SAN MARCOS, TX — The Texas State women's basketball quintet of Kennedy Taylor, Ja'Kayla Bowie, Tianna Eaton, Da'Nasia Hood and Jaeda Reed are all electing to use their "COVID" year and return to the Bobcat program for the 2022-23 season, head coach Zenarae Antoine announced Wednesday morning.

"Being a student-athlete is a rewarding privilege, but in many cases, that privilege comes with challenges," Antoine said. "Looking at our fifth-year women's basketball student-athletes, I can vouch for their resilience through their careers thus far. They had to endure two seasons of the COVID-19 pandemic, unknown landscapes and overcoming personal stressors. During their tenure thus far, they have competed on the basketball court, dominated in the classroom, and offered a hand to the community.

"With their return for the 2022-23 season, these young women have made a commitment to themselves, each other, our program, and Texas State University to come back and give their best to compete for a championship. They are dedicated BOBCATS that have a positive vision for our program!" 

Taylor, who was named an all-conference second-team performer last season, will enter the 2022-23 season needing just 24 assists to pass Shelly Borton (1986-90) and become to the program's career assist leader. After concluding the 2021-22 season with 323 points, the 5-foot-3 point guard needs 393 more to break into the top 10 on the program's career scoring list. 

With her next game played, Bowie will join Taylor and Hood as the only active Bobcat women's basketball student-athletes to have appeared in 100-or-more games throughout their Texas State careers. The 5-foot-8 guard out of Tyler, Texas will enter the new season needing just four points and 191 rebounds to reach the 500 career points – 500 career rebounds plateau. 

Eaton, who joined the Texas State women's basketball program prior to the 2020-21 season following a two-year stint at UC Riverside, has emerged as a reliable piece to the puzzle for Antoine. She broke through with a career-high 21-point outing on 9-of-10 shooting in 22 minutes off the bench against Texas College last season and finished the season as one of just three Bobcats with double-digit (11) blocks on the season. 

Hood, the only two-time All-Sun Belt First Team selection in the program's history, will look to further cement her name among the all-time greats in Texas State history throughout the 2022-23 season. The 6-foot-1 forward out of San Antonio, who scored 457 points in 46.1 percent shooting a season ago, needs 582 more to pass Linda Muelker (1981-85) as the program's career scoring leader. She needs 356 more rebounds, too, to reach the 1,000-career rebound mark. 

Reed dominated in her return to the court in 2021-22 season after missing the entire 2020-21 campaign rehabbing an injury. In 28 appearances last season, the 6-foot-1, Lawton, Okla., native averaged 6.4 points and 4.2 rebounds in 15.9 minutes of game action. In her first game since March 10, 2020, Reed scored 10 points on 5-of-7 shooting and brought down five rebounds in nearly 16 minutes off the bench in the Bobcats' season-opening game at then-No. 7 Baylor on Nov. 9, 2021. 

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