ODESSA, Texas (March 4, 2026) – Graduate student Kenadi Rising was named Third-Team All-Lone Star Conference while junior Madison Walters was named Honorable Mention.

"Kenadi and Madison have been so impactful and are very deserving of being recognized," said UTPB Head Women's Basketball Coach Rae Boothe. "They do so much for our team in games, practices and away from the court. We are so proud of them and grateful for them."

Kenadi Rising – Gr., Guard – Third-Team All-LSC
Rising started in 27 of 28 games, making the most starts by a Falcon during the regular season. She led the team in scoring (10.6 ppg), rebounds (5.0 rpg), made field goals (109) and made 3-pointers (30). She shot 42.1 percent (109-259) from the field, 31.9 percent (30-94) from three and 83.3 percent (50-60) from the free throw line. Earlier this year, Rising was named to the 2025-26 LSC Preseason Players to Watch list and was named UTPB's Women's Student-Athlete of the Month for December. On January 8 at Oklahoma Christian University, she scored her 1,000th career point. She reached double-digit scoring in 17 games and pulled down 11 rebounds in two games. During Senior Day, Rising led all players by scoring a season-high 20 points and nearly helped lead the Falcons to an upset win over No. 23 Lubbock Christian University (60-56 loss). She ranks among the top-20 in the LSC in scoring and the top-25 in rebounding.

Rising averaged 12 points and five rebounds per game on 52.6 percent shooting from the field during UTPB's first two games of the season. Rising scored 14 points, had six rebounds and four steals, and was 7-for-11 from the field as UTPB won its season opener 66-53 over MSU Denver (Nov. 14). She then finished with 10 points and added three offensive rebounds to help UTPB claw back in the fourth quarter and force overtime in a 57-49 defeat vs. No. 21-ranked Colorado Mesa University (Nov. 16).

At the start of conference play, Rising averaged 17 points and 9.5 rebounds per game during the first week of LSC action. Rising led all players in both points (15) and rebounds (11) in a close six-point loss (65-59) at No. 4 Lubbock Christian (Dec. 3), and then helped UTPB to its first conference win of the season, a 23-point victory (68-45) at Midwestern State University (Dec. 5), after leading all players in points (19) and rebounds (8) for the second game in a row and setting new season-highs at the time in points, field goals made (8) and field goals attempted (15). Rising then scored 13 points in back-to-back home wins over Texas A&M University-Kingsville (Dec. 11) and Texas A&M International University (Dec. 13), adding a game-high eight rebounds against the Javelinas and leading all players with five assists against the Dustdevils to help UTPB get off to a 4-1 start in conference play.

During UTPB's first road trip of 2026, Rising made seven of eight 3-pointers (87.5 percent) and shot 50 percent (8-16) from the field overall during a 2-0 week for the Falcons. Rising finished with a game-high 18 points, scoring all of her points in the second half, including 15 points in the fourth quarter, and finishing the game 5-for-8 from the field, 4-for-5 from three and 4-for-4 at the charity stripe in a 69-60 road win at Oklahoma Christian (Jan. 8). After beginning the day with 984 career points, Rising surpassed the 1,000-career-point threshold, and became the seventh UTPB player in the last three seasons to reach that mark. Then in the very next game, Rising had nine points on perfect 3-for-3 shooting from behind the arc in a 49-47 win at Cameron University (Jan. 10).

Lastly, Rising averaged 16 points, seven rebounds and two assists per game as UTPB kept its postseason hopes alive during its final week playing at home. Playing in a must-win game against Midwestern State (83-66 win on Feb. 19), Rising totaled 12 points, seven rebounds and three assists and scored eight of UTPB's first 12 points of the game. Then during her Senior Day, Rising led all players by scoring a season-high 20 points and nearly helped lead the Falcons to an upset win over No. 23 Lubbock Christian (60-56 loss on Feb. 21). In addition to matching her season-high with eight made field goals (8-14) against the Lady Chaps, Rising also had a team-high seven rebounds and added one assist and one block. UTPB built up an early 10-2 in the first six minutes against LCU, with all 10 points coming courtesy of Rising, who started 4-for-4 from the field (all in the paint) during her Senior Day. UTPB later trailed by 10 points (42-32) with under three minutes remaining in the third quarter before Rising scored the final seven points of the period. Rising gave it her all and nailed a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to pull the Falcons to within just three points (42-39) at the end of the quarter.

Madison Walters – Jr., Guard – Honorable Mention All-LSC
Walters played in all 28 games with 20 starts during the regular season. She led the team with 1.9 steals per game and 3.4 defensive rebounds per game. She also ranked second in points per game (9.0), assists per game (1.5), total rebounds per game (4.3), made field goals (90) and made 3-pointers (29). She shot 41.1 percent (90-219) from the field, 24.8 percent (29-117) from three and 66.7 percent (42-63) from the free throw line. Earlier this year, Walters was named UTPB's Women's Student-Athlete of the Month for January. Her top performance came on January 13 at Angelo State University when she led all players in points (25) and rebounds (8) and shot 9-for-11 from the field and 4-for-5 from three to help the Falcons pull away and earn a big 76-67 victory on the road. It was the most points scored by a Falcon in any game this season. Walters was also responsible for the most rebounds in any game by a Falcon this season, securing a double-double with 13 points and 12 points in a win vs. Western New Mexico University (Feb. 7), and had the most steals by any Falcon this season with five in a rematch vs. Angelo State (Jan. 29). Overall on the season, Walters reached double-digit scoring in 12 games, doing so nine times in the final 13 games of the season, and made four 3-pointers in two games. Defensively, Walters had at least two steals in 16 games, including at least three steals in eight games, tied for seventh in the LSC with 52 steals, and is tied for eighth at 1.9 steals per game.

Walters led all players in points (25) and rebounds (8) while shooting 9-for-11 from the field and 4-for-5 from three in a big 76-67 rivalry win at Angelo State (Jan. 13). She hit three 3-pointers in the first half against the Rambelles, had two offensive rebounds that she put back for a layup, and had three steals that all led to points for the Falcons. In just the third quarter alone, she had two steals that she took herself for a fastbreak layup. Just one game after scoring 25 points at ASU, Walters followed it up with an 18-point performance in a four-point defeat (73-69) against The University of Texas at Dallas (Jan. 17). She shot 50 percent (5-10) from the field, made two 3-pointers, and was 6-for-8 from the free throw line against the Comets. Walters averaged 21.5 points, 6.0 rebounds, 2.5 steals and 2.0 assists during the week, all while shooting 66.7 percent from the field and 50 percent from three with six 3-pointers.