Contact: Chassidy Holloway, Assistant Executive Director, holloway@midwestconference.org
 
GRINNELL, Iowa – The league’s nine head coaches have picked the Ripon College Red Hawks to win their fourth consecutive regular-season Midwest Conference (MWC) title in the 2021-22 women’s basketball preseason poll. Ripon won a share of the title in 2017-18 season, before winning consecutive crowns in 2018-19 and 2019-20.
 
Ripon received eight first-place votes and 64 points to secure the top spot in the poll.
 
The Lady Blues of Illinois College picked up 50 points to take second place, followed by the Rams of Cornell College in third with 40 points.
 
The top-five rounds out with the Foresters of Lake Forest College and the Fighting Scots of Monmouth College with 38 and 33 points, respectively.
 
The Pioneers of Grinnell College and the Knox College Prairie Fire tied at sixth place with 31 points.
 
In eighth place, the Vikings of Lawrence University totaled 21 points, while the Buccaneers of Beloit College picked up a first-place vote and 16 points to close out the poll.
 
The Lady Blues will open the regular season with non-conference play on Friday, November 5. Conference play opens with the Pioneers hosting the Foresters on Saturday, November 20.
 
The MWC Women’s Basketball Tournament is scheduled for the weekend of February 25-26, 2022. The four-team event will be hosted by the top seed at the conclusion of the season. The winner will receive the league’s automatic berth to the NCAA Division III Tournament.
 
Full preseason poll results for all nine teams can be found below:
 
2021-22 MWC Women’s Basketball Preseason Poll Results – Team (first-place votes), points
1. Ripon College (8), 64 points
2. Illinois College, 50 points
3. Cornell College, 40 points
4. Lake Forest College, 38 points
5. Monmouth College, 33 points
T6. Grinnell College, 31 points
T6. Knox College, 31 points
8. Lawrence University, 21 points
9. Beloit College (1), 16 points
 
Beloit College Buccaneers
Head Coach: Gloria Bradley (6^th Season)
2019-20: 3-22(overall); 1-17 (MWC)
All-Conference Returnees: N/A
 
Cornell College Rams
Head Coach: Brent Brase (17^th Season)
2019-20: 15-10 (overall); 12-6 (MWC)
All-Conference Returnees: N/A
 
Grinnell College Pioneers
Head Coach: Dana Harrold (9^th Season)
2019-20:11-14 (overall); 7-11 (MWC)
All-Conference Returnees: N/A
 
Illinois College Lady Blues
Head Coach: Jennifer McCormick (6^th Season)
2019-20: 13-12 (overall); 9-9 (MWC)
All-Conference Returnees: N/A
 
Knox College Prairie Fire
Head Coach: Kira Mowen (1^st Season)
2019-20: 16-10 (overall); 11-7 (MWC)
All-Conference Returnees: N/A
 
Lake Forest College Foresters
Head Coach: Tamlyn Tills (14^th Season)
2019-20: 13-12 (overall); 10-8 (MWC)
All-Conference Returnees: N/A

Lawrence University Vikings
Head Coach: Riley Woldt (4^th Season)
2019-20: 6-19 (overall); 3-15 (MWC)
All-Conference Returnees: N/A
 
Monmouth College Scots
Head Coach: Megan Jones (1^st Season)
2019-20: 20-7 (overall); 14-4 (MWC)
All-Conference Returnees: N/A
 
Ripon College Red Hawks
Head Coach: Lauren Busalacchi (8^th Season)
2019-20: 20-7 (overall); 15-3 (MWC)
All-Conference Returnees: Bonnie Jensen (Jr); Alison Leslie (Jr – 2020 Newcomer of the Year)