Hutchinson CC Sports Information

Fresh off a gutsy three-point win in the opening round of the 2022 NJCAA Tournament, the No. 19-seed Hutchinson Community College women's basketball team takes on third-seeded Georgia Highlands in a second-round matchup at 5 p.m. on Friday at the Rip Griffin Center in Lubbock, Texas.

The Blue Dragons (29-5) face another national tournament opponent riding a long winning streak. The Blue Dragons snapped Casper's 16-game winning streak with a 73-70 opening-round victory on Thursday. NJCAA nationally ranked Georgia Highlands (29-2) is riding a 27-game winning streak.

Friday's matchup with the No. 3 Chargers will be the first Top 5-ranked opponent the Blue Dragons have place since playing No. 5 Seward County in 2019. The last Blue Dragon win over a Top 5 team was No. 5 Seward County in 2017.

Hutchinson has never faced Georgia Highlands in women's basketball. The Blue Dragons have played teams from the state of Georgia twice previously in team history. Hutchinson played Middle Georgia State in the 2009 national tournament and South Georgia Tech in the 2015 NJCAA Tournament. The Blue Dragons won both of those games against foes from the Peach State.

The Blue Dragons are 3-1 in the second round of the NJCAA Tournament. The Blue Dragons were last in the second round in 2019 and defeated No. 4-seeded Angelina in Lubbock.

Mya Williams had 20 points and Mele Kailahi had her first double-double in almost a month with 17 points and 12 rebounds to lift the Blue Dragons to an opening-round victory over Casper on Thursday.

Georgia Highlands, the Region XVII champions, will be playing their first game of the 2022 national tournament.

The Hutchinson/Georgia Highlands winner will play the College of Southern Idaho/Trinity Valley winner in a quarterfinal matchup at 7 p.m. on Saturday.