TJC’s Gerlyn Smith scored 12 points in the Apache Ladies’ 75-59 win over Odessa on Saturday in Lufkin.

Five Apache Ladies who helped Tyler Junior College to a berth in the NJCAA National Tournament have signed with the next level, TJC coach Trenia Tillis Hoard announced.

Inking with colleges were Felmas Koranga (Troy University), Te’Aire Hambrick (Texas Southern University), Kharisma Brown (Paul Quinn College), Diamond Atchison (East Texas Baptist University) and Gerlyn Smith (Prairie View A&M University).

Koranga, Hambrick, Brown and Atchison were all sophomores while Smith was a freshman qualifier. The four sophomores led TJC to the Region XIV regular season title in 2019 and to two straight national tournament berths.

“Fun bunch that worked hard,” Tillis Hoard said. “Not my most talented team but having Felmas and their relentless mentality made this bunch fun to coach.”

Koranga was the 2020 Women’s Basketball Coaches Association Two-Year Player of the Year and headlined the All-America team. She was also NJCAA first-team All-America and the Region XIV Player of the Year.

Koranga led the Apache Ladies with 19.0 points and 13.1 rebounds per game. The 6-1 forward from Rift Valley, Kenya, started in 31 games and tallied 26 double-doubles.

Troy is located in Troy, Alabama, and competes in the NCAA Division I Sun Belt Conference. The school has an enrollment of 17,494. The Sun Belt basketball league includes: UT Arlington, Texas State, Arkansas-Little Rock, Arkansas State, Appalachian State, Coastal Carolina, South Alabama, Georgia State, Georgia Southern, Louisiana-Monroe and Louisiana-Lafayette.

Hambrick, a 5-6 guard from Larue, was a two-year starter for the Apache Ladies and made the All-Region XIV team. The former all-state and All-East Texas player from La Poynor High School averaged 15.0 points, 3.7 assists and 4.4 rebounds. Hambrick was the Apache Ladies’ long-distance threat, shooting 34.2% from 3-point land.

Texas Southern is located in Houston and the Tigers compete in the NCAA Division I Southwestern Athletic Conference. Members of the league include Alabama A&M, Alabama State, Alcorn State, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Grambling State, Jackson State, Mississippi Valley State, Prairie View A&M and Southern.

TSU has an enrollment of 10,000. The Tigers finished the 2019-20 season at 20-10 and second in the SWAC at 14-4.

Brown (5-4, point guard, Fort Worth) averaged 8.3 points per game, along with 4.9 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 1.7 steals.

Paul Quinn College is located in Dallas. The Lady Tigers compete in the NAIA Division I Red River Athletic Conference. Schools in the conference include: Texas College, Jarvis Christian College, Wiley College, Our Lady of the Lake University, University of the Southwest, LSU-Shreveport, LSU-Alexandria, Huston-Tillotson, Texas A&M-Texarkana and Texas A&M-San Antonio.

The Lady Tigers finished the 2019-20 season with a record of 14-15 and in fourth place in the RRAC with a mark of 12-6. Paul Quinn has an enrollment of 700.

Atchison (5-4, point guard, Waxahachie) scored 4.0 points a game and dished out two assists.

ETBU is an NCAA Division III school located in Marshall and has an enrollment of 1,613. The Tigers compete in the American Southwest Conference along with LeTourneau, Belhaven, Concordia-Texas, Hardin-Simmons, Howard Payne, Louisiana College, Mary Hardin-Baylor, McMurry, Ozarks, Sul Ross State and UT Dallas.

The Tigers finished this season with a 20-7 record and runner-up with a 13-3 mark in the East Division of the ASC.

Smith (6-1, guard/forward, Miramar, Florida) averaged 6.0 points and 4.5 rebounds.

Prairie View A&M, which is located in Prairie View, Texas, between Houston and College Station, has an enrollment of 9,500. The Lady Panthers also compete in the SWAC and finished this past season at 12-19 and tied for fifth in the conference at 9-9.