Lady Indians earn No. 21 seed in NJCAA Women's Basketball Tournament

FULTON, MS – Itawamba Community College will take the national stage as the No. 21 seed in the 2025 Credit Union 1 NJCAA Women's DI Basketball Tournament. The Lady Indians (25-5) will face No. 12 seed Florida Southwestern State College (24-5) on Wednesday, March 26, at 3:30 p.m. at the Ford Wyoming Center in Casper, Wyoming.

Riding a nine-game winning streak, the Lady Indians secured their tournament berth by capturing the NJCAA Region 23 championship. Under head coach Robin Porter, they return to the national tournament for the first time since 2016.

Leading the way for ICC are Jestiny Dixon (14.3 PPG), Tootie Lockett (12.7 PPG), and D'Naylah Williams (10.7 PPG).

Florida Southwestern, making its first national tournament appearance since 2020, earned an at-large bid. The Buccaneers defeated six Top 25 opponents during the regular season and advanced to the Florida College System Activities Association (FCSAA) Championship Semifinals before falling to eventual champion No. 1 Chipola College (30-3).

The Bucs, ranked No. 12 in the country, are led by Samantha Serrano (18.2 PPG), with key contributions from Asiana Britt and Sarah Owona, who each average over 11 points per game.

The winner will advance to the second round to face No. 5 seed New Mexico Junior College on Friday, March 28, at 3:30 p.m. The Thunderbirds (29-3) are ranked No. 3 in the country.

All games from the 2025 Credit Union 1 Women's Basketball Championship will be streamed on ESPN+, with the finals airing on ESPNU.

ICC National Tournament History

ICC made its first national tournament appearance in 1975 in Vincennes, Indiana. Then known as the Indianettes, they opened with an 82-53 victory over Danville Area (IL) Community College before falling to Temple (TX) College, 73-48. ICC was eliminated after a narrow 65-62 loss to Peace (NC) College (now a four-year university), finishing the season 26-4 under head coach Billy Caples. Future ICC head coach Nanci Gray was a member of that team and earned NJCAA All-American honorable mention honors.

In 2013, the Lady Indians secured a national tournament berth by defeating Baton Rouge (LA) Community College, 58-57, in the Region 23 Tournament at Mississippi College. Leslie Robinson (Belmont) clinched the victory with two clutch free throws in the final second. Entering the national tournament as the No. 22 seed, ICC fell to No. 11 seed and fifth-ranked Northwest Florida State College, 57-46.

In 2015, ICC claimed another Region 23 title with a dominant 84-64 win over Jones County Junior College, led by a double-double performance from Delta State University signee Kaelin Kneeland (Olive Branch), who posted 21 points and 10 rebounds. As the No. 20 seed, ICC fell to No. 13 seed and 18th-ranked Wabash Valley (IL) College, 70-51.

In 2016, the Lady Indians earned another tournament appearance by defeating Co-Lin, 68-64, behind Ieysha May's 21 points and 11 rebounds. However, No. 21 seeded ICC fell in the opening round to No. 13 ranked Blinn Community College (TX), 59-39, at the Ripp Griffin Center on the campus of Lubbock Christian University in Lubbock, Texas.