the Tigers as they advanced to the Sweet 16 last season.
This summer, Koval represented Ukraine on the international stage by playing for her native country in the 2026 FIBA 3x3 Women’s World Cup. Ukraine advanced to the quarterfinals.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NCAA grants waiver to Kate Koval after LSU exit over Russian player signing
