SOU (11), Concordia (22) Among NAIA Top 25
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Northwestern (Iowa) captured 13 first-place votes to retain its No. 1 ranking in the second edition of the
NAIA Division II Women's Basketball Coaches' Top 25 Poll, the NAIA announced Monday. Cascade Collegiate Conference teams in this week's poll include No. 11 Southern Oregon (9-1) , No. 22 Concordia University, and College of Idaho (receiving votes).
The Great Plains Athletic Conference has six teams represented in this week's poll, led by the top-ranked Red Raiders, Hastings, No. 8 Mount Marty (S.D.), No. 15 Briar Cliff (Iowa), No. 18 Morningside (Iowa) and this week's newcomer No. 25 Concordia (Neb.). Four teams are ranked out of the Mid-Central Collegiate Conference with No. 4 Indiana Wesleyan, No. 10 Taylor (Ind.), No. 14 Bethel (Ind.) and No. 24 Saint Francis (Ind.).
Northwestern registered a pair of GPAC wins last week, downing Dordt (Iowa) 66-55 and Dana 102-49, to move to 8-1, 4-0 GPAC. Head coach Earl Woudstra's Red Raiders, who have won seven straight dating back to Nov. 6, will travel to Sioux City, Iowa, for a Wednesday night contest at No. 18 Morningside.
Second-ranked Davenport (8-1) notched its eighth-straight victory on Saturday, defeating NAIA Division I Robert Morris (Ill.) 91-74. The Lady Panthers also handled Purdue-Calumet (Ind.) 113-71 on Dec. 2. During Davenport's current win-streak, the Lady Panthers have scored at least 85 points in seven-straight games. On the docket this week for head coach Mark Young's team is a Tuesday night game at Concordia (Mich.), followed by the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference/Mid-Central Collegiate Conference Challenge. The Lady Panthers are set to have a Friday night showdown with fourth-ranked Indiana Wesleyan.
Hastings improved to 11-2, 3-0 GPAC last week, playing one non-conference and one conference opponent. The Broncos first dismantled Midland Lutheran (Neb.) 77-50 on Dec. 2, and followed with an 89-68 win against York (Neb.) on the road. Head coach Jeff Dittman will lead his team into a pair of games this week against nationally-ranked conference foes. First for the Broncos will be a Wednesday matchup against No. 25 Concordia and then travel to No. 15 Briar Cliff on Saturday.
After spending last week at No. 5, Indiana Wesleyan received three first-place votes and moved up one spot to No. 4. Last week the Wildcats were awarded a pair of first-place nods. Head coach Steve Brooks has guided his team to a 10-0, 2-0 MCCC record to start the season. Taking on then-No. 11 Bethel (Ind.) last week, Indiana Wesleyan picked up the 71-62 victory to push its league record to 2-0 and followed with a 13-point win over NAIA Division I opponent Holy Cross College, 76-63. This weekend in the WHAC/MCCC challenge, the Wildcats will square off against No. 2 Davenport.
Shawnee State drops one spot this week, from No. 4 to 5. The Bears etched out a 94-87 win over Mount Vernon Nazarene (Ohio) on Dec. 1, to open American Mideast Conference play. In the win, all five of Shawnee State's starters finished the game with double-figure points. Head coach Robin Hagen-Smith's squad followed with a 12-point win against Northwestern Ohio. This weekend Shawnee State will head to Kentucky to take on Berea and Southern Virginia at the Union College Classic.
The poll was voted upon by a panel of head coaches representing each of the conferences. The next poll will be announced on Dec. 14.