KC-WALTERS STATE TODAY AT 11! | Playing in the first round of the NJCAA Women’s Tournament in Wyoming
Today, the Kilgore College Lady Rangers basketball team begins a journey they hope will end with a national championship celebration on the floor of the Ford Wyoming Center in Casper, Wyoming later this week.
That’s because, for the first time in 32 years, the Lady Rangers are in the NJCAA Women’s National Basketball Tournament.
Their run begins at 11 a.m. Central time, locally, as they face Walters State (Tennessee). KC (23-9) is the tournament’s No. 17 seed; Walters State, No. 16.
The winner will face the top seed in the entire tournament, Chipola (Florida), in round two.
Here’s a look at the bracket: 2025 NJCAA Division I Women’s Tournament Bracket.pdf.
The best way to watch the Lady Rangers, and the entire tournament, is to do so on ESPN+, the sports network’s streaming service, here Stream ESPN+ Live Games and Original Shows – Watch ESPN. A subscription is needed, but the entire tournament will be available.
KC, coached by Stephanie Williams and Brianna Brooks, got to this point by winning the Region XIV Conference Women’s Tournament at Lee College in Baytown last week. But it was a tough road.
They first had to go through fifth-seeded Panola College, which they did, 60-50.
In round two: the overall No. 1 seed, Trinity Valley. KC and Trinity Valley had split the season series, with the Lady Rangers winning a two-point game at their own Masters Gym, and TVCC winning by 20 in Athens.
It would be KC in an upset, though, in Baytown, 79-73, to the surprise of many in attendance. But Trinity Valley was out – KC was in, advancing to the finals.
In the championship game on Saturday, the Lady Rangers would meet Tyler Junior College. And they would run out to a double-digit lead, which they held for much of the contest.
But Tyler would come back, make it close (59-58 close, with KC up by only one) before the Lady Rangers finished off that comeback in the final two minutes with an 8-0 run to capture the tournament title, a 67-58 final.
Jarahle Daniels and Madison Bob would wind up on the all-tournament team, and Nakiyah Allen as the tournament’s overall most valuable player.
Across the south last weekend, Walters State was winning their own tournament, the Region 7 Tournament, beating Chattanooga State, 58-49.
Walters State is based in Morristown, Tennessee. Their mascots for their athletic teams are the Senators and Lady Senators.
The Lady Senators are 25-5 as this tournament begins; that includes a 19-1 record in their conference, an 11-2 record at home, and a 3-1 record in neutral-site games. They also lost the first two games of the season – they’ve only lost three since.
They’ve averaged 66 points, 41 rebounds, and 10 assists per game.
On the season, they’re shooting right at 44 percent from the floor, and hitting 30 percent of their three-point shots. They’re averaging 67 percent at the free throw line as a team.
Of note: they’re forcing opponents into 16 turnovers a game, and holding them to right around 26 rebounds a game, on average.
Freshman Terryauna Griffin is their leading scorer, at 17.3 points per game. She’s played in all 30 games, and also averages right at five rebounds, two assists and three steals per game.
Teammate Kyra Perkins, a sophomore, averages 15.8 points, six rebounds, two assists and two steals a game for the Lady Senators. And freshman Nyjah Gibbs is averaging eight rebounds, two assists, and 7.5 points a game.
As for the Lady Rangers, in their 32 games, they’ve averaged 77 points, just over 38 rebounds, and 16 assists per game. They’ve hit on average 45 percent of their shots and 29 percent of their three-pointers, and on the season, as a team, they’re averaging 65 percent of their free throw shots.
Allen is the team’s leading scorer, averaging 15.5 points a game. Daniels has averaged just over 11 points a game this season, and Madison Bob, just over 10.
See the team’s complete roster below.
The loser of KC-Walters State, of course, is out; the winner will be off on Wednesday, and back in action Thursday morning at 11 a.m. East Texas time in round two.
| PLAYER | HT/CLASS/POSITION | HOMETOWN | HIGH SCHOOL |
| 0 Deyna Topia | 5-7 fresh. guard | New Zealand | Takapuna High |
| 1 Madison Bob | 5-11 fresh. guard | Missouri City, TX | Hightower High |
| 3 Jarahle Daniels | 5-7 soph. shooting guard | Fairfield, TX | Fairfield High |
| 4 Rhyeli Hendrick | 5-7 fresh. guard | Houston | Westside High |
| 5 Rhianna Battles | 5-5 fresh. point guard | Alexandria, LA. | Northwood High |
| 10 Camryn Beck | 5-11 fresh. forward | Houston, TX | Klein Cain High |
| 12 Tylissa Henderson | 6-0 soph. forward | Bossier City, LA | Parkway High |
| 13 Brooklyn King | 5-7 fresh, guard | Wylie, TX | Wylie High |
| 15 Taylor Younger | 5-11 fresh. forward | Manvel, TX | Manvel High |
| 20 Anyla Herbert | 6-0 fresh. forward | Grand Prairie, TX | South Grand Prairie High |
| 21 Kamari Forrest | 5-10 soph. guard | Saginaw, Mich. | Saginaw High |
| 23 Nakiyah Allen | 5-10 soph. forward | Boyce, LA | Northwood High |
| 25 Ja’Sani Green | 6-1 fresh, forward | Omaha, Neb. | Benson High |