One year removed from having to end its season early due to low numbers, Nighthawk women’s basketball has returned to National Park College with renewed energy, capturing both Nighthawk Nation and the state of Arkansas by storm.
Led by twin sisters Khayla and Khyra Garrett of Brownsboro, Texas, coach Eddie Broughton Sr.’s Nighthawks are not satisfied with just bringing women’s basketball back to NPC—they are out to make history, too.
Through six games this season, Khayla leads the Nighthawks in assists and free throws made, while Khyra leads the team in scoring and three-pointers made. As a team, the Nighthawks have already begun rewriting the record books, setting the mark for fewest points allowed in a game—not once, but twice—and matching the program’s largest margin of victory with a 59-point win November 7 over Crowley’s Ridge College.
NPC has also defeated NJCAA Division I Connors State College, 104-71, to flip the script on the Nighthawks’ 58-point loss to the Cowgirls a year ago. On November 13, the Nighthawks defeated the 15th-ranked team in the country, Dallas College-Richland, by 19 points. Two days later, Khyra Garrett led NPC in scoring with 20 points in the Nighthawks’ 78-29 victory over NJCAA Division I Eastern Oklahoma State College.
“I think fans can expect a lot out of us this season,” Khayla said. “We work hard in practice for three hours each day. With all of us being new to the program, I think that makes it easier for us to bond and learn from one another. It feels like being back in high school again.”
“We have a lot of speed and a lot of shooters,” Khyra said. “We’ll be running the ball a lot with fast breaks back and forth up the court. Everyone gets along really well and we have a lot of talent. I think fans can expect a much faster game and I’m excited to give them something to cheer for.”
Before they were Nighthawks, the Garretts were learning to love the game through Brownsboro’s girls’ junior division of Little Dribblers.
“Our dad, W.T. Garrett, won back-to-back national championships in college basketball with Texas College and was also a college basketball coach,” Khayla said. “We were always around the game and that’s what inspired us to begin playing, too.”
In 2016, the Garrett twins got their first taste of success on the basketball court, completing an undefeated season with a Little Dribblers national championship. Two years later, the sisters brought a second national title home to Brownsboro.
Fast forward to high school, where Khayla and Khyra helped lead the Brownsboro Bearettes to the Class 4A Texas state title as sophomores, defeating Hardin-Jefferson, 50-49, in the championship game. Khayla was named Sixth Man of the Year as the twins cemented their status as a household name in Texas girls’ basketball.
“I didn’t start that game, but I remember being on the floor at the end to celebrate with my teammates when the final buzzer sounded,” Khayla said.
“I started and played the entire game without sitting,” Khyra said. “Hardin-Jefferson had a five-star NCAA Division I recruit to Duke and it was my job to guard her. She averaged 34 points per game and we were able to hold her to 17. That was a large part of how we won the game.”
As juniors, the twins continued to add to their trophy cases. Averaging 15.9 points per game, Khyra was named Offensive Player of the Year while Khayla captured Defensive Player of the Year honors with 6.4 rebounds and 3.7 steals per game. In their senior seasons, Khayla and Khyra led the Bearettes to a second-round playoff appearance, utilizing their strong leadership skills to inspire growth in their underclassmen and the bright future that lies ahead for the program.
For a dynamic duo that grew so accustomed to winning, National Park College was an easy choice to continue their basketball careers together.
“NPC’s Head Soccer Coach, Corey Irvine, is our brother in law,” Khayla said. “We’ve also known [NPC women’s soccer freshman striker] Madison Hernandez since we were little kids, so when we heard that she was coming to NPC, we knew we had to give it a look, too. We sent our film highlights to Coach Eddie Broughton, Sr., came up for a tour and fell in love with the mountains and the beautiful campus.”
In Dogwood Hall at NPC, Khayla, Khyra and Madison live together as roommates, adding some familiarity to ease some of the stresses that come from going to college away from home.
“Dorm life is fun,” Khayla said. “We have met a lot of new friends and people and it has really started to feel like home for us.”
For the Garrett sisters, there is more in store for them than simply wowing crowds full of adoring fans in The Kettle, however. While they both dream of continuing their basketball careers at the next level, Khayla and Khyra are also hard at work pursuing their passion of becoming the next generation of traveling nurses.
“We come from a family of nurses,” Khyra said. “Our mom, grandma, aunt and cousins are all nurses. We’ve been around it all our lives and it looks fun. Being able to give back and help others as a career sounds very rewarding.”
With the new season just underway and the Nighthawks chasing new heights, both Khayla and Khyra agree that the possibilities are endless for them at NPC.
“I believe that NPC will help me become both a more confident player and a better person, while also giving us the exposure we deserve and getting us to where we want to be,” Khyra said.
“Our goal this season is to improve one game at a time and see what we can do as a team,” Khayla said. “We want to win, but Coach Broughton is focused on showing off our talent and sending us to the next level.” For more on National Park College Nighthawk women’s basketball, visit Nighthawk Athletics.