CANYON, TEXAS – West Texas A&M Women's Basketball was ranked No. 20 in the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Preseason Poll as announced by the organization Tuesday morning. The Lady Buffs were one of three Lone Star Conference (LSC) teams ranked.
 
Joining WT in the rankings from the LSC was No. 6 Texas Woman's and No. 24 UT Tyler. Lubbock Christian was also receiving votes. The Lady Buffs were also picked second in the LSC Preseason Poll.
 
West Texas A&M is coming off a 2025-26 season where they produced a 28-5 record headlined by a 19-game winning streak. The Lady Buffs finished second in the conference standings and reached the LSC Tournament Championship. WT would go dancing to the NCAA Tournament for the third consecutive season but were defeated in the opening round against UT Tyler.
 
Head Coach Josh Prock enters his sixth season at the helm of the Lady Buffs ahead of the season. Prock has guided WT to the NCAA Tournament in four of his five seasons with an Elite Eight appearance in 2021-22. He holds a 112-53 record in his tenure with three 20+ win seasons.
 
This year's roster will feature a plethora of new players including LSC Preseason Player of the Year Kerbie Cash. Cash is a junior wing transferring from Midwestern State where she was the conference's Freshman of the Year in 2024-25 while being a two-time All-Conference selection. She was a First Team honoree this past year while being named to the Third Team her freshman year. Last season, the Wylie, Texas native averaged 16.6 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 1.5 assists for the Mustangs to go with 2.4 stocks and nine double-doubles.
 
Returning this year for the Lady Buffs will be Abbi Holder, Anna Ferrel, Taylor Haggan, and Brooklyn Scurry. Haggan leads the bunch as a Second Team All-LSC Selection last year after averaging 10.7 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 1.3 stocks while shooting 54.5% from the field. Holder, Ferrel, and Scurry all played key roles off the bench for West Texas A&M last season.
 
Joining Cash as transfers will be Zarai Lewis, Julie Nekolna, Arissa Garcia, Mylasia Smith, Ciara Harris, and Taejhuan Hill. Lewis comes from New Mexico Junior College where she was an All-Conference selection after averaging 8.2 points and shooting 34.2% from three. Nekolna played for Texas Tech last season and saw action in nine games. Garcia appeared in 21 games for Cal Poly in 2025-26 where she averaged 3.2 points, 2.6 boards, and 1.5 assists. Smith averaged 9.7 points on 51.1% from the field as she was an All-Conference Honorable Mention at Trinity Valley Community College. Harris comes from UNC Greensboro where he made 25 appearances and totaled 3.9 points per game. Hill is a two-time All-Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) selection after earning First Team honors this past year and Second Team her freshman season. This past year, Hill averaged 14.4 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 1.7 stocks on 54% shooting with 11 double-doubles.
 
Rounding out the roster will be freshman Juliet Slater and Ella Brown as well as Natalia Tarango.
 
West Texas A&M will tip-off their season at the First United Bank Center this weekend as they compete in the D2CCA Tipoff Classic against Southern Arkansas (October 30) and No. 19 Tampa (October 31).
 
For all the latest on West Texas A&M Women's Basketball, stay tuned to gobuffsgo.com and follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.