WASHINGTON, DC – Ninth-seeded North Carolina A&T must look toward the future, even though it wishes it could have gotten more from what is now its recent past on Thursday during its first-round game against No. 8 seed William & Mary at the 2026 Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) Credit Union 1 Women's Basketball Championship Tournament at CareFirst Arena.
The Aggies rallied from a double-digit second-half deficit but got eliminated from the tournament with a 61-58 loss to The Tribe. While the Aggies have enjoyed regular-season success in the CAA, with a 47-25 record over four seasons, it has not translated to CAA tournament wins. The Aggies fell to 1-4 in their short CAA tournament history after getting eliminated from the tournament for the second straight year by WMU. The Aggies' season came to an end at 12-18.
"We got started a little too late," said A&T head coach Tarrell Robinson, who saw his team enter a conference tournament with its lowest seed of his 14-season tenure in Aggieland. "I thought they got off to a great start. "They had 10 points off our turnovers in the first half, which was the difference in the score. We finally started to realize it was a win-or-go-home tournament and then started to step up."
A&T turned the ball over 13 times in the first half, took only 23 shots, and trailed 29-18 at halftime. WMU had the lead at 13, 37-24, on an Alexa Mikeska layup with 5 ½ minutes remaining in the third quarter. The Tribe led 43-33 going into the fourth quarter. A&T came alive in the fourth. Graduate guard D'Mya Tucker's 3-pointer cut The Tribe's lead to 51-45 with 5:19 remaining in the game.
Freshman Crystal Hardy, who led the Aggies with career highs in points (19), rebounds (6), assists (3), and 3-pointers (4), cut WMU's lead to 53-50 with 3:20 to play.
"We picked up our pressure. We tried to make (WMU) uncomfortable, which we did a good job of," said Robinson. "They took some forced shots, which led to our transition. That got the tempo and the momentum going in our favor."
WMU guard Monet Dance put The Tribe ahead by five, using a screen to get to the rim and score. A&T junior Darrionna Howard followed her miss to put the Aggies back to within five before a Cassidy Geddes free throw put The Tribe ahead 56-52 with two minutes remaining. Fifth-year center and first-team All-CAA selection Chaniya Clark took a pass from Hardy at the elbow and splashed a three to cut WMU's lead to one, 56-55, with 1:15 to play.
The Tribe answered again with a layup from Marley Long. Hardy tried to tie the game, but her shot went long, landing in the grasp of Mikeska. That led to two free throws by Geddes, giving The Tribe a 60-55 lead. Hardy kept firing, nailing a deep 3-pointer to get the Aggies to within two before Howard fouled Dance.
"In the second half, I settled into my game," said Hardy. "I got some good looks, and I hit them when it was time to."
Dance made one of two free throws before Hardy's game-tying came up short, advancing The Tribe to the quarterfinals to face top-seeded College of Charleston at noon on Friday. WMU improved to 17-13 on the season. Hardy is scheduled to return for the 2026-27 season along with others from A&T's impressive freshman class. Jamiya Lindsey started 25 games this season. Center Anaya Karriem scored in double figures five times, and combo guard Ja'naya Meyers played double-figure minutes in three of A&T's last four ballgames.
Paris Locke, who had 11 points and four rebounds on Thursday, earned third-team All-CAA honors in 2025-26. The team expects her to return for her senior season. Clark and Tucker, who have been teammates since the 2021-22 season, played their final games as Aggies. Clark only took five shots, posting five points and four rebounds. Tucker had seven points and four rebounds in her A&T finale. Both players exceeded 1,000 points for their respective careers, and Clark is only one of two players in program history with more than 1,000 points and 800 rebounds in a career.
"You see this young lady coming in emotional. I hope that means something to her," said Robinson, who shared the postgame press conference stage with a tearful Hardy. "I hope she works her tail off so that for one, we're not playing on this day, and two, we are getting past this round."
