JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The No. 1 seed Eastern Kentucky University women's basketball team opens the 2026 Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament on Thursday afternoon against No. 8 seed Austin Peay at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena.
Thursday's game is scheduled to tip off at noon ET and will stream live on ESPN+ with Mia O'Brien and Alvin Delve on the call. The game will also be available on the Colonels All-Access page and via @EKUWBB's live stream on X.
Fans making the trip to Jacksonville can purchase tickets
online here.
EKU (24-7, 15-3 ASUN) enters the tournament as the top seed after tying a program record with 24 regular season victories. The Colonels captured the ASUN Regular Season Championship for the first time as a league member and secured their first conference regular season title since 2005.
EKU also collected a program-record 10 postseason all-conference honors announced earlier this week. Head coach
Greg Todd was named ASUN Coach of the Year,
Joseana Vaz earned ASUN Newcomer of the Year,
Liz Freihofer was named ASUN Scholar-Athlete of the Year, and
Ndidiamaka Ndukwe received ASUN Sixth Woman of the Year honors.
Vaz and Freihofer were also named First Team All-ASUN, marking the first time since 1998 that EKU has had two first team all-conference selections in the same season. Freshman
Kenleigh Woods earned a spot on the ASUN All-Freshman Team, giving EKU back-to-back seasons with an all-freshman selection.
Entering the tournament, Vaz leads the Colonels averaging 14.2 points and 6.7 rebounds per game. The Cape Verde native has scored in double figures in 10 of her last 11 games, including a 33-point performance against Austin Peay on Feb. 7 and 22 points at Stetson on Feb. 21.
Freihofer ranks second on the team averaging 12.6 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. The Union, Kentucky, native has scored in double figures in four of her last five games and recorded 18 points in EKU's regular season finale against Bellarmine on Feb. 27.
EKU leads the ASUN in scoring offense at 73.6 points per game and ranks fourth in the conference in scoring defense, allowing 59.6 points per contest.
With a win on Thursday, EKU would advance to the ASUN Tournament semifinals for the third consecutive season and face the winner of No. 4 Stetson or No. 5 FGCU on March 7.
Scouting Austin Peay
Austin Peay (17-12, 8-10 ASUN) enters the quarterfinal matchup after defeating No. 9 seed Lipscomb 63-56 in the opening round Tuesday at UNF Arena.
The Governors are led by sophomore guard Anovia Sheals, a Second Team All-ASUN selection who averages 14.1 points per game.
Series History
Thursday marks the third meeting between EKU and Austin Peay this season. The Colonels won both previous matchups, earning a 67-60 victory on Feb. 7 in Richmond and a 67-54 win on Feb. 27 in Clarksville.
The two programs will meet for the 95th time overall on Thursday. EKU holds a 52-42 advantage in the all-time series and has won three of the last four meetings.
