Morningside is ranked fourth in the NAIA Division II Women’s Basketball Coaches’ Preseason Top 25 Poll.

Morningside is ranked fourth in the nation in the NAIA Division II Women’s Basketball Coaches Preseason Top 25 Poll released on Oct. 25.

Morningside returns 11 letter winners, including three starters, from a team that finished the 2015-16 season with a record of 33-3 and was the runaway winner in the Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) championship race with a 20-2 league record to finish five games ahead of runner-ups Dakota Wesleyan University and Mount Marty College for the largest winning margin in the history of the conference. The Mustangs added the GPAC Tournament Championship to their resume when they routed Dakota Wesleyan 80-59 in the title game.

The Mustangs’ season ended with a 76-69 loss against eventual NAIA II National Champion Marian University in the quarterfinals of the NAIA II National Tournament.

Morningside is one of four teams from the GPAC ranked in the NAIA Division II Preseason Top 25. Aside from Morningside, Dakota Wesleyan is ranked third, Concordia University is 14th, and Briar Cliff University is 15th.  

Morningside has won four NAIA II National Championships during the Jamie Sale coaching era with NAIA II titles in 2004, 2005, 2009, and 2015. The Mustangs have posted 13 consecutive 20-win seasons and have made 14 consecutive appearances in the NAIA Division II National Tournament.

Click here for the complete NAIA Division II Women’s Basketball Coaches’ Preseason Top 25 Poll.