Tyra Boyd Powell is one of the most decorated women’s basketball players in the history of Barton College. The Tarboro native, who was raised in Garner, re-wrote the record books from 1979-83, cumulated by her selection as an NAIA All-American her senior season.
She finished an illustrious career with 1,849 points (19.7 per game), 303 made free throws and a field-goal percentage of 54.4 – all school records at the time. She becomes the seventh woman inducted into the Barton College Athletic Hall of Fame.
Powell was a four-year letter winner, four-time All-Carolinas Conference, three-time NAIA All-District 26 and NCAIAW All-Division as a sophomore. She was the Bulldogs’ co-captain her junior season and was named CIAC and District 26 Player of the Week numerous times.
Powell, who learned the game from her brother, Raphael (’82), knew she had a flair for playing basketball when she scored 30 of 36 points in a sixth-grade championship game. She later led Garner Senior High to the state championship with a perfect 26-0 record her junior season.
During high school, she was accorded all-conference, all-metro and All-State Tournament honors. After transferring, she was named Raleigh Athens Drive’s Most Outstanding Female Athlete and MVP her senior year.
In 1978, Powell went on a recruiting visit to N.C. Wesleyan, but found an empty gym, so she came to Barton to see her brother. She was introduced to women’s basketball coach Carol McKeel, who scouted her in a game at Fike High School soon thereafter when she recorded a triple-double. She was offered a scholarship to Barton and accepted.
Powell was frequently on the Dean’s List at Barton and made Who’s Who Among American Colleges and Universities.
After a stint in the banking business, she earned a Master’s degree in Business from Clark-Atlanta University, where she was elected Graduate Student Government President. She worked for N.C. Central University, and has been on assignment with the U.S. Department of Energy.
She is married to Victor Powell, and they are the proud parents of twin girls, Brianna Danielle and Brittany Mehrie.
