MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Sometimes, the numbers really do speak for themselves. And the numbers of the Blue Raider women's basketball class of 2025 speak loudly for the impact this class has had in their time in Murfreesboro.  

It starts, as it often does with Middle Tennessee women's basketball, with the wins. The program's two four-year seniors, Jalynn Gregory and Anastasiia Boldyreva, join teammate Gracie Dodgen as the winningest four-year group in program history, with 108 wins and counting after Saturday's 57-35 win over UTEP in Murphy Center. That four-year group will graduate having never lost a CUSA game on their home court.  

The program's fifth-year senior, Jada Grannum, is three wins shy of being the program's all-time winningest player, with 125 wins and counting.  

Courtney Blakely, who played three of her four seasons of college basketball with MTSU, and Elina Arike, who finished up her final year of eligibility this season as a Blue Raider, were essential pieces in the starting lineup that's ranked No. 1 in the nation in both scoring defensive and opponent field goal percentage.  

There are individual milestones too, of course. Gregory is the program's all-time leader in three-pointers made (328 and counting). Boldyreva, already the program's all-time leader in blocks prior to this season, has jumped even further ahead with a 106-block season so far, putting her at 306 for her career.  

But talking to the seniors, their teammates and their coaches after senior day, the statistics do not capture a fraction of the impact this class has had on the program in their time in Murfreesboro, or the impact the program has had on them.  

"You come out of your office every day for practice and you come out for games, you know this bunch is going to show up," head coach Rick Insell said. "There's been some downs, but there's been a lot more ups than there's been some downs."  

Gregory remembers coming in as a freshman the summer of 2021 to a program in the midst of a culture change in the locker room. Changes in personnel between seasons would've created a change regardless, but Gregory quickly knew that she and her fellow classmates would play a big role in creating a culture they wanted to be a part of. 

"We learned to adapt to this new culture they were trying to build and bought into it," Gregory said. "And we've just carried that through our four years of just sticking together."  

That culture — competitive, but supportive; gritty, but skilled; role models in the classroom and off the court — quickly took hold, particularly as the Class of 2025 took future Blue Raiders under their wing.  

"They just showed me the culture of the program and showed me how to flow with it," junior Ta'Mia Scott said. "They coached me up through a lot of, when I was negative on myself. Whether that was through coaching or just my own mistakes. They've just kept me levelheaded and taught me how to play here."  

For Boldyreva, playing for the Blue Raiders opened the eyes of the Moscow, Russia native to what basketball means to the community overseas, and how she needed to meet the moment.  

"Basketball spirit wise, this country is so much about basketball," Boldyreva said. "Everyone is coming to watch you all the time, everybody talking about it, makes me want to practice every day."  

It was easy to be nostalgic after the win on Saturday, but Insell reminded everyone that while Saturday was to celebrate the seniors, there was plenty of basketball to be played, starting with a game at Liberty on Thursday that would secure MTSU their third consecutive Conference USA regular season title.  

"I'm very proud to have been their coach," Insell said. "We still are not through. We've got some games left and what we've got to do is go into those games and take care of business."