Lady Builders Roll to 67-47 Win at Penn State Beaver, Improve to 2-0

MONACA, Pa. – The Apprentice School women’s basketball team kept its perfect start going Saturday afternoon, defeating Penn State Beaver 67-47 to improve to 2-0 overall.

The Builders never trailed and won every quarter. They led 19-10 after one, stretched the margin to 25 points in the fourth and held Penn State Beaver to 31.5 percent shooting.

Mariah Igus led the way with 17 points off the bench, hitting three three-pointers in just 14 minutes. Joy Wright added 14 points and eight rebounds, and Dajanelle Linton-Robinson put up a double-double-caliber effort with 12 points and 11 boards.

Apprentice’s defense set the tone. The Builders forced 28 turnovers, turned them into 28 points and finished with 12 steals, led by four from Alauna Olds. They also dominated inside, outscoring Penn State Beaver 40-20 in the paint, and got 23 bench points to the hosts’ 15.

Lailana Harris hit a three-pointer and added three steals, while Alauna Olds finished with seven points and Imani Johnson added six. Amaya Olds chipped in six points as well.

The Lady Builders return to action on Sunday as they take on PSU DuBois at 11 AM in the PSU Beaver Tip-Off Tournament.

Story courtesy Jabob Mullins/Apprentice Athletics; photo courtesy DeMetri Washington @pixxbydk

Lady Builders Open Season With Dominant 67-36 Win Over Regent

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – The Apprentice School women’s basketball team opened the 2026-27 season with a 67-36 win over Regent University on Wednesday night at the Apprentice Athletic Center.

The Lady Builders took the lead halfway through the first quarter and never looked back, ending the period with an eight-point advantage, 19-11, before stretching it to 36-23 at the half. Apprentice continued to build its lead, going up 49-32 after three quarters, then closed the game by outscoring Regent 18-4 in the fourth and holding the Royals to 1-of-10 shooting in the period. The Lady Builders’ largest lead, 31 points, came on an Alauna Olds layup with 39 seconds left.

Apprentice finished with 20 steals and forced 35 Regent turnovers, turning those into 29 points. The Lady Builders also scored 40 points in the paint and 12 on the fast break, and shot 43.9 percent from the floor (29-of-66) with 11 assists on 29 made baskets.

Dajanelle Linton-Robinson led the Lady Builders with 18 points on 9-of-14 shooting. Alauna Olds was right behind her with a performance that filled the stat sheet: 15 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, a block and 10 steals. She paced the Lady Builders with a team-best 7 points in the fourth quarter, including three fast-break layups off her own steals.

Joy Wright added 12 points and 5 rebounds. Amaya Olds came off the bench for 10 points, 8 rebounds and 3 steals, including a three-pointer late in the fourth quarter. Imani Johnson set the tone on defense with 4 steals and a team-high 4 assists.

The Lady Builders are back in action this weekend when they travel to Pennsylvania for the PSU Beaver Tip-Off Tournament. They take on the host school Saturday at 3 p.m. and then PSU DuBois on Sunday at 11 a.m. They return home Nov. 11 to host William Peace University at 6:30 p.m.

Story courtesy Jacob Mullins/Apprentice Athletics; photo courtesy DeMetri Washington/@pixxbydk

Atlantis Women Defeat NCF 65-57 Behind Franco’s Double-Double

MIAMI — Rosmery Franco recorded a double-double and Maria Jose Quiroga dished out 10 assists as Atlantis University defeated the New College of Florida developmental team 65-57 in women’s college basketball action.

Franco led the Atlanteans with 17 points and 10 rebounds, adding six assists and four steals in an impressive all-around performance. She connected on seven of 12 shots from the field, including two 3-pointers.

Quiroga contributed 14 points, 10 assists and four steals, while Kenuelys Velazquez added 12 points, six rebounds and four steals. Kiaraliz Del Valle provided a spark off the bench with 11 points, converting all six of her free throw attempts.

Atlantis established control early, outscoring New College 19-12 in the opening quarter. The Atlanteans extended their advantage to 34-26 at halftime and carried a 49-40 lead into the fourth quarter.

New College outscored Atlantis 17-16 in the final period but could not overcome the early deficit.

The Atlanteans shot 35.8% from the field and collected 45 rebounds, including 18 on the offensive glass. Atlantis also recorded 19 assists and 14 steals, demonstrating its ability to create scoring opportunities on both ends of the court.

Delores Charlton contributed seven rebounds off the bench, including five offensive boards, while Rosa Bello added five points, six rebounds and three blocked shots.

Apprentice, Denmark Tech Picked to Battle for WBB Top Spot

LOUISBURG, N.C. – A perennial favorite and a league newcomer are picked to vie for the NSAC Women’s Basketball crown come February.

Voting in the NSAC Preseason Poll, the league coaches put defending champ Apprentice and new member Denmark Tech atop the standings in a tie for first.

“I want to thank the people before me because I wouldn’t be in the position I am now without them,” Builders coach Ieshia Small Gainey at the NSAC Media Day on Thursday. “With my playing career, I had opportunity to be coached by Hall of Fame coaches Kim Mulkey and Brenda Frese. So learning from them, being able to teach the same thing to the girls that’s here next to me and the other ones that may be on the job right now. I mean, that right there itself tells the way we try to keep that standard at a high level.”

Both Apprentice and DTC accepted invitations to the USCAA National Tournament last season. Panthers coach Javon Gilliard was grateful for the accolades.

“We thank God for any type of positive recognition we can get for our program,” said Gilliard. “However, it’s kind of personal to be tied for first, and you know that means now we got to get back to the drawing board and figure out how we can win every conference game that we have, so we can just be number one by ourselves.”

2026 NSAC Women’s Basketball Preseason Poll

T1. Apprentice (21 points)

T1. Denmark Tech (21)

3. SC Central (12)

4. Beacon (11)

5. Atlantis (9)

6. MACU (8)

Women’s Basketball Media Day is This Thursday!

Basketball season is here and we tip it off this Thursday, October 15 at 10:00 am Eastern with the New South Athletic Conference Women’s Basketball Media Day!

Each head coach will preview their team and the season to come. Select players will also be there as special guests. We will also announce this year’s Tipoff Classic and unveil the results of the coaches’ preseason poll.

You can watch live on The NSAC Channel on YouTube or catch the replay anytime.

10:00 Opening Remarks
10:15 SC Central
10:30 MACU
10:45 Atlantis
11:00 Denmark Tech
11:15 Beacon
11:30 Apprentice

Gainey Named WBB Coach of the Year

First-year head coach Ieshia Small Gainey has been named the NSAC Coach of the Year in Women’s Basketball after leading Apprentice to the conference championship.

Gainey took over the program in 2025 after serving as assistant coach. She immediately changed the culture and turned the struggling program around, guiding the Lady Builders to a 14-9 overall record and 5-0 in NSAC play, the top seed in last month’s conference tournament, then winning their first league title in program history.

Gainey came to Apprentice after playing five seasons internationally, including in China, Hungary, Ukraine and Poland. She played her college ball at Maryland, where she was selected the Big 10 Sixth Player of the Year in 2018. As a high school senior in Tallahassee, Florida, she was ranked No. 19 overall by ESPN HoopGurlz and No. 3 at the wing position.

Congratulations to Ieshia Small Gainey, the NSAC Coach of the Year!

Henderson Leads All-Conference Picks

Adriana “AD” Henderson of SC Central Christian has been voted the Most Valuable Player for the New South Athletic Conference and leads the All-Conference team for 2026.

Henderson, a freshman guard from Lexington, South Carolina, received the most ballots in voting by the league’s coaches following a standout performance in the NSAC Women’s Basketball Tournament last month. The Gladiators team captain averaged 16.2 points per game and nearly five assists per game, scoring or assisting on nearly half of her team’s points in conference play.

“Congratulations to AD and to all the young ladies for an outstanding season,” said conference commissioner Mike Davis. “The athletic ability and skill was certainly not in short supply this season, and I’m already looking forward to seeing many of these talented student-athletes back on the floor next year.”

2026 NSAC Women’s Basketball All-Conference

FIRST TEAM

  • AD Henderson, SC Central (MVP)
  • Maya Lopez, Beacon
  • Carly James, Mid-Atlantic Christian
  • Dajanelle Linton, Apprentice
  • Carnasia Lamberson, Apprentice
  • Abigail Theophile, Millennia Atlantic

SECOND TEAM

  • Angenai Martin, Millennia Atlantic
  • Maia Brown, SC Central
  • Joy Wright, Apprentice
  • Rosemary Franco, Atlantis
  • NeOndra Kelly, Apprentice

THIRD TEAM

  • Amaris Ramos Acevedo, Atlantis
  • María José Quiroga, Atlantis
  • Angelina Bologna, Mid-Atlantic Christian
  • Jataya Brown, SC Central

All-Academic Teams Announced

The New South Athletic Conference is proud to announce the 2026 Women’s Basketball All-Academic Team, comprised of student-athletes sporting a 3.0 or higher GPA.

“Now more than ever, the importance of education is paramount, and we in the NSAC take that seriously,” says commissioner Mike Davis. “While college sports elsewhere become more and more consumed by other interests, the NSAC continues to recognize the ‘student’ in ‘student-athlete.’ I am so proud of each of these young people and they institutions they represent.”

2026 All-Academic Team WBB

APPRENTICE

  • NeOndra Kelly

ATLANTIS

  • Naia Beltrán López
  • Rosemary Franco Mejias                       
  • Yenisse Martín  
  • María José Quiroga
  • Rhianna Hodge      
  • Amaris Ramos Acevedo

BEACON

  • Maya Lopez
  • Melisa Schwab
  • Katherine Hillman-Mitchell
  • T’Myrah Carter

MID-ATLANTIC CHRISTIAN

  • Maddy Delosreyes
  • Isabel LaPoe
  • Emily Dangerfield
  • Carly James

MILLENNIA ATLANTIC

  • Abigail Theophile
  • Yvonne Jebian

SC CENTRAL

  • Jatayla Brown
  • Hannan Goodman
  • Dyonna Barnes
  • Adriana Henderson
  • Maia Brown

Apprentice, Atlantis to Carry the NSAC Flag to National Tournaments

PITTSBURGH – Three teams will represent the New South Athletic Conference in next week’s USCAA Small College National Basketball Tournaments in Buffalo, New York.

The Apprentice School men’s basketball team will look to win their third straight USCAA National Tournament as they claimed the No. 6 seed, announced by the national office in the selection show Tuesday morning.

The Builders, fresh off winning their third NSAC Tournament Championship, will take on third-seeded Bryant & Stratton – Syracuse on March 3.

The Atlantis men grabbed the eighth seed and will face top-seed Bloomfield in first round action

The Apprentice School women’s basketball team is back in the national tournament for the first time since 2023 as they claimed the No. 6 seed. The Builders, fresh off winning their first NSAC championship in program history, will take on third-seeded Paul Quinn on March 3.

Game times, ticket information, and more can be found at USCAA Small College National Championships.

Story courtesy Walker McCrary/Apprentice Athletics

Apprentice Routs Millennia for NSAC Title

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – In a single word, dominance. The Apprentice School women’s basketball team saw their offense explode Sunday afternoon as they defeated Millennia Atlantic in the New South Athletic Conference Championship 99-41.

Apprentice shot 10-of-20 from three-point land, marking the third best shooting percentage from distance in program history.

The Builders led wire-to-wire with the game only being tied at 2-2 before the offense exploded. Apprentice finished the first quarter on a 20-2 run and then scored the first seven points of the second quarter to jump out to a massive lead. From there, the shots kept falling with the Builders shooting 59.3 percent from the floor in the first half to take a 49-13 lead into intermission.

Millennia started to see some shots fall in the second half, but Apprentice’s shooting never cooled off, putting up 50 more points in the second half in route to their first NSAC championship in program history.

Five Builders finished in double figures, led by NeOndra Kelly’s 24 points on 9-of-18 shooting from the floor, including five three pointers. Siara Lundy had a career-high 20 points, her first collegiate game with double digit scoring. Dajanelle Linton-Robinson finished with a double-double of 15 points and 11 rebounds, and Joy Wright was one rebound shy of a double-double with 14 points. Shilah-Rayn Lord added 12 points.

Linton-Robinson was named the Tournament MVP, averaging a double-double for the tournament at 14.5 points and 11.5 rebounds per game. Wright and Kelly were named to the All-Tournament Team, joined by MACU’s Carly James, SC Central’s Adriana Henderson and Millennia’s Abigail Thoephile and Angenai Martin.

The Builders now await the USCAA National Tournament bids to be announced Tuesday morning at 11:40 a.m. on the USCAA Sports Network. Coming into the week at No. 5 in the coaches poll, Apprentice will likely get a bid and head to Buffalo for the Division I Tournament starting on March 3.

Story courtesy Walker McCrary/Apprentice Athletics; image courtesy DeMetri Washington/@pixxbydk