Former Walt Whitman High School and Princeton hoops star comes home to Maryland

“You’re special.”

That's what Maryland head coach Brenda Frese said to Princeton freshman guard Abby Meyers after the Terrapins beat Meyers' Panthers by 20 points in the first round of the 2018 NCAA tournament.

This would not be the last that Meyers would be hearing from Coach Frese, though. Meyers is now one of her key players.

Meyers transferred to the University of Maryland after playing two more successful seasons at Princeton. For Meyers, who grew up in Montgomery County, the transfer signaled a homecoming.

“I’m just grateful. Grateful to be back, grateful to have had an amazing opportunity at Princeton and now at Maryland,” Meyers said.

The 2021-2022 Ivy League player of the year got into basketball at a young age, growing up with two sisters who she would play with in the driveway.

“That competitive instinct was really ingrained in me from a young age,” said Meyers, who shared stories of playing elementary school basketball before she was allowed to full court press.

“I would just wait, hungry for the ball…The girls would dribble up and they’d be really scared and by the time they reached half court I would steal it and go on the other end and score,” Meyers recalled.

Meyers realized the extent to her basketball abilities during her freshman year at Walt Whitman High School, when her coach sat her and her parents down to talk to them about Abby’s future.

“He gave me a list of all Division 1 college basketball teams and said: ‘Circle the ones you’re interested in because you can go anywhere.’ That’s when I realized I had the potential,” Meyers shared.

While Meyers grew up admiring the illustrious Duke Blue Devils basketball program, she did not let that influence her decision when the time came to settle on a college to play for.

“Duke was always that dream school, but I realized that there’s more than just the name. It’s the people there, it’s the values, the mission they have and their goals, that’s what really matters,” Meyers said.

Meyers eventually decided on Princeton after loving the care and kindness of the community during the recruitment process.

“When Princeton reached out to me, just their community there when I visited, the care that they showed me, even the players, was just unmatched,” Meyers shared.

Meyers had a very successful career with Princeton, and was named Ivy League Player of the Year and an All-American honorable mention during her senior season.

The main game that stands out to Meyers as one of her core memories at Princeton was their first round matchup against Kentucky in the 2022 NCAA tournament, when Meyers scored a career high 29 points to upset the Wildcats.

“To pull out the win and get into that second tournament game against a great team, it just kind of set Princeton on the map, and I’m always going to remember that game,” Meyers said.

After four academic years at Princeton, Meyers graduated but still had a year of eligibility left due to her 2020-2021 season being canceled because of COVID. She was unable to take a fifth year as a grad student athlete at Princeton due to the school’s rules regarding their graduate program, so she was forced to enter the transfer portal.

During this process, Maryland coach Brenda Frese reached out to Meyers, and the kindness that Frese showed made the decision an easy one for the hometown kid.

“Just that level of care and consistency was kind of a difference maker, and I wanted to be close to home… My whole community is here, and so it was kind of a no brainer,” said Meyers.

Coach Frese was very happy to add Meyers to the team, and cited a few of her positive qualities during a press release at the time of the transfer.

“We’re so happy to provide Abby a homecoming here at Maryland. When we can add a conference player of the year, a winner, a leader, a great teammate, and someone who thrives in the big moments, it’s exciting,” said Frese.

Playing at Maryland, Meyers finds the main difference to be the extra exposure that the Maryland’s women's basketball program receives.

“The exposure is just insane," she said. "You have KD (Kevin Durant) shouting out Diamond Miller against Notre Dame for her game winner, and you know people are watching. Every second of every day, so I think that’s the big difference.”

Meyers did not want to get too far ahead of herself when discussing the future of her basketball career, but shared that she hopes to play overseas and would love to play in the WNBA.

“I’m gonna focus on the season now, but if that opportunity presents itself, WNBA, 100%, I’m gonna take it,” Meyers said.