This story has been updated to add additional information.
Lauren Hassell, a 5-star forward in the 2027 class, committed to Vanderbilt women’s basketball, she announced on social media May 29.
Hassell is 6-foot-3 and attends Clarksville Christian School. The local recruit is Vanderbilt’s first 2027 commit and is ranked No. 10 in the class by ESPN and No. 13 by the 247Sports Composite.
She chose the Commodores over Louisville and North Carolina.
Hassell is the third 5-star recruit that coach Shea Ralph has landed in her tenure. The first, Mikayla Blakes, was the 2026 SEC Player of the Year. The second, Olivia Jones, will be joining the team for the 2026-27 season.
Hassell’s father is Trenton Hassell, who played at Austin Peay and was the 30th overall pick in the 2001 NBA Draft. He played 10 seasons in the NBA and is now his daughter’s coach at Clarksville Christian.
In the 2025-26 season at Clarksville Christian, Hassell averaged 25.5 points, 11.2 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 2.6 steals, 1.2 blocks and shot 60% from the field.
Hassell provides Vanderbilt with its best post player recruit in Ralph’s tenure. Ralph has typically built her teams around smaller guards, but Hassell, along with 2026 4-star signee Jhai Johnson, could help to change that. Hassell is also the first recruit from the state of Tennessee to commit to Ralph.
The Commodores in 2026 made it to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2009 as Ralph was named SEC Coach of the Year and the Naismith National Coach of the Year. Aubrey Galvan was also the 2026 SEC Freshman of the Year, giving Vanderbilt two straight winners of the award.
Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at [email protected] or on X @aria_gerson.
