RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) women's basketball head coach Lane Lord announced on Thursday the signing of 6-0 guard Jessica Borders from Olathe, Kansas as part of the 2026-27 recruiting class. 
 
Borders is described as a two-way threat who can score consistently and plays tight defense. She helped Olathe West High School clinch the 2024-25 Substate Championship, sending the Owls to the 6A State Championship tournament for only the second time in school history. Borders battled back from ACL surgery in the summer of 2024 to get on the court for her junior season and earned Honorable Mention All-Sunflower League. As a sophomore in 2023-24, she tabbed Second Team All-Sunflower League honors. 
 
"We are excited to announce the signing of Jessica Borders. Jessica is an athletic guard that can really stretch the floor with her long-range three-point shooting ability. She also can put the ball on the floor and create for herself and her teammates," Lord said. "Jessica is a long defender at the guard position and she will be a welcomed addition to our program." 
 
Borders has been a starter since her freshman season and becomes the first Div. I signee in Olathe West girls' basketball history by signing with UTRGV. She competed in track & field as a freshman and set the school record in high jump. 
 
Borders is the daughter of two former collegiate athletes. Her mother, Savannah, played basketball at Memphis, and her father, Kyle, played football at the University of Chicago. Her uncle is Perry Ellis, who played four years of men's basketball at Kansas and reached the 2015-16 Elite Eight on the way to earning Second Team All-American honors. 

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