Ericka Torres enters her third season as assistant coach at UT Permian Basin.
In 2021- 22, the Falcons had a lot of close calls thanks to a swarming defense that finished second in the Lone Star Conference in steals and forced turnovers. Despite their record the Falcons had 12 games decided by 10 points or less with a rotation consisting of mostly freshmen and sophomores. The Falcons caught fire late in the season, winning four of five at one point, to climb back into the playoff race. This included a 18-point comeback road win over Arkansas Fort Smith in the team's final road game.
Avalon Munoz has quickly emerged as one of the best point guards in program history. In just two short years she has moved into fifth for most career assists and her 111 assists were the fifth most in a single season. Five players scored over 7.0 points per game and seven scored over 100 points on the year in a balanced offensive attack.
During the 2020-21, the Falcons to just missing out once again on a LSC Championship berth. Once again it was freshman who stepped up for the Falcons during the season.
Freshman Morgan Helgesen shot 32 percent from beyond the arc and averaged 25 minutes on the floor. Fellow freshman Avalon Munoz played the most minutes out of any Falcon with 478. She quickly became the starting ball handler for the Falcons as she led the team in steals (42) and assists (60).
Sophomore Alexus Quaadman once again rose to the occasion with four double-doubles on the season. Senior Jada Berry had the best year of her Falcon career starting in all but one game and scoring 117 points on the season. She also led the Falcons in their best win of the season by defeating Midwestern State on senior day.
In one of the toughest divisions in the nation, the Falcons played many close games throughout the season. The Falcons were down eight heading into the second half at No. 22 West Texas A&M and down seven at the half against the eventual National Champion Lubbock Christian.
She was a previously a student assistant under Head Coach Rae Boothe at Friends University and became a full-time assistant after Boothe came to UT Permian Basin. Prior to UT Permian Basin, Torres was a police officer for the Wichita Police Department in Wichita, Kansas.
Prior to coaching, Torres played two seasons as a shooting guard under Boothe and was named a Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference All-Conference Honorable Mention her senior year. That season she was 17th in KCAC scoring and finished third in the conference in three-point percentage. Torres was part of multiple KCAC Conference Championships and NAIA National Tournament appearances as a player and coach.
Torres graduated from Friends with a bachelor's degree in Criminal Justice.
