UTM Women's Basketball Continues to Soar

The University of Tennessee at Martin Women’s basketball team has typically been a top-notch team, in the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC). In years past, the women’s team have set standards for future teams to come. The UTM women’s basketball team currently holds four OVC tournament championship titles and five OVC regular season championship titles. Regardless of the high-quality standard that was put in place, by previous teams, the 2018-2019 team is proving that they are up to the challenge of being the best team in the league, and one can only hope that they will bring home the conference titles and NCAA championships.

2018-2019 UT Martin’ Women Basketball Team

Under the coaching of Kevin McMillan, the women now have a winning, 12-4 overall record, with an impressive 8-0 record at home and 4-4 record on the road. They have faced challenging opponents like Samford and Louisville, and UT Martin’s conference rival, Murray State. This year, the team is chock full of natural born athletes and dedicated basketball players that love the game they decided to play many years ago. Everyone on the team commits long hours of team practice and individual time in the gym to becoming a better squad.

Recently, on January 12, the Skyhawks took on the Austin Peay Governors. The girls never once failed to play with heart and gave everything they had in their tanks. From hustling to loose balls, on the floor, to crashing the boards and boxing out opponents, these women are committed to being the number one team in the OVC. This level of dedication and practice has proved to pay off, as their record clearly shows, and the accolades the team have already collected this season. Tennessee Technological University is at the top of the Ohio Valley Conference with a 5-0 record. The Skyhawks are not far being number one though, as the team sits at second, in the conference, as predicted at the beginning of the season, but tied with Belmont, with a 4-1 record. Just two weeks ago, Damiah Griffin received her fourth OVC Freshman of the Week honors. Before that, Brittni Moore was named the Adidas OVC Freshman of the Week honor and Maddie Waldrop was awarded the Fuller Partner Real Estate Student Athlete of the Week.

Senior Emanye Robertson drives against an Arkansas State defender

During the game against Austin Peay, key player Emanye Robertson became the 15th member of the 1,000-point club for UTM’s women’s basketball. Robertson, a senior guard, majoring in HHP, and leader on the court, is always playing to her fullest potential. She scored 17 points against the Governors to help her team secure a 74-65 win. Before her career at UT Martin, Robertson attended White Station High School, in Memphis, TN, where she was named to all-state teams, the Class AAA All-State Honoree, and Pepsi Best of Preps Honors from Commercial Appeal. In 2015, coming out of high school, Robertson was ranked the number three prospect out of Memphis. In the years to follow, Robertson established herself a key component on the team by starting almost every game, if not all of them, and if she did not start, she would come in strong, off the bench and show her worth to the team.

Since last Thursday, the Skyhwaks have battled in two games, going 1-1, while on the road. On Thursday, UTM defeated Eastern Kentucky University, 87-61, but were bested by Morehead State University, losing the game by only ten points. After this past weekend of games, the Skyhawks are tied for third, along with Morehead and Southern Illinois University Ewardsville.

The UT Martin’s women’s basketball team will be playing at home and will take on Eastern Illinois University today, Jan. 24, at 5:30 p.m., at the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center. You can watch online at ESPN+, watch live stats on the UTM sports web-page, or attend the game in person!