Westlake Head Coach Vickie Benson smiles with her team as they huddle after their 69-22 win over Dripping Springs at Westlake, Feb. 4, 2025.
Sara Diggins/American-Statesman
The relationships and memories the Westlake girls basketball team have created this season are more valuable than its 30-0 record.
Ranked No. 1 by the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches, the Chaparrals are the only undefeated team left in the state in Class 6A with two weeks left in the regular season.Â
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Westlake Chaparrals Tamia King (15) brings the ball down over Dripping Springs Tigers Chloe Lightfoot (12) as the Chaparrals take on the Dripping Springs Tigers, Jan. 16, 2026.
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Westlake Chaparrals Molly Frazer (0) shoots a free throw as the Chaparrals take on the Dripping Springs Tigers, Jan. 16, 2026.
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Westlake Chaparrals Geralynn Byers-Veal (30) controls the ball on a fast break as the Chaparrals take on the Dripping Springs Tigers, Jan. 16, 2026.
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Westlake’s goal, of course, is to win the state championship for the first time in 30 years. But the journey to get there carries more weight than every game the Chaps have played, their head coach says.
“I want it for the girls,” Vickie Benson said. “They have done everything I have asked of them and believed in what we are doing. It definitely is special. But wins and losses will fade away. The lessons, memories and experiences we have together will last. I have told the girls that it is really difficult to do what we have done, but it is even more difficult to keep doing it.”
The Westlake Chaparrals take on the Dripping Springs Tigers, Jan. 16, 2026.
Sara Diggins/Austin American-Statesman
Benson said the team has an all-for-one attitude with contributions from every player on the roster. The most notable one is senior center Tamia King, who will play for the Houston Cougars. She passed the 1,000-point mark for her high school career earlier this season. While King lends experience and leadership, freshman point guard Geralynn Byers-Veal provides contagious energy and voice that can be ’round the gymnasium.
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“I know what I can do,” the 15-year-old Chap said. “I’m confident. I’m the one who’s screaming ‘And-1!’ if one of my teammates makes a basket, even if it’s any easy layup.”
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For Westlake: A title is more important than perfection
Byers-Veal said she was told by her parents that she was a bundle of energy when the discovered a basketball at age 2. And her enthusiasm shows when asked about Westlake’s chances of winning state: “I think we can win the ‘ship,” she said.
Westlake Chaparrals Geralynn Byers-Veal (30) talks with Head Coach Vickie Benson before re-entering the game as the Chaparrals take on the Dripping Springs Tigers, Jan. 16, 2026.
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King, meanwhile, is a workhorse player who often is the first one to practice and the last to leave, Benson said. The 6-foot-1 Chap went on five recruiting trips to Houston, Rice, Tulsa, Fordham and Missouri State before deciding to play for Houston.
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Prior to the season, King said she recalled feeling that Westlake could finish the year unbeaten if everyone played to their potential.
“I believed this could happen,” she said. “You could tell by the way we competed against each other last summer. We were so locked in to what we were doing.”
Benson might be her biggest fan.
“Tamia is a great player for many reasons,” the coach said. “She is a phenomenal teammate, she gets in the gym extra early, she is always adding pieces to her game and she always has a positive attitude when she walks into any space. She is extremely selfless and is willing to stretch herself outside her comfort zone if it will benefit the team and others.”
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Westlake forward Tamia King (15) drives toward the hoop past Dripping Springs defense during the first half as the Chaparrals play the Dripping Springs Tigers at Westlake, Feb. 4, 2025. The Chaparrals won the game 69-22.
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Chaps get contributions throughout their roster
King is the team’s stats leader, averaging 15.4 points and 8.5 rebounds. She gets plenty of support from Byers-Veal (9.8 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.3 steals). Forward Wynn Thorne and guard Molly Frazier (both juniors who are averaging 10.1 points) and freshman guard Peyton Hensle (2.9 assists) have been money players, Benson said.
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Westlake has been so dominant, 27 of its 30 victories have been by 10 points or more — the closest nailbiter a 78-74 double-overtime win over Lancaster in November.
Westlake Chaparrals Wynn Thorne (10), Geralynn Byers-Veal (30), Peyton Hensle (14), Tamia King (15) and Westlake Chaparrals Molly Frazer (0) clap for their teammates as the team is introduced before the starting line-up as the Chaparrals prepare to take on the Dripping Springs Tigers, Jan. 16, 2026.
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The architect is Benson, who won her 500th career game earlier this year. The Georgetown grad was coached in high school by the legendary Rhonda Farney, the nation’s winningest active high school coach with 1,331 victories.
“(Farney) taught me about discipline and how discipline means everything,” Benson said.
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Benson, like King, knew something was special with the Chaparrals before the season started. But 30-0?
“I could see how that might have been possible but it wouldn’t be easy, and we still have a lot of work to do,” she said.