Wildcats Ranked Eighth In Final Division II Coaches Poll

3/28/2021 12:44:00 PM

By: CONTACT: Mike Miranto, Sr. Associate Athletics Director for Communications & Operations

AMHERST, N.Y. – The Daemen College women's basketball team is officially a top-10 ranked team in both Division II national polls to close the 2020-21 season. The Wildcats are ranked eighth in the final Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Division II top 25 coaches poll which was announced today. It comes just hours after the Wildcats were also ranked eighth in the NCAA Division II Sports Information Directors of America (D2SIDA) national media poll. Both polls mark the program's highest ascent up the Division II national rankings as well as the first time the Wildcats have been nationally ranked to finish a season since transitioning to the NCAA from the NAIA.

Led by head coach Jenepher Banker, the 2020-21 East Coast Conference Coach of the Year, Daemen closed out the season with a 14-3 overall record. The Wildcats claimed their second consecutive ECC regular season title and advanced to the final round of the ECC Championship for a second straight season, finishing as runners-up. Banker's squad earned their second straight berth to the NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Championship as the No. 2 seed in the East Region. The Wildcats promptly dispatched of third-seeded Georgian Court in the regional semifinals - the first NCAA tournament win in program history - and captured the program's first East Region championship with a 58-40 win over fifth-seeded Roberts Wesleyan on March 15, avenging their conference tournament loss to the Redhawks in the process.

The regional title pushed the Wildcats into the Elite Eight where, as the No. 8 seed, their run came to a conclusion following a 66-49 loss to top-seeded Lubbock Christian at the Greater Columbus (Ohio) Convention Center on March 23. Lubbock Christian went on to complete an undefeated season (22-0, defeating third-seeded Drury 69-59 in Friday's national championship game. It marked the third national title in the last six seasons for the the Lady Chaps who top both the WBCA and D2SIDA national polls.

The Wildcats rode a stingy defense and strong rebounding into the national conversation this season, surrendering just 51.6 points per game on 32.5% shooting to rank third among all Division II teams in those respective stats. The Wildcats also ranked third in rebounding margin after out-rebounding their opponents by an average of 11.4 boards per game.

The Wildcats were led this season by the trio of senior forward Caroline White (Fairport, N.Y.), junior forward Katie Titus (Penfield, N.Y.) and redshirt senior guard Tiara Filbert (Batavia, N.Y.) who each earned All-ECC first team honors. White has named the ECC Player of the Year and finished as the team leader in both scoring (15.2 ppg) and rebounding (8.5 rpg) - both career-highs. Titus, the Most Outstanding Player of the East Regional, canned a team-high 48 three-pointers while producing 14.8 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.4 blocked shots per game. Filbert shot a career-high 50% from the field and averaged 13.3 points and 2.9 assists per contest. She missed the final nine games after suffering a season-ending injury in a victory at Roberts Wesleyan on February 17. Both Filbert and White surpassed the 1,000-point mark for their respective careers this season, becoming the 25th and 26th players in program history to do so. White and Titus garnered honorable mention All-American recognition from the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) last week.

With freshmen Alahna Paige (Rochester, N.Y.) and Natalie Angeletti (Randolph, N.Y.), as well as junior Mickayla Ivy (Grand Rapids, Mich.) in the starting lineup, the Wildcats are set to return a bulk of their regular rotation for the 2021-22 season. Paige averaged 6.7 points and a team-high 3.3 assists per game and was named the ECC Rookie of the Year. Ivy had the finest season of her career, producing 9.4 points and 6.5 rebounds per game while shooting 52% from the field. Filbert has indicated she'll return for another season, taking advantage of an added year of eligibility granted to all winter sport student-athletes by the NCAA due to the COVID-19 pandemic. White and fellow senior Autumn Buchsenschutz (Port Allegany, Pa.), who played a valuable role coming off the bench, may also return.

Daemen has now been ranked in seven consecutive WBCA Division II coaches polls dating back to early February. The program had not been nationally ranked at any point during its NCAA Division II era prior to this season. The WBCA coaches poll committee is comprised of one head coach from each of the 23 Division II conferences.

WBCA DIVISION II TOP 25 COACHES POLL - MARCH 27
	W-L	PTS.	PREV.
1. Lubbock Christian (23)	23-0	575	1
2. Drury	24-2	551	2
3. Lander	20-2	518	5
4. Central Missouri	23-5	491	20
5. Charleston (W.Va.)	19-3	457	8
6. North Georgia	18-2	431	3
7. Belmont Abbey	22-3	410	13
8. DAEMEN	14-3	364	15
9. Nebraska-Kearney	23-4	345	9
T-10. Fort Hays State	21-4	292	10
T-10. Michigan Tech	20-2	292	6
12. Minnesota-Duluth	14-2	291	7
13. Valdosta State	18-4	253	12
14. Hawaii Pacific	13-1	238	4
15. Southwestern Oklahoma State	18-4	237	19
16. Azusa Pacific	12-5	229	NR
17. Texas A&M-Commerce	14-4	215	11
18. Tusculum	19-4	125	23
19. Arkansas Tech	14-2	118	21
20. Ashland	16-9	105	NR
21. Colorado School of Mines	17-3	97	22
22. Union (Tenn.)	19-6	94	25
23. Glenville State	12-4	93	18
24. Carson-Newman	15-4	92	14
25. Tuskegee	12-2	89	16

( ) denotes first-place votes

Others receiving votes: Gannon 82, Barton 64, Truman State 64, Benedict 51, Westminster (Utah) 35, Emporia State 29, Roberts Wesleyan 28, Southeastern Oklahoma State 22, Dominican (N.Y.) 19, Grand Valley State 15, Cedarville 12, Tiffin 8, Walsh 7, six teams mentioned on only one ballot for a total of 37 combined points.

DAEMEN IN THE WBCA DIVISION II TOP 25 COACHES POLL
Feb. 2 - 18
Feb. 9 - 19
Feb. 16 - 17
Feb. 23 - 12
March 1 - 12
March 8 - 15
March 27 - 8

Daemen College features the premier NCAA Division II athletics program in the Buffalo-Niagara region, sponsoring 17 intercollegiate teams. For the latest information on Daemen Athletics, follow the Wildcats via social media on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, or sign up to receive customizable news alerts, e-mail newsletters and weekly schedule alerts.

Support Daemen College's return to intercollegiate athletic competitions by making a contribution to the Game On Campaign and the Daemen Wildcats Gotta Play Fund. This comprehensive fundraising campaign was established to help offset the loss of valuable external revenue streams that directly support Daemen's 17 varsity programs. To learn more, visit daemenwildcats.com/gameon.

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