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Stillwater Senior Living Female Athlete Of The Month: Tyhlee Simms Was Major Contributor To Granite City Girls Basketball Revival

Incoming senior was part of remarkable turnaround for Warriors.

Colin Feeney, Contributing Sports Writer

Jul 9, 2026 1:34 PM Jul 10, 2026 9:22 AM

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EDWARDSVILLE - Tyhlee Simms was a junior forward and a co-author of a remarkable turnaround in the fortunes of girls' basketball at Granite City High School, helping the Warriors to a 21-10 record in the regular season in 2025-2026.

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She is a Stillwater Senior Living Female Athlete Of The Month.

A year ago, the Warriors went 12-17, and in 2023-24, Granite finished at 2-25. The Granite City School Board of Education hired veteran coach Ron Twichell to head the program, and he has played a significant role in helping to turn things around.

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This past season, Simms, a junior, was the team's second-leading scorer, averaging 8.7 points per game, and also had an average of six rebounds per game.

In a postgame interview after the team's regular-season finale at Edwardsville at Lucco-Jackson Gym, Simms expressed her pride for the Warriors' turnaround. As coach Twichell said, "How can you not feel happy about the season?" Simms certainly was.

"We haven't had this many wins in so long, and it feels so good to have them," Simms said. "Coach Twichell is amazing. The teammates that I had this past season are unselfish; they make great decisions when we need them. I'm proud that I'm part of it. It's nice to have."

Looking back at Granite's body of work, the Warriors kept striving in every game, never gave in, and persevered to the end.

"My teammates made it easy for me," Simms said of the past season. "We put our hearts in each game, and I'm very proud of everyone."

Simms concluded with some kind words about her coach Ron Twichell: "Thank you to coach Twitch for giving us these opportunities to be better as a team," Simms said. "I appreciate him very much."

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