Gonzaga transfer Cade Orness announces commitment to Mount St. Mary’s

May 16, 2026 Updated Sat., May 16, 2026 at 8:27 p.m.

By Theo Lawson theol@spokesman.com (509) 459-5584

Gonzaga transfer Cade Orness is moving to the other side of the country for the next chapter of his college basketball career.

Orness, who arrived at GU as a walk-on in 2024-25 before earning a scholarship and appearing in eight games last season, is transferring to Mount St. Mary’s in Emmitsburg, Maryland, he announced Saturday on his Instagram page.

“Blessed & Grateful. Thank you God,” Orness wrote in an Instagram caption.

The Poulsbo native had a decorated prep career at North Kitsap High, where he played under father Scott and became the Vikings’ all-time scoring leader with 1,821 points. Orness led North Kitsap to the Washington 2A state semifinals before walking on at Gonzaga and redshirting during the 2024-25 season.

Gonzaga put Orness on scholarship last season and the 6-foot-5 guard played in eight total games, scoring his only points of the season against Southern Utah and North Florida.

He joins a Mount St. Mary’s program that won the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference two seasons ago and beat American in a First Four NCAA Tournament game before losing to Duke in the main bracket.

Orness becomes the fifth outgoing transfer from Gonzaga’s 2025-26 roster to announce their new destination, following Emmanuel Innocenti (Arizona State), Braeden Smith (Notre Dame), Steele Venters (Washington) and Ismaila Diagne (San Francisco).

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Gonzaga transfer Cade Orness announces commitment to Mount St. Mary’s

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