Louisville women's basketball's lack of domestic preps signees a year ago was only for a moment. Cardinals coach Jeff Walz is back in the mix with the 2024 recruiting class and now has three five-star and espnW HoopGurlz Top 100 players coming in the summer with the latest addition of Clarksville (Tennessee) High School guard Imari Berry.

The Cardinals had already signed five-star guard Tajianna Roberts and received a commitment from five-star forward Mackenly Randolph in February before adding Berry to the mix.

Berry is U of L’s seventh commit for the incoming freshman class at Louisville, which lost three players to graduation in guards Kiki Jefferson, Sydney Taylor and Nina Rickards.

Louisville ended the season with a 24-10 record — the 14th straight 20-win campaign for the Cards — and lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament for the first time in Walz’s tenure. It also ended five straight Elite Eight appearances.

After the loss to Middle Tennessee, forward Olivia Cochran and guard Merissah Russell were visibly upset and said they’d use the uncharacteristic finish to the season as fuel and motivation for next year.

“We're just going to get in the gym this summer and work,” Cochran said. “Who wants to stay, stay. Who wants to go, go.”

And the Cardinals will have more pieces this upcoming season with a strong freshman class. Here’s a look at the new Cardinals:

Louisville women's basketball 2024 recruiting class

Imari Berry, Guard

Commitment: Verbally committed April 20

School: Clarksville (Tenn.) High School

Stars: 5

What to know: The Tennessee Miss Basketball honoree and Tennessee girls basketball Gatorade Player of the Year decommitted from Clemson after the Tigers fired head coach Amanda Butler. She chose Louisville over North Carolina and Kentucky, which just hired Kenny Brooks away from Virginia Tech. Ranked 13th among espnW HoopGurlz Top 100, the 5-foot-10 guard led her team to a state quarterfinals appearance after averaging 23.8 points, 6.1 rebounds, 4.1 steals and 2.8 assists as a senior this season. Berry, who played in the McDonald's All-American Game on April 2, ended her preps career with 2,510 points.

Reagan Bender, Guard

Commitment: Verbally committed March 20

School: Sacred Heart

Stars: N/A

What to know: A local product, Bender averaged 13.4 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.9 steals per game as Sacred Heart ended the season with a 31-7 record. For her career, she also averaged 13.4 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.9 steals per contest.

Mackenly Randolph, Forward

Commitment: Verbally committed Feb. 24

School: Sierra Canyon (California)

Stars: 5

What to know: Randolph is the daughter of former NBA big man Zach "Z-Bo" Randolph but has made her own name at the preps level. The 6-foot post player is ranked 21st among Class of 2024 recruits, per espnW HoopGurlz, and chose Louisville over Notre Dame and Michigan State. Randolph also played a key part in Sierra Canyon's postseason run as a senior and scored 28 points during the squad's 81-61 second-round win over Mater Dei before ending the season with a 30-2 record.

Isla Juffermans, Center

Commitment: Signed Nov. 8

Club: Centre of Excellence (Australia)

Stars: N/A

What to know: Juffermans, listed at 6-foot-4, played with Australia's U19 team in the FIBA World Cup Championship and averaged 10.3 points and seven rebounds. Last year, she was named the MVP of the U18 Asian Championships as one of only two players to average a double-double throughout the tournament with 17 points and 11 rebounds per game, She shot 60% from the field.

Izela Arenas, Guard

Commitment: Signed Nov. 14

High School: Sierra Canyon (California)

Stars: 4

What to know: The 5-foot-9 guard's announcement to join the Cardinals came via her father, Gilbert, on his live YouTube show, Gil's Arena. Ranked 94th, Izela Arenas helped Sierra Canyon to a 31-1 record during the 2022-23 season, losing in the California Interscholastic Federation SoCal regional final.

Arenas also won the Overtime Elite Takeover's Queen of the Court title on May 6, defeating Jaloni Cambridge, who is third in the espnW rankings.

Tajianna Roberts, Guard

Commitment: Signed Nov. 8

High School: IMG Academy (Florida)

Stars: 5

What to know: Roberts chose the Cardinals over Kentucky, California, Duke and Virginia Tech, all of which were in her top five. The 5-10 guard is ranked 25th.

Roberts attended La Jolla Country Day School in San Diego but announced she would transfer to IMG Academy in Florida on Aug. 27. According to MaxPreps, Roberts averaged 12.3 points, 6.0 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.7 steals per game to help the Torreys, ranked fifth in the nation by the outlet, to a 29-4 record. That included a California Interscholastic Federation San Diego Section Open Division championship in February.

Anaya Hardy, Forward

Commitment: Signed Nov. 8

High School: Renaissance (Detroit)

Stars: N/A

What to know: The 6-foot-4 Hardy helped Renaissance to a 24-2 season, which included a Michigan Division 1 semifinals appearance. She also played on the Michigan Storm 17U team as part of the Under Armour Association circuit during the summer and supplied the team with 6.8 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game over 13 contests.

Reach Louisville football, women's basketball and baseball beat writer Alexis Cubit at acubit@gannett.com and follow her on X at @Alexis_Cubit.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville women's basketball recruiting 2024: Jeff Walz lands 5-star