WBCA Recognizes Three Teams on Top 25 Academic Honor Roll
Three Empire 8 women’s basketball teams have been named to the 2013-14 Women’s Basketball Coaches Association Academic Top 25 Team Honor Roll, announced Wednesday.
Elmira College ranked sixth with a team grade point average of 3.593. Elmira finished the 2013-14 season with a 16-10 overall record and a 7-7 mark in the Empire 8 Conference, missing out on the conference tournament on the final day of the regular season. This was the first winning season that the program has had since the 2006-07 season when the Soaring Eagles posted a 21-7 record. Despite missing out on the E8 Tournament, EC did qualify for the ECAC Metro Division III Women's Basketball Tournament, earning the six seed, marking the first postseason action for the Purple and Gold in seven years.
Ithaca ranked in the top 10 for the third straight year, earning the eighth spot with a team gpa of 3.562. The Bombers finished sixth the last two years. Ithaca was one of seven teams in the top 25 who reached the NCAA playoffs.
Ithaca advanced to the NCAA Sectional Finals for the first time in program history, after its third appearance in the Sweet 16. The Bombers won their first sectional semifinal in program history on March 14, outlasting Amherst 74-71 in overtime at Tufts. Ithaca, who finished the season with a 26-5 record, fell to the host Jumbos, 61-59, on March 15 narrowly missing a trip to the Final Four. The Bombers' 26 wins were the second most in school history, highlighted by a school record 18-win streak from Jan. 10 to March 14. Ithaca won its third straight Empire 8 Championship Tournament title.
Utica College ranked 24th with a team gpa of 3.471. The Pioneers finished the season with a 7-18 overall record and a 2-12 mark in the conference. Nine of the losses on the season came by 10 points or less, including three contests in which the Pioneers came up one point short. Utica completed the season averaging 16.0 rebounds to lead the Empire 8 teams.
The WBCA Academic Top 25 annually recognizes women's basketball teams across the nation in NCAA Divisions I, II and III, the NAIA, and junior/community colleges that carry the highest combined grade point averages. The 2013-14 season is the 19th in which the WBCA has compiled the honor rolls.