GORHAM, Maine – Extending its win streak to 14 games last week, the University of Southern Maine Huskies' women's basketball team remains in the national conversation among the WBCA Division III and D3hoops.com National Polls – and for the first time since the 2012-2013 season has earned a national ranking, cracking the top 25 of the WBCA poll.
Moving to 17-1 and 9-0 in the Little East Conference after a trio of road games last week, the Huskies are ranked no. 25 nationally by the WBCA and remain in the "Also Receiving Votes" (ARV) category of the D3hoops.com poll. The Huskies have been in the ARV category for the D3hoops.com poll seven times this season (Nov. 23, Nov. 30, Dec. 7, Dec. 14, Jan. 4, Jan. 13. Jan. 20, Jan. 27), and have appeared in the WBCA poll four times (Nov. 25, Jan. 6 Jan. 13, Jan. 20).
Averaging 74.6 points per game and shooting 43.1 percent from the field as a team, the Huskies lead the Little East Conference in scoring defense and are holding their opponents to 51.9 points per game for a 22.7 margin of victory average. As a team, Southern Maine is averaging 15.0 assists per game and lead the LEC in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.41) and are 17 in NCAA Division III women's basketball. The Huskies' team field goal percentage is 21st in NCAA, while their scoring defense (51.9 ppg) and scoring margin (21.8) is ranked 27
th and seventh respectively.
A trio of Huskies are averaging double-figures: senior
Jaycie Christopher (Skowhegan, Maine) and sophomores
Lucy Wiles (Glenburn, Maine/Hampden Academy) and
Dakota Shipley (Bath, Maine/Brunswick). Christopher is averaging 19.1 points and 9.1 rebounds per game, while Wiles is scoring 16.6 points per game and adding 2.9 assists and 2.1 steals per game. Shipley is chipping in at 12.1 points, 7.1 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game.
Southern Maine (17-1, 9-0 Little East) hosts UMass Boston (10-6, 5-4 Little East) on Wednesday (5:30 pm) and then host Keene State (13-5, 7-2 Little East) on Saturday (1 pm) in the second annual NAMI Maine/Wade Millett Memorial Foundation Games.
D3hoops.com women's Top 25, Week 8 – January 27
Dropped out: No. 21 Shenandoah; No. 24 Concordia-Moorhead
Others receiving votes: Concordia-Moorhead 40; Southern Maine 30; Hardin-Simmons 19; Bridgewater 16; McDaniel 14; William Paterson 13; Shenandoah 11; McMurry 8; Linfield 6; Susequehanna 6; Christopher Newport 5; Wartburg 5; SUNY New Paltz 4; Cal Lutheran 3; East Texas Baptist 1
The
D3hoops.com Top 25 is voted on by a panel of 25 coaches, Sports Information Directors and media members from across the country, and is published weekly. Points are awarded on a 25-24-23-22-etc. basis.
WBCA Division III Women's Basketball Top 25 – January 27
The WBCA NCAA Division III Top 25 women's basketball coaches' poll, with teams' RECORDS THROUGH SUNDAY in parentheses, total points based on 25 for first place through one point for 25th, ranking in last week's poll, and first-place votes received.
| Rank |
School (record) |
Total
Points |
Last Week's Rank |
First-Place Votes |
| 1 |
NYU (16-0) |
250 |
1 |
10 |
| 2 |
Scranton (17-0) |
240 |
2 |
0 |
| 3 |
UW-Oshkosh (18-0) |
225 |
4 |
0 |
| 4 |
Johns Hopkins (16-0) |
217 |
5 |
0 |
| 5 |
Washington and Lee (17-0) |
207 |
6 |
0 |
| 6 |
Smith (16-1) |
203 |
3 |
0 |
| 7 |
Bowdoin (15-1) |
189 |
8 |
0 |
| 8 |
Hope (16-2) |
182 |
7 |
0 |
| 9 |
UW-Whitewater (15-3) |
157 |
9 |
0 |
| 10 |
Baldwin-Wallace (16-2) |
149 |
10 |
0 |
| 11 |
Ohio Wesleyan (16-1) |
148 |
11 |
0 |
| 12 |
John Carroll (16-2) |
146 |
12 |
0 |
| 13 |
Bates (16-2) |
136 |
13 |
0 |
| 14 |
Denison (17-1) |
107 |
14 |
0 |
| 15 |
Emory (12-3) |
101 |
15 |
0 |
| 16 |
Ripon (16-2) |
99 |
17 |
0 |
| 17 |
Washington-St. Louis (12-4) |
71 |
18 |
0 |
| 18 |
William Paterson (17-1) |
66 |
20 |
0 |
| 19 |
Chicago (11-4) |
64 |
19 |
0 |
| 20 |
SUNY-Cortland (14-2) |
61 |
21t |
0 |
| 21 |
Christopher Newport (15-4) |
48 |
23 |
0 |
| 22 |
Illinois Wesleyan (13-5) |
45 |
15 |
0 |
| 23 |
Carroll, WI (14-4) |
33 |
24 |
0 |
| 24 |
Trine (15-3) |
28 |
25 |
0 |
| 25 |
Southern Maine (17-1) |
17 |
RV |
0 |
Dropped out: No. 21t UW-Platteville (14-4).
Others receiving votes: Linfield (15-2) 10; Shenandoah (14-3) 10; Trinity, CT (14-5) 9; Bethel, MN (13-4) 8; Amherst (14-4) 5; Hardin-Simmons (14-3) 5; UW-Platteville (14-4) 5; Stevens (14-3) 3; Texas Lutheran (12-4) 3; Brooklyn (15-3) 2; Concordia-Moorhead (14-3) 1.
The WBCA NCAA Division III Coaches Poll Committee is composed of one head coach from each of the 10 NCAA Division III regions. The committee for the 2025-26 season: Samantha Crough, Regis (MA); Brad Fischer, UW-Oshkosh; Eric Harrison, Lehman; Jasen Jonus, Oglethorpe; Melissa Kolbe, Wittenberg; Casey Kushiyama, Puget Sound; Bobbi Morgan, Ursinus; Mia Smith, Illinois Wesleyan; Daphne Thompson, SUNY Oneonta; Kelly Thompson, Roger Williams.
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