ATLANTA – Georgia State head coach Marcilina Grayer announced her inaugural roster for the 2026-27 season on Tuesday afternoon. 

Georgia State returns sophomore guard Grace Lanier and junior guard Frankee Payne. Lanier returns after appearing in 31 games with 13 starts, averaging 6.4 points, 2.0 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.6 steals per game.  

A talented newcomer class of 11 joins the program this fall, including two freshman and nine transfers. 

Aryelle Stevens | Gr. | F | 6-0 | Marquette | Pearland HS | Pearland, Texas 
A Marquette transfer, Stevens arrives at Georgia State for the 2026-27 season after spending the 2025-26 campaign redshirting with the Golden Eagles. In her lone season of action at Marquette (2024-25), she posted a career-high nine points with six rebounds against Illinois Springfield. Before Marquette, she spent two seasons at Gulf Coast State where she earned All-Panhandle Conference honors. In high school at Pearland, she lettered four years each in basketball and three years in volleyball, reached the state quarterfinals in 2022, earned two First Team All-District selections in basketball, was a four-time All-Academic Team honoree in both sports and was the 2021 District Co-Defensive Player of the Year in volleyball. Stevens already holds a bachelor's degree in Environmental Studies, and plans to major in Geoscience. 

Danaeja Romero Ah Sam | Jr. | G | 5-8 | East Arizona | Springfield HS | Springfield, Ore. 
Romero Ah Sam brings a national championship pedigree to Georgia State after helping Eastern Arizona win its first NJCAA Division I National Championship in 2025-26, earning NJCAA All-Tournament Team honors after scoring 58 points across four tournament games while shooting 40 percent from the field and 39.4 percent from three. On the season, she averaged 9.9 points per game on .431/.389 shooting splits, earned ACCAC Second Team All-Region honors, and set a career high with 21 points against the College of Southern Nevada. The prior season, she helped Eastern Arizona win the Region I Division I and District Championship and reach the NJCAA national semifinal, highlighted by a six three-pointer, 20-point performance against both Colorado Northwestern CC and the College of Southern Nevada. In high school at Springfield, she was a three-time Class 5A Oregon State Player of the Year (2022-24) and First Team All-State honoree, leading Springfield to the 2022 state runner-up finish and the 2023 state championship. Romero Ah Sam plans to major in Business Economics. 

Aaliyah Baldwin | So. | G | 5-4 | Snow College | American Prep | Draper, Utah 
Baldwin joins Georgia State's 2026-27 roster after earning SWAC First Team All-Conference honors in 2025-26 at Snow College, averaging 11.7 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 3.4 assists per game with 50 steals while shooting. She scored 20 or more points four times, highlighted by a career-high 29 points on 12 field goals and five threes against North Idaho. In high school at Draper APA, she was a three-time 2A All-State First Team selection who scored 2,163 career points and led her team to four region championships while playing AAU basketball for the 801-Eagles. Baldwin plans to major in Math. 

Nikole Thomas | Jr. | G | 5-9 | Missouri-Kansas City | Kamiakin | Memphis, Tenn. 
Thomas heads to Georgia State for 2026-27 after playing for UMKC in 2025-26, where she set a career high with six points against South Dakota, making 22 appearances with nine starts and averaging 10.9 minutes per game. She began her career at Memphis, making her collegiate debut against Alabama State in 2023-24, before transferring to UMKC, where she scored her first points for the program in a win over Texas-Dallas. In high school at Kamiakin, she averaged 17 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 3.0 assists per game, earning All-State, All-Conference, Defensive Player of the Year and All-Defensive Team honors while also competing in track. Thomas intends to major in Exercise Science. 

Dawson Jemerson | So. | G | 5-5 | Coastal Carolina | Desoto | DeSoto, Texas 
Jemerson makes the move across the Sun Belt to Georgia State for 2026-27 after redshirting at Coastal Carolina in 2025-26. In 2024-25, she played 27 games off the bench, averaging 8.9 minutes and 3.1 points per game, with a season-high six points on four occasions. In high school across Desoto and Red Oak, she averaged 14.3 points per game on 46.4 percent shooting, helped lead Red Oak to back-to-back 12-0 district seasons, earned All-District honors, and was named 2022-23 5A Offensive Player of the Year while playing AAU basketball for Team Lex. Jemerson plans to major in Communications with a minor in Public Health and Nutrition. 

Mariah Knight | So. | F | 6-0 | Jacksonville | Butler Traditional | Louisville, Ky.  
Knight joins Georgia State for the 2026-27 season after two season at Jacksonville. She capped her sophomore season at Jacksonville averaging 4.4 points and 2.2 rebounds per game while shooting 41 percent from three, while setting a season and career-high with 18 points against West Georgia in the 2026 ASUN Tournament. In high school at Butler, she led her team in scoring at 15.2 points per game, helped Butler win the sixth region title and reach the sweet 16 semifinals. She was ranked ninth in the state, named Co-Sixth Region Player of the Year, earned First Team All-State honors and was a Ms. Kentucky Basketball candidate. Knight plans to major in Psychology. 

Ana Oliveira Dias | Sr. | G | 5-6 | Missouri Western | Colegio Singular | Sao Paulo, Brazil 
Oliveira Dias lands at Georgia State for 2026-27 after earning MIAA All-Defensive Team and All-MIAA Honorable Mention honors in 2025-26 at Missouri Western State, averaging a career-best 13.0 points, 4.4 rebounds, and a team-best 5.2 assists per game while totaling 75 steals, including a game-high eight in a single contest, and a season-best 24 points against then-No. 11 Concordia-St. Paul. She previously earned Summit League All-Newcomer Team honors at UMKC in 2024-25, leading the team in steals, and posted a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds against Southern Nevada as a freshman at Salt Lake C.C. In high school, she played for Santo Andre and Ituano in Brazil.  

Jada Collins | Jr. | F | 6-0 | Coppin State | Kalamazoo Central | Kalamazoo, Mich. 
Collins joins Georgia State for 2026-27 season after missing the 2025-26 campaign at Coppin State due to injury. In 2024-25 at Tennessee State, she played in 22 games with two starts, averaging 1.4 points and 1.8 rebounds while adding nine steals and 17 blocks, and recorded a five-point, three-block performance against Dayton. She served as a SAAC Representative and made the Dean's List. In high school at Kalamazoo Central, she was a two-time All-State selection who averaged 15.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 2.1 assists as a senior, earned All-Conference honors in three seasons, and was a two-year National Honor Society and All-Academic Team member while playing AAU basketball for Michigan Crossover. Collins plans to major in Psychology. 

MaKenna Alexis | Fr. | G | 5-7 | Cypress Lakes | Waller, Texas 
Freshman guard, Alexis joins Georgia State after capping a standout high school performance at Cypress Lakes with 2,147 points, 307 assists, 632 steals, 608 rebounds, and 312 three-pointers, including a 56-point outburst against New Caney in November 2024. She reached the UIL state semi-regionals twice, was named All-State in 2024-25, earned All-Region honors three times, First Team All-District honors four times and was a two-time Academic All-District honoree while playing AAU basketball for the Houston Hoops. Alexis plans to major in Business Management. 

Kenaya Klintman | Jr. | G | 5-10 | High Point | Rig Mark | Malmo, Sweden 
A transfer from High Point, Klintman played in 16 games for the Panthers during the 2025-26 season. She was part of the High Point team that won the Big South Conference tournament title, beating Radford 71-67 in the championship game to earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, where the Panthers advanced to the First Round before falling to No. 6 Vanderbilt. As a freshman in 2024-25, she recorded minutes in eight games. In high school, she was a graduate of Marksgymnasieskolan (Rig Mark) in Sweden, where she won a championship in the second-highest league as a freshman, earned the Silverskölden academic honor, and played AAU/club basketball for Rig Mark. She won the Nordic Championship with the U18 team in 2023 and took first place at the Big Time Hoops national qualifier in 2024. She is also a member of the Sweden U20 National Team. Klintman plans to major in Exercise Science. 

Aikaterini Yfantopoulou | Fr. | G | 5-11 | Panathinaikos A.C. (GRE) | Athens, Greece 
Yfantopoulou joins Georgia State after playing guard for her high school team in Athens, Greece. Born in Athens, she is the daughter of Georgios and Eleni Yfantopoulou.