It’s hard to imagine that Keighley Davis, who has been starting for Princeton‘s varsity since her sophomore season and playing on it since she was a freshman, could up her game.

But she did. Big time.

When running mate Camryn Driscoll went down with a season-ending knee injury in early January, Davis took it upon herself to step up her game.

At the time of Driscoll’s injury, Davis was averaging 15.9 ppg with a 17.4% clip on 3-point shooting. In her next 13 games, Davis averaged 21.5 ppg and doubled her 3-point shooting to 34.6%.

She had 28 points in Princeton’s second full game without Driscoll in a win over Orion. She enjoyed eight games of 24 or more points, including an all-time PHS senior night record of 29 in a win over Marquette.

“It was hard at first, but I kind of adjusted not having [Driscoll] on the court as a valuable player, offensive scoring and defense. After a while, we got used to not having her, but ... without her, it was hard,” Davis said.

Davis was a unanimous all-conference selection once again in the Three Rivers Conference East Division and was a special mention Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Class All-State and Illinois Media Class 2A All-State honorable mention.

She was second in the area in scoring at 17.9 points per game and steals (4.5) while averaging 7.3 rebounds and 3.1 assists, which both ranked top 10 in the area.

For all of her accomplishments, Davis is the 2026 NewsTribune Girls Basketball Player of the Year.

Davis said receiving this award, “Means a lot to me. It shows how much hard work I put in, just not me, but for my teammates to help me get here, to support me and my coaches and family to push me.”

“The thing I’m most proud of is the leader she was this season, especially when Camryn went down with the injury,” PHS coach Tiffany Gonigam said. “She understood what that meant and became the voice and heartbeat of our team. Her competitiveness and the way she inspired and motivated the team was admirable. She kept them believing in what we were doing and pushed them to overcome adversity in some tight games.

“Keighley leaves a legacy here that goes far beyond the stats and the records she set this year. The teammate, player and person she was this year will be remembered forever.”

Davis found herself with the responsibility of handling the ball with the loss of Driscoll, who is most adept at point guard.

“The year before, I brought the ball up sometimes and had some guard experience. It was a lot more to take on, for sure,” Davis said. “It was hard knowing I have to be the feeder now. Like, I don’t have to run the floor anymore, which I was fine with. [It] was less running I had to do. It was good knowing that I can rely on somebody else, too, and I didn’t have to have all the pressure on me.”

She liked having the ball in her hands more ... until “I got doubled-teamed more,” she said with a laugh.

Davis, who made a living the last four years on fast-break layups, said she knew she had to shoot better to give the Tigresses another outside threat.

“I started working on it more knowing that one of our big 3-point shooters was out, and I needed to take it upon myself to score more and put more points on the board to help our team. Helps me knowing I can work anywhere on the floor,” she said.

Gonigam said Davis truly took her game to another level, becoming a “nightmare” for opponents.

“Teams now had to plan for a player who can truly do it all – shoot the 3, drive to the lane, post up,” Gonigam said. “Plus, she averages over three assists per game. She’s a great passer, too, and had kids around her that could make plays.

“She can do it all on both ends of the court.”

Davis said it just wasn’t the same playing without Driscoll in the second half of the season. The Tigresses were 14-0 with Driscoll in the lineup and finished 7-9 without her.

“We played together since seventh grade, so we got used to each other and how our styles have grown together and how they’ve changed together,” Davis said. “Especially being on the same team, we’ve worked on the same things, we’ve done the same things. We know what each other likes to do and don’t do and how to work off each other.”

Davis, who is playing soccer this spring, will turn to volleyball full-time at William Penn University in Oskaloosa, Iowa.