FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The Indiana Tech women's basketball team is an 11 Seed in the NAIA National Tournament and will be headed to Spring Arbor, Michigan to play 6 Seed Spring Arbor. Also in the region are 3 Seed Tennessee Southern and 14 Seed Northwestern (Iowa).
 
The 2026 NAIA Women's Basketball Championship First Round presented by Ballogy will take place at host sites on March 13. The Second Round will be on the following day, March 14.
 
Tickets will be available for purchase at the door (CASH ONLY). Prices will be $15 for general admission, $5 for seniors and non-SAU students (with ID) while children ages 6 and under will be free.
 
11 Seed Indiana Tech (26-5): 15^th NAIA Tournament Appearance
Indiana Tech comes into the tournament as one of the hottest teams in the country, winning 17 of their last 18 games. The Warriors won the WHAC Regular Season Championship with a record of 20-2. Indiana Tech then cruised through the WHAC Tournament, outscoring their opponents 250-142.
 
Indiana Tech averages 75.5 points per game and are ultra-efficient while doing so. The Warriors are third in the country with a 47.5 field goal percentage. Tech can also shoot it from behind the arc, shooting 35 percent from three, which is 12^th in the nation. The Warriors shine with ball movement as they average 18.7 assists per game, good for seventh in the country. Not only does Tech share the ball well, but they do so with intelligence as the Warriors average just 10.4 turnovers per game, which is the second lowest mark in the NAIA.
 
The Warriors also shine on the defensive end of the court. The Warriors have one of the best defenses in the country, allowing only 50.9 points per game, which ranks second in the country. Teams only average 7.2 assists per game against Tech, which is the lowest mark in the NAIA.
 
Indiana Tech is led by senior guard Taylor Covington, who won the WHAC Player of the Year for the second consecutive season. Covington, also named to the All-WHAC First Team, averages 19.2 points, 5.1 assists (12^th in the NAIA), and 3.0 rebounds per game. Covington has made 82 threes, which ranks No. 15 in the NAIA.
 
Sophomore Jaidyn Gulley was named to the All-WHAC First Team and All-WHAC Defensive Team. The forward was third on the team with 10.4 points per game and led the Warriors with 9.2 rebounds per game. Gulley also had the most blocks and steals on the team. Gulley is sixth in the NAIA with a field goal percentage of 62.4.
 
Sophomore Ryan Moorer was named to the All-WHAC Second Team, averaging 13.8 points and 6.7 rebounds per game.
 
6 Seed Spring Arbor (22-7): 7^th NAIA Tournament Appearance
Spring Arbor enters the tournament as an at-large selection with a 22-7 record. They finished the regular season 13-5 in the Crossroads League.
 
Spring Arbor averages 74.9 points per game and shoots 42 percent from the field. Spring Arbor does most of their work from inside the three-point arc as they only average 4.5 made threes per game. The Cougars do damage from the free throw line as they average 20.8 free throw attempts per game.
 
Spring Arbor also has one of the best defenses in the country. The Cougars allow just 55.5 points per game, which is 15^th in the NAIA. They hold opponents to 36.6 percent shooting and a 25.1 three-point percentage. The Cougars force 25.2 turnovers per game (7^th in the NAIA) and record 15.5 steals per game (8^th in the NAIA).
 
Spring Arbor is led by Megan Zeitz, who was named First-Team All-Crossroads League and Crossroads All-Defense. Zeitz, a sophomore, is averaging 14.0 points, 4.9 rebounds, 2.2 steals, and 2.1 assists per game.
 
Ashley Weller was named Second-Team All-Crossroads League. The sophomore is averaging 9.1 points, 2.8 rebounds, 1.9 steals, and 1.4 assists per game.
 
Haven Chapman was named Honorable Mention All-Crossroads League. The freshman is averaging 9.1 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.1 steals, and 1.1 assists per game. Chapman was also named to the Crossroads League All-Defensive and All-Freshman Teams.
 
Emma Smieska was also named Honorable Mention All-Crossroads League. The senior averages 8.0 points, 4.1 rebounds, 2.2 steals, and 2.1 assists per game.
 
3 Seed Tennessee Southern (22-6): 6^th NAIA Tournament Appearance
Tennessee Southern comes into the NAIA National Tournament as an at-large selection with a 22-6 record. The Firehawks finished third in the SSAC in the regular season and were runner-up in the SSAC Tournament. Their signature win came on Jan. 3 when they upset then-No. 1 Bethel (Tenn).
 
Tennessee Southern averages 72.6 points per game on 41.5 percent shooting. The Firehawks only make 5.0 threes per game, but they get to the free throw line as they make 15.8 free throws per game, which is 15^th in the NAIA.
 
The Firehawks allow 63.8 points per game, holding their opponents to 37.2 percent shooting and 29.8 percent from behind the arc.
 
UT Southern is led by Ashley Dickey, who was named First Team All-SSAC. Dickey averages 18.1 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 2.8 steals per game.
 
Also named to the All-SSAC First Team was Silkiari Vazquez-Troche. The senior averages 11.4 points and 7.8 assists per game, which ranks third in the NAIA. Vaquez-Troche also averages 3.0 steals per game.
 
Named to Second Team All-SSAC was Ramie Reid, who also won SSAC Newcomer of the Year. The junior averages 13.1 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks per game.
 
Both Taya Totten and Abbilyn Teter were named to the SSAC All-Freshman Team.
 
14 Seed Northwestern (Iowa) (16-13): 22^nd NAIA Tournament Appearance
Northwestern enters the NAIA Tournament as an at-large selection with a 16-13 record. The Red Raiders finished the regular season with a 12-10 GPAC record.
 
Northwestern averages an efficient 75.4 points per game. The Red Raiders are 20^th in the NAIA with a field goal percentage of 45.1. They are 8^th in the NAIA from behind the arc, shooting 35.3 percent. Northwestern is also sixth in the NAIA with 18.9 assists per game. The Red Raiders play big, as they grab 44.6 rebounds per game, which is 14^th in the NAIA. They block shots as well, averaging 4.3 blocks per contest, good for 19^th in the country.
 
Northwestern gives up 73.4 points per game on 40.0 percent shooting. They allow their opponents to shoot 33.4 percent from three.
 
The Red Raiders are led by Ashtyn Wobig, who was named to the All-GPAC Second Team. The senior averages 14.4 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 2.3 assists. Wobig shoots 37.1 percent from behind the arc.
 
Also named to the All-GPAC Second Team was Allison Piercy. The junior averages 12.5 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 2.2 assists. Piercy has made 79 threes this year, which is 20^th in the NAIA. She is shooting 41.1 percent from three on the season.
 
Kylie Foss was named an ALL-GPAC Honorable Mention. The senior averages 5.5 points per game and led the Red Raiders with 6.8 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game.
 
Game 1: 11 Seed (RV) Indiana Tech @ 6 Seed (#18) Spring Arbor, 5:00 PM
 
Indiana Tech leads the all-time series 2-1, but the two teams have not played each other since 2013.
 
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Game 2: 14 Seed Northwestern vs 3 Seed (#24) Tennessee Southern, 7:00 PM
 
The two teams have never played against each other.
 
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Game 3: G1 Winner vs G2 Winner, 5:00 PM