Milligan Needs Overtime to Capture Tournament Crown

KINGSPORT, Tenn. - Despite trailing for the majority of the game, top-seeded Milligan rallied to win the 2025 WinWon Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) Women's Basketball Tournament, defeating No. 7 Tennessee Wesleyan 79-75 in overtime on Saturday.

The tournament was played at the MeadowView Marriott Convention Center & Conference Resort in Kingsport, Tenn.

Tennessee Wesleyan came out hot and owned a 20-11 lead following the first quarter. The Bulldogs owned the lead throughout much of the contest even though the Buffaloes made several charges at them.

Down six with under five to play, Milligan went on a 9-0 run to take a 66-63 lead with 14 seconds remaining. Jacelyn Stone, though, buried a 3-pointer to pull Tennessee Wesleyan even with nine seconds left on the clock. Milligan attempted two shots in the waning moments, but neither fell as the game went to overtime at 66-all.

The Bulldogs grabbed a 72-68 lead following a Jalaya Lindsey jumper with 3:04 to play. The Buffaloes countered with a 9-0 run for a 77-72 advantage. Lauren Longmire buried a 3-pointer to give Milligan the lead, and Jaycie Jenkins added two free throws to make it a five-point game with 14 seconds to go.

An Abbey Barr trey brought Tennessee Wesleyan back within two, but McKenna Myers iced the game with a pair of free throws, making the final 79-75 and securing the title for Milligan.

Jenkins led Milligan with 23 points and 15 rebounds, earning her Tournament MVP honors. Joining her on the All-Tournament Team are Longmire and Semaj Clark of Milligan, Stone and Lindsey of Tennessee Wesleyan, Allie Stone of Pikeville, and Laphina Campbell of Reinhardt.

Longmire had 19 points for the Buffaloes, with Clark adding 18.

Stone led all scorers with 39 points to go with five rebounds, five assists, and three steals. Lindsey netted 17 points for Tennessee Wesleyan.

Since Milligan already received an automatic berth to the NAIA National Championship Tournament as the regular-season champion, Johnson receives the AAC's second automatic berth as the league's regular-season co-champion and the tournament's No. 2 seed.

Tournament Schedule
Wednesday, Feb. 26
Game 1 - No. 8 Columbia (19-11) def. No. 9 Truett McConnell (12-17), 71-62 (box)
Game 2 - No. 7 Tennessee Wesleyan (16-12) def. No. 10 Union Commonwealth (10-19), 60-57 (box)

Thursday, Feb. 27
Game 3 - No. 4 Pikeville (22-7) def. No. 5 Montreat (17-12), 89-73 (box)
Game 4 - No. 1 Milligan (22-7) def. No. 8 Columbia (19-12), 86-59 (box)
Game 5 - No. 7 Tennessee Wesleyan (17-12) def. No. 2 Johnson (24-5), 52-35 (box)
Game 6 - No. 3 Reinhardt (22-7) def. No. 6 Bryan (15-13), 64-52 (box)

Friday, Feb. 28
Game 7 - No. 1 Milligan (23-7) def. No. 4 Pikeville (22-8), 82-54 (box)
Game 8 - No. 7 Tennessee Wesleyan (18-12) vs. No. 3 Reinhardt (22-8), 88-69 (box)

Saturday, March 1
Game 9 - Championship Game - No. 1 Milligan (24-7) vs. No. 7 Tennessee Wesleyan (18-13), 79-75 OT (box)