GREENWOOD, Ind. – After advancing to the NCAA Championship Midwest Regional, Cedarville is back on top as the early favorite in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference Women’s Basketball Preseason Coaches Poll.
The Yellow Jackets received six first-place votes for a total of 48 points in the balloting while Kentucky Wesleyan received the other two.
The Panthers were picked a close second behind Cedarville after compiling 42 points in the voting.
Cedarville’s historic 2014-15 run resulted in a 27-4 overall record along with the league’s regular-season crown and G-MAC Championship title. The Yellow Jackets ripped through the conference calendar by winning 15 of 16 contests.
The Yellow Jackets advanced to the national tournament as an at-large selection to face Michigan Tech, the G-MAC’s first-ever qualification in a bracket format. The road to the G-MAC Championship trophy included wins versus Central State and Kentucky Wesleyan in the final.
Cedarville All-American guard Raegan Ryan was named the G-MAC Player of the Year and head coach Kirk Martin was tabbed the G-MAC Coach of the Year.
Ryan was a senior in 2014-15, but a strong supporting cast returns in the form of all-conference selections Kayla Linkous (first team), Regina Hochstetler (all-freshman), Breanne Watterworth (all-freshman) and Abby Wolford (all-freshman).
Kentucky Wesleyan edged out Trevecca Nazarene for second in the preseason poll by just three points. KWC was 14-2 and TNU was 13-3 in the G-MAC calendar last year.
Davis & Elkins (28) and Ursuline (24) rounded out the top five of the coaches’ voting. Alderson Broaddus (22), Ohio Valley (13) and Salem International (8), were picked sixth, seventh and eighth, respectively.
Central State is not a conference member for the 2015-16 season.
The G-MAC is working with member institutions for an extensive preseason preview later this month. Interviews with the head coach and a student-athlete along with a written team capsule will be posted on G-MACSports.com prior to the regular season getting underway.
2015-16 G-MAC Women's Basketball Preseason Coaches Poll
| Rank |
Team |
Points (1st) |
| 1 |
Cedarville |
48 (6) |
| 2 |
Kentucky Wesleyan |
42 (2) |
| 3 |
Trevecca Nazarene |
39 |
| 4 |
Davis & Elkins |
28 |
| 5 |
Ursuline |
24 |
| 6 |
Alderson Broaddus |
22 |
| 7 |
Ohio Valley |
13 |
| 8 |
Salem International |
8 |