The Marshall women’s basketball team celebrates after winning the WNIT championship Saturday over Illinois State, 66-41.(Photo courtesy of Herd Zone)

HUNTINGTON — Not many get to finish the season with a win and on its home court, even less finish the season hoisting a trophy. Marshall women’s basketball did all and more in front of a sold out Cam Henderson Center Saturday in a 66-41 victory over Illinois State to win the 2026 WNIT Championship.

The win caps a historic season for head coach Juli Fulks’ Herd, a team which finished with 28 wins, more than any before in program history.

“We are very blessed and grateful to be here,” said Fulks. “That was an absolutely amazing crowd. To sell out the Cam and have over 5,000 people here for this team. That says two things. It says great things about Huntington, the community and how they support it. It says a lot about this group and how they play, and how they conduct themselves in a way that makes you want to come and cheer for them. I’m really grateful for our administration making sure that we were able to play our last game here so we could showcase what Marshall, as a University and our women’s basketball program, is.”

Tournament MVP Timaya Lewis-Eutsey set the pace for the championship game as she has all season long, leading the team with 27 points on 12-of-17 shooting, including 14 points in the opening quarter for Marshall. Her 21st point of the game in the third quarter made the transfer Marshall’s all-time single-season scoring record holder, surpassing Karen Pelphrey’s 732 point mark which had been held since the 1985-86 season.

Lewis-Eutsey finished with 741 points this season and exactly 20 points per game, the highest in program history. She also holds the single-season steals record for the team with 141 after her game-high seven Saturday.

She finished the WNIT with 122 points as MVP and head of the All-Tournament team. The WNIT All-Tournament team also featured Timberlynn Yeast, who finished with double figures in three of Marshall’s five tournament victories.

The Herd fed off the crowd’s energy with a 21-point outburst in the opening quarter, carrying a 10 point lead into the halftime break. Similarly in the second half, Marshall opened the third quarter on a 12-0 run to put away any hopes the Redbird had coming out of the locker room.

Marshall’s seniors had a curtain call in the second half, with triples knocked down by Peyton Ilderton and Meredith Maier. Aarionna Redman also closed out the Championship Game scoring as the chapter closed for the winningest senior class in Marshall Women’s Basketball history.

“I was super blessed to play here these last four years,” Ilderton said. “Coming in as a walk-on I never knew if I’d get to step on the floor. I didn’t know what was going to happen for me, but it’s just a testament to God’s plan. I mean I just got to play in front of a sold-out crowd and win a WNIT championship with an amazing group of girls.”