Bulldog women’s basketball pegged as GPAC co-favorite
SEWARD, Neb. – Eighth-year head coach Drew Olson’s 2013-14 Bulldog women’s basketball team has been chosen as a co-favorite in the always loaded GPAC. Concordia and Morningside tied for first with 93 points each in the GPAC Women’s Basketball Coaches’ Poll, released Thursday afternoon by the league.
Olson’s squad picked up five of 11 first-place votes. Morningside, the defending GPAC regular season and tournament champion, received four first-place votes and Northwestern received the two remaining first-place nods.
Concordia is coming off a season in which it went 25-7 overall with a 16-4 conference mark on the way to finishing runner up to the Mustangs in the GPAC. The Bulldogs advanced to the NAIA national tournament for the fifth time in the past six seasons and for the 12th time in program history. After getting ousted by Cardinal Stritch University (Wis.) in round one, Concordia checked in at No. 9 in the postseason edition of the coaches’ top 25 poll.
This season will be somewhat of a transition for each of the top three squads in the preseason poll. All three lose a top player from last season. Northwestern says goodbye to National Player of the Year Kendra De Jong, Morningside graduated star Chelsie Trask and much of its backcourt and the Bulldogs’ Katie Rich, the 2012-13 Concordia Female Athlete of the Year, also departs.
The strength of the Bulldogs will again be their backcourt with senior All-American Kristen Conahan and junior Bailey Morris back in the fold.
2013-14 GPAC Women’s Basketball Preseason Coaches’ Poll
T1. Concordia – 93 (5)
T1. Morningside – 93 (4)
3. Northwestern – 84 (2)
4. Briar Cliff – 73
5. Dakota Wesleyan – 64
6. Hastings – 52
7. Dordt – 43
8. Mount Marty – 39
9. Midland – 33
10. Doane – 21
11. Nebraska Wesleyan – 10
