120 basketball players from Illinois to play in women’s NCAA March Madness tournament

Lewis Flyers' Yahaira Bueno and Ball State Cardinals' Maliyah Johnson

By Prairie State Wire

Mar 18, 2025

Illinois is being represented by 120 players in the NCAA women’s basketball tournament.

California will have the most players on the hard court during this year's tournament with 161 players, followed by Texas with 152.

Chicago is the most popular hometown for NCAA players from Illinois in the tournament with 14 players.

Illinois Players in 2024 NCAA Tournament

Name	Team	Height	Position	Hometown
Sydney Lamkin	Wartburg Knights	5′7″	Guard	Aledo
Jessie Ozzauto	Lehigh Mountain Hawks	5′10″	Guard	Algonquin
Mallory Powers	Illinois Wesleyan Titans	5′10″	Guard	Amboy
Mary Kate Fahey	NYU Violets	5′8″	Guard	Arlington Heights
Annika Manthy	Richmond Spiders	6′3″	Forward	Arlington Heights
Zoe Brown	UW Whitewater Warhawks	5′11″	Forward	Arlington Heights
Riley Mont	De Pauw Tigers	5′9″	Guard	Aurora
Ashley Konkle	Hillsdale Chargers	6′2″	Center	Aurora
Laura Mahlum	Illinois Wesleyan Titans	6′0″	Forward and Guard	Barrington
Caitlyn Tolentino	Calvin Knights	5′7″	Guard	Bartlett
Kenzie Hare	Iowa State Cyclones	5′9″	Guard	Bartlett
Tessa Towers	Ball State Cardinals	6′5″		Batavia
Allison Forney	UW - Oshkosh Titans	5′10″	Forward	Batavia
Kylee Gehrt	UW Whitewater Warhawks	5′9″	Guard	Batavia
Lamiya Terrell	Principia Panthers	5′5″	Guard	Belleville
Brooke Bottcher	UW - Stevens Point Pointers	6′0″	Forward	Belvidere
Alyssa Epps	Illinois Wesleyan Titans	5′9″	Guard and Forward	Berkeley
Sara Balli	Illinois Wesleyan Titans	5′9″	Guard	Bloomingdale
Sophia Feeney	Illinois Wesleyan Titans	5′5″	Guard	Bloomington
Jasmine Jones	Lewis Flyers	6′0″	Forward	Bolingbrook
Yahaira Bueno	Lewis Flyers	5′8″	Guard	Bolingbrook
Maddy Saracco	Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles	5′10″	Guard	Bolingbrook
Skylar Grabow	Ohio Wesleyan Battling Bishops	5′6″	Guard	Bradley
Niamh Larson	UW - Superior Yellowjackets	5′10″	Guard and Forward	Brookfield
Maliyah Johnson	Ball State Cardinals	6′3″		Chicago
Jordan Wood	Duke Blue Devils	6′4″	Forward	Chicago
Faith Okorie	George Mason Patriots	6′0″	Forward	Chicago
Lauren McDonald	Hillsdale Chargers	5′9″	Guard	Chicago
Sydney Affolter	Iowa Hawkeyes	5′11″	Guard	Chicago
Natalie Mann	Johns Hopkins Blue Jays	6′0″	Guard	Chicago
Aneesah Morrow	LSU Lady Tigers	6′1″	Forward	Chicago
Katlyn Allen	Lewis Flyers	5′8″	Guard	Chicago
Yahri Smith	Lewis Flyers	5′8″	Guard	Chicago
Bri McDaniel	Maryland Terrapins	5′10″	Guard	Chicago
Janiece Dawson	Quincy Hawks	5′9″	Guard	Chicago
Taris Thornton	Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles	6′0″	Forward	Chicago
Olivia Vick	Trinity Bantams	5′5″	Guard	Chicago
Ayanna Jackson	UNC Greensboro Spartans	6′0″	Forward	Chicago
Amiah Hargrove	Nebraska Cornhuskers	6′2″	Guard and Forward	Christopher
Briana Baldridge	Principia Panthers	5′8″	Guard	Columbia
Addie Meyer	Colorado Tigers		Forward and Guard	Crystal Lake
Kree Nunnally	Lewis Flyers	5′11″	Forward	Crystal Lake
Mckaylee Allen	Coker Cobras	5′10″	Forward	Danville
Erin Houpt	San Diego State Aztecs	5′6″	Guard	Danville
Quincenia Jackson	Arkansas State Red Wolves	6′1″	Forward	Decatur
Angela Dugalić	UCLA Bruins	6′4″	Forward	Des Plaines
Sawyer White	Illinois Wesleyan Titans	5′8″	Guard	Downers Grove
Maggie Fleming	Smith Pioneers	5′10″	Guard	Downers Grove
Lorena Awou	North Carolina State Wolfpack	6′5″	Center	East Moline
Taylor Charles	Princeton Tigers	6′2″	Forward	Elgin
Emma Payton	Trine Thunder	6′1″	Forward	Elgin
Hannah Meyers	De Pauw Tigers	5′6″	Guard	Elmhurst
Liv Meyers	Illinois Wesleyan Titans	5′11″	Forward	Elmwood
Zuri Ransom	Ball State Cardinals	5′10″		Evanston
Abby Walsh	Bates Bobcats	5′9″	Guard and Forward	Evanston
Sofia Rocca	Colorado Tigers		Forward	Evanston
Hayven Smith	Illinois Fighting Illini	6′6″	Center	Frankfort
Lauren Slagle	Grand Valley State Lakers	6′1″	Forward	Geneva
Kate Palmer	Illinois Wesleyan Titans	5′10″	Guard	Geneva
Leah Palmer	Lewis Flyers	5′11″	Guard	Geneva
Megan Moody	Illinois Wesleyan Titans	5′7″	Guard	Gibson City
Chloe Gonzalez	De Pauw Tigers	5′10″	Guard	Glenview
Alyssa Latham	Tennessee Lady Volunteers	6′2″	Forward	Glenwood
Ellie Cahill	Illinois Wesleyan Titans	5′10″	Guard	Goodfield
Ashley Schlabowske	UW Whitewater Warhawks	5′8″	Guard	Grayslake
Kathryn Schmidt	Grand Valley State Lakers	6′0″	Forward	Hampshire
Addie Budnik	Richmond Spiders	6′2″	Forward	Highland Park
Samantha Campanelli	Lewis Flyers	5′9″	Guard	Huntley
Kennise Johnson	Iowa Hawkeyes	5′4″	Guard	Joliet
Ally Cesarini	Lewis Flyers	5′7″	Guard	LA Grange
Peyton Gerdes	High Point Panthers	6′0″	Small Forward	Lake Villa
Alayna Soukup	Lewis Flyers	5′8″	Guard	Lake Zurich
Emilia Sularski	Hillsdale Chargers	5′10″	Guard	Lemont
Magdalena Sularski	Hillsdale Chargers	5′9″	Guard	Lemont
Emily Fisher	Maryland Terrapins	6′0″	Forward and Guard	Libertyville
Ava Bardic	Illinois Wesleyan Titans	5′6″	Guard	Lincolnshire
Lenée Beaumont	Indiana Hoosiers	6′1″	Guard	Lisle
Annalise Pietrzyk	Hillsdale Chargers	5′9″	Guard	Lockport
Lauren Huber	Illinois Wesleyan Titans	5′8″	Guard	Lombard
Mackenzie Huber	Illinois Wesleyan Titans	5′7″	Guard	Lombard
Caite Knutson	Illinois Wesleyan Titans	6′0″	Forward	Maryville
Mallory Ramage	Lewis Flyers	5′10″	Guard	Mattoon
Maddi Friedle	Ripon Red Hawks	5′11″	Guard	McHenry
Mia Zenere	Illinois Fighting Illini	5′11″	Guard	Mokena
Cierra McNamee	Lewis Flyers	6′0″	Forward	Moline
Mia Gillis	UW Whitewater Warhawks	6′1″	Forward	Mundelein
Layla Henderson	Johns Hopkins Blue Jays	5′9″	Guard	Naperville
Greta Kampschroeder	Michigan Wolverines	6′1″	Guard	Naperville
Tara Gugliuzza	Lewis Flyers	5′6″	Guard	New Lenox
Taylor Gugliuzza	Lewis Flyers	5′8″	Guard	New Lenox
Kayla Petersen	De Pauw Tigers	6′0″	Forward	Normal
Mallory Oloffson	UW Whitewater Warhawks	6′0″	Forward	Normal
Jenna Badali	Lewis Flyers	5′6″	Guard	Oak Lawn
Maureen Regan	Vassar Brewers	5′5″	Guard	Oak Lawn
Martha Lipic	Illinois Wesleyan Titans	6′0″	Forward	Oak Park
Anna Beyers	Illinois Wesleyan Titans	5′8″	Guard	Pana
Greta Miller	Johns Hopkins Blue Jays	5′10″	Forward	Park Ridge
Aaliyah Guyton	Iowa Hawkeyes	5′7″	Guard	Peoria
Madison Schroeder	Northern Michigan Wildcats	5′11″	Forward	Peotone
Aaliyah Frazier	Fayetteville State Broncos	5′6″	Point Guard	Plainfield
Natalie Bearbower	Wartburg Knights	5′10″	Forward	Plainfield
Haleigh Timmer	South Dakota State Jackrabbits	5′11″	Guard	Rapids City
Lindsey Knuth	UW La Crosse Eagles	6′0″	Forward	Rockford
Courtney Park	Wisconsin Lutheran Warriors	5′11″	Forward	Rockford
Jordan Johnston	Wartburg Knights	5′8″	Forward	Roscoe
Gwen O'Connell	Quincy Hawks	5′6″	Guard	Serena
Jasmine Brown-Hagger	Illinois Fighting Illini	5′9″	Guard	Shorewood
Asya Smith	De Pauw Tigers	5′7″	Guard	Springfield
Martrice Brooks	Eastern New Mexico Greyhounds	5′8″	Guard	Springfield
Katrina Stack	Quincy Hawks	6′3″	Forward	St. Charles
Payton Jacob	Illinois Wesleyan Titans	5′10″	Forward	St. Joseph
Kylie Feuerbach	Iowa Hawkeyes	6′0″	Guard	Sycamore
Monroe McGhee	UW Whitewater Warhawks	5′7″	Guard	Sycamore
Allie Heyer	Carnegie Mellon Tartans	5′10″	Guard	Western Springs
Sarah Cernugel	Notre Dame Fighting Irish	5′4″	Guard	Westmont
Lily Huntzinger	De Pauw Tigers	5′10″	Guard	Wheaton
Kendall Moriarty	Nebraska Cornhuskers	6′1″	Guard	Wheaton
Campbell Schrank	De Pauw Tigers	5′9″	Guard	Winnebago
Renee Rittmeyer	UW Whitewater Warhawks	5′11″	Guard	Winnebago
Kate Saccaro	Bowdoin Polar Bears	5′6″	Guard	Winnetka

Total Tournament Teams and Players by State

State	Total Tournament Players	Total Tournament Teams
California	161	11
Texas	152	11
New York	137	11
Pennsylvania	131	16
Wisconsin	125	9
Illinois	120	5
Ohio	115	4
Minnesota	104	5
New Jersey	82	4
Massachusetts	81	10
Michigan	81	8
North Carolina	74	8
Tennessee	67	6
Georgia	61	4
Virginia	57	10
Indiana	48	5
Maryland	39	2
Florida	38	7
Colorado	37	4
Iowa	36	3
Connecticut	33	6
Missouri	32	1
Washington	32	3
Kentucky	30	5
Oklahoma	29	3
South Carolina	22	4
Kansas	22	3
Alabama	21	3
Arizona	16	1
Nebraska	15	2
Arkansas	14	2
Montana	13	2
Oregon	13	2
Utah	12	1
New Hampshire	12	1
South Dakota	12	1
Maine	11	2
Nevada	10	0
West Virginia	9	2
Delaware	7	0
New Mexico	7	1
Mississippi	6	2
Alaska	5	1
Idaho	5	0
Rhode Island	5	0
Vermont	5	1
Louisiana	4	2
Wyoming	3	0
North Dakota	1	0
Hawaii	1	0