USA National Team members Hannah Bilka and Cayla Barnes headline the crop of NCAA transfers as the duo will join Ohio State next season.

A group of standout players has entered the NCAA’s transfer portal. Leading the way were USA senior national team members Hannah Bilka and Cayla Barnes.

Barnes and Bilka recently finished their senior season with Boston College, but will both join Ohio State next season. Bilka, 22, captained Boston College this past season scoring 41 points in 34 games. Bilka will make an immediate impact at Ohio State. At the senior national level, she burst onto the scene in 2022 scoring 12 points in 7 games for Team USA en route to a silver medal.

“Bilka has elite acceleration and creates space and speed through her crossover,” The Hockey News wrote on Bilka, listing her as the fourth best under-23 player in the world in 2022. “Bilka has also shown herself as a shooting threat, particularly on the power play from the bumper position.”

Barnes captained Boston College last season scoring 19 points in 36 games from the blueline. The former USA U-18 national team captain made her senior national debut with Team USA at the 2018 Olympic Games.

Bilka and Barnes will be joined by Steph Markowski at Ohio State who is transferring from Clarkson, where she served as an assistant captain, and was the top scoring defender on the team notching 32 points in 42 games this season. Markowski won U-18 gold with Canada in 2019.

“I'm really excited. Change is good,” Barnes told The Hockey News about the transfer. 

“I spent a lot of time in Boston…I loved my time in Boston College. Looking for something different, a little change of pace and new scenery. I think change is good, so I'm really excited to be heading there next season.”

Bilka was also on the lookout for a new opportunity to challenge herself on the ice.

“I think it's just a new opportunity, a new environment and you know I'm excited for a new team and a different league…I'm looking forward to it,” she said.

While Ohio State made the biggest splash, a number of notable names joined their crop in the transfer portal Those players include former Canadian and USA U-18 national team members Rhéa Hicks, Alexie Guay, Rachel Golnitz, Anna-Liese King, Calla Frank, Sydney Morrow, and Laura Cote. As well, international senior national team members including Paula Bergstrom (Sweden), Luisa and Lilli Welcke (Germany), and Anna Caumo (Italy) also found themselves in the portal.

Rhéa Hicks and Sydney Morrow were two of the more intriguing names in the transfer portal looking to switch schools having both finished their rookie seasons. Hicks was named to the CHA All-Rookie Team after a strong rookie season with Syracuse where she scored 19 points in 36 games, eventually choosing to transfer to Clarkson. In 2022, she won gold as a member of Canada’s U-18 national team. Morrow, who played for Ohio State, led all defenders in scoring and was named a tournament All-Star at the 2022 U-18 World Championships with USA. Morrow is headed to Colgate next season.

Syracuse was one of the most active rosters in the transfer portal, with nine players entering the mix alongside Maine. Post University topped all women’s NCAA programs watching 11 players enter the transfer portal.