By: Joseph Hovey
Louisiana Tech (20-5, 13-1 CUSA) at Kennesaw State (12-13, 5-9 CUSA)
Kennesaw, GA | VyStar Arena | Saturday, February 21 | 2 p.m. EST
KENNESAW, Ga. — Kennesaw State women's basketball will take the floor at VyStar Arena for the final time in the 2025-26 season when it faces Louisiana Tech on Saturday at 2 p.m.
Owl Nation is invited to arrive early to participate in pregame Senior Day festivities as the team recognizes departing veterans
Keyarah Berry,
Gabriela Bendeck-Giron and
Fanta Daffe.
CELEBRATING THE SENIORS
A forward from Paris, France, Daffe came to KSU in 2025 after two seasons at Saint Francis. Despite suffering a season-ending injury, Daffe has continued to flourish as a team leader with a mature, active and encouraging presence in the locker room and at practice. She will graduate in May with a degree in coaching education.
After two years at Pensacola State, Bendeck-Giron joined the Owls and played in 23 games over the last two seasons. Bendeck-Giron recorded two career-high 15-point performances and established herself as a positive, energizing force on the team. A native of Barranquilla, Colombia, Bendeck-Giron will graduate in May with a finance degree.
Berry, a guard from Rockmart, Georgia, saved the best for last in her fourth season at KSU. As a graduate student, Keyarah cleared 1,000 career points while averaging 14.4 per game. She concludes her career ranked among the top 10 Owls in Division I-era (2005-pres.) career scoring, field goals and free throws made, steals and games played.
STANDINGS STATUS
Following Thursday's loss to Sam Houston, KSU remains in ninth in the Conference USA standings. The top 10 teams at the end of the regular season advance to the 2026 Air National Guard CUSA Women's Basketball Championship held March 10-14 at Propst Arena in Huntsville, Alabama.
The Owls' current ninth-place position would put them in a No. 8 versus No. 9-seed first-round matchup on March 10 at 12:30 p.m. EDT on ESPN+.
After dropping their conference opener to Sam Houston 67-64 on Jan. 2, LA Tech has won 13 straight games and sits atop CUSA.
LA TECH ROUND TWO
Saturday marks just the fourth all-time meeting between the Owls and Lady Techsters. The two teams faced off in Ruston, Louisiana, on Jan. 29, with LA Tech defeating KSU 72-44. Two first-half 10-0 runs by the Lady Techsters and a cold 33% shooting performance proved too much for the Owls to overcome.
TaTianna Stovall led KSU in Ruston with 15 points on 5-for-5 from the field and 5-for-7 from the free throw line.
BERRY'S BUCKETS
With 23 points versus Sam Houston on Thursday,
Keyarah Berry recorded her 12
th career game scoring 20-plus and 49
th in double figures. Berry's two steals against the Bearkats give her 119 for her career, good for eighth at KSU in the DI era. One free throw made, her 213
th, is all that separates Berry from sixth in the era's career free throws made rankings.
Berry enters Saturday leading CUSA in field goals made (143) and second in field goal percentage (48).
DOUBLE TROUBLE
Stovall's 36 blocks on the season have established her as the Owls' best interior defender, but the freshman forward also flexed her offensive playmaking on Thursday. With 11 points and 11 rebounds versus Sam Houston, Stovall notched her second career double-double and came one board shy of tying a career-high.
FIGHTING TO THE FINISH
KSU is now 5-5 in games decided by single digits, with five of its last six ending in such fashion. Those five games have featured a combined 39 ties and 36 lead changes.
SHARING IS CARING
Sam Houston held the Owls to eight assists on Thursday, tied for KSU's fewest in CUSA play. The Owls rank fourth in the league with 12.8 assists per game, led by
Kailyn Fields' 4.4. Twelve of 13 KSU losses have come when the team has recorded fewer than 15 assists.
FIRST QUARTER CRUCIAL
Each of the Owls' last four wins has come after finishing the first quarter with a lead. Only at Georgia State and versus WKU has KSU gone to the second with a deficit but come back to win.
KNOW THE FOE
Tenth-year head coach Brooke Stoehr leads a LA Tech squad featuring four double-figure scorers in Paris Bradley (14.2), Jianna Morris (11.9), Jordan Marshall (11.2) and Alexia Weaver (10.4).
The Owls Fund
The Owls Fund is the primary fundraising arm of Kennesaw State Athletics with the goal of supporting our student-athletes, coaches and each of our 18 NCAA Division I programs. Through initiatives such as Legacy Lockers, the Dot Martin Scholarship Golf Classic, sport-specific giving opportunities, general donations and season tickets, The Owls Fund connects fans with KSU's programs and student-athletes. Members receive exclusive benefits such as hospitality seating areas and events at Kennesaw State home games, and more. Join The Owls Fund here and discover more opportunities on how you can support Kennesaw State Athletics.
