Women's Basketball | 11/4/2026 12:00:00 PM
TRAFFORD, Pa. (pacathletics.org) - Two-time defending conference champion Washington & Jefferson College was picked first in the South Division and last year's North Division winner Grove City College was voted to the top spot in the North in the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) annual women's basketball preseason coaches' poll, which was released Wednesday afternoon with the Players to Watch list.
This is the second season the PAC will have a divisional format. Each team will play 16 games in the regular season against conference foes, with programs playing their divisional opponents twice and teams from the opposite division one time each.
Saint Francis University, who was not counted in the 2026-27 poll, is beginning its first season of conference competition while reclassifying from Division I to Division III. Saint Francis, whose results will not count in the conference standings during SFU's reclassifying process, will play South Division opponents twice this year and North teams once.
W&J and 23rd-year head coach Jina DeRubbo picked up nine first-place votes and totaled 68 points to earn the No. 1 spot in the South Division poll. The Presidents claimed their second consecutive and eighth overall PAC Championship last year and finished with a 22-7 record following a loss in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament to Illinois Wesleyan.
Finishing second in the South Division poll was Saint Vincent College. Led by the 2025 PAC Coach of the Year Kam Gissendanner, the Bearcats went 21-7 last year, earned the top seed in the PAC Tournament and advanced to the Tournament title game, where they fell to W&J. Saint Vincent had a pair of first-place votes and 58 points, just ahead of third place Chatham University, who had the final two first-place votes and 53 points.
Leading the North Division with nine first-place votes and 67 total points is Grove City and fourth-year head coach Jason Baker. The Wolverines were the top team in the North a year ago with an 11-5 conference record and finished 17-9 overall. The Wolverines were followed in the poll by Allegheny College with 56 points and three first-place votes. Complete poll results for both divisions are below.
A total of six all-conference players return from a season ago to highlight this year's Players to Watch list. That list is highlighted by a pair of First Team All-PAC selections in Allegheny junior guard Isabella Antonacci and W&J senior center Katie Kovalchick. Antonacci ranked third in the conference with 17.1 points per game, was the PAC leader in assists (5.5) and assist-to-turnover ratio (2.0) and ranked fifth in free throw percentage (83.0).
Kovlachick gathered First Team honors after she was seventh in the PAC in scoring (15.1), grabbed 5.7 rebounds per game, shot 52.8 percent from the field and blocked 1.1 shots per game.
Two award winners return for their teams this winter, including Saint Vincent junior guard Brooke Evans, the PAC's Defensive Player of the Year, and Bethany College guard Lindsey Best, who won the PAC Newcomer of the Year award.
Evans' defensive work helped SVC allow a PAC-low 54.1 points per game in 16 regular season conference games. A solid contributor everywhere, Evans was the team leader with 49 steals, while also averaging 7.9 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game. She also chipped in 13 blocked shots to rank second on the Bearcats.
Best made an immediate impact in the Bethany lineup, as the guard led the team with 3.2 assists per game while also averaging 9.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.4 steals. Best reached double figures in scoring in 12 games, 10 of those coming against PAC opponents.
The Players to Watch list also includes 19 members of the Spring 2026 PAC Academic Honor Roll, which recognizes student-athletes on varsity sports teams who earned a grade-point average (GPA) of 3.6 or higher on a 4.0 scale during their semester of competition.
The eight-team PAC Tournament will get underway with quarterfinals on Tuesday, Feb. 23rd, with semifinal games to be played Thursday, Feb. 25th and the PAC Championship Game is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 27th. All PAC Tournament match-ups will be played at campus sites. For a full breakdown of the PAC Tournament format, check the PAC Championships page.
This year's championship tournament winner will receive the league's automatic qualifying bid to the Division III Championship. Team selections for the Division III Championship are scheduled to be released Monday, March 1st, with first and second round match ups scheduled for Friday-Saturday, March 5-6.
| 2026-27 PAC Women's Basketball Preseason Coaches' Poll (North Division) |
| School (first-place votes) |
Points |
2025-26 record (conference) |
| 1. Grove City College (9) |
67 |
17-9 (11-5 PAC) |
| 2. Allegheny College (3) |
56 |
13-13 (10-6 PAC) |
| 3. Westminster College |
43 |
9-17 (6-10 PAC) |
| 4. Geneva College |
39 |
10-16 (7-9 PAC) |
| 5. Hiram College (1) |
32 |
7-18 (4-12 NCAC) |
| 6. Thiel College |
30 |
6-19 (1-15 PAC) |
| 2026-27 PAC Women's Basketball Preseason Coaches' Poll (South Division) |
| School (first-place votes) |
Points |
2025-26 record (conference) |
| 1. Washington & Jefferson College (9) |
68 |
22-7 (14-2 PAC) |
| 2. Saint Vincent College (2) |
58 |
21-7 (14-2 PAC) |
| 3. Chatham University (2) |
53 |
18-8 (10-6 PAC) |
| 4. Bethany College |
39 |
17-10 (11-5 PAC) |
| 5. Waynesburg University |
32 |
12-13 (8-8 PAC) |
| 6. Franciscan University |
17 |
3-22 (0-16 PAC) |
| Saint Francis University* |
--- |
3-26 (3-16 NEC) |
* - Ineligible for PAC Championship as school reclassifies from Division I
2026-27 PAC Women's Basketball Players to Watch
1 = 2025-26 First Team All-PAC / 2 = Second Team / HM = Honorable Mention
| Allegheny |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Ht. |
Hometown/High School |
| Isabella Antonacci (1) |
Jr. |
G |
5-7 |
Indiana, Pa./Indiana Area |
| Casey Brancato |
Fr. |
G/F |
5-10 |
Burrell, Pa./Burrell |
| Ashlan Price |
Jr. |
G/F |
5-10 |
Greensburg, Pa./Greensburg Salem |
| Bethany |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Ht. |
Hometown/High School |
| Lindsey Best |
So. |
G |
5-8 |
Rayland, Ohio/Martins Ferry |
| Addy Blazer |
So. |
G |
5-10 |
Hanoverton, Ohio/United Local |
| Kate Botti |
Sr. |
F |
6-0 |
Irwin, Pa./Norwin |
| Kaedlee Potter (2) |
Grad. |
F |
6-1 |
Barboursville, W.Va./Cabell Midland |
| Chatham |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Ht. |
Hometown/High School |
| Chloe Williams |
Sr. |
G/F |
5-11 |
Pittsburgh, Pa./Chartiers Valley |
| Skylar Adams |
Jr. |
G |
5-8 |
Apex, NC |
| Daja White |
Sr. |
SF |
5-8 |
Queens, NY/ Francis Lewis |
| Sophia Toscasno |
Jr. |
G |
5-8 |
New York, NY/IMG Academy |
| Michelle McGee |
Sr. |
G |
5-4 |
Grand Rapids, Mich./Wyoming |
| Franciscan |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Ht. |
Hometown/High School |
| Maria McCallen |
Sr. |
F |
6-0 |
Springfield, Pa./Cardinal O'Hara |
| Geneva |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Ht. |
Hometown/High School |
| Aizlyn Thompson |
Sr. |
G |
5-7 |
Beaver Falls, Pa./Lincoln Park |
| Briah Clarke |
Jr. |
G |
5-6 |
Belize City, Belize/Saint Catherine Academy |
| Kassandra Garcia |
So. |
G |
5-3 |
Mission, Texas/Pioneer |
| Regan Kerr |
So. |
G/F |
5-11 |
Greensburg, Pa./Greensburg Salem |
| Kira Bonanno |
So. |
F |
5-9 |
New Bethlehem, Pa./Redbank Valley |
| Grove City |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Ht. |
Hometown/High School |
| Alexis Hudson (HM) |
Jr. |
F |
5-11 |
Watsontown, Pa./Warrior Run |
| Brooke McCoy |
Sr. |
F |
5-9 |
Irwin, Pa./Hempfield |
| Bethany Thompson |
Sr. |
G |
5-8 |
Exeter Township, Pa./High Point Baptist |
| Hiram |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Ht. |
Hometown/High School |
| Isaella Caceres |
Jr. |
PG |
5-6 |
Cypress, Calif./Cypress |
| Maya Joiner |
Jr. |
F |
5-10 |
Canton, Mich./Canton |
| Star Owens |
Sr. |
F/C |
6-0 |
West Chester, Ohio/Lakota West |
| Diara Parsons |
Sr. |
F |
5-9 |
US Virgin Islands/IMG Academy |
| Saint Francis |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Ht. |
Hometown/High School |
| Anna DeFazio |
Sr. |
F |
5-10 |
North Huntingdon, Pa./Norwin |
| Minyhah Easterling |
Jr. |
C |
6-3 |
Altoona, Pa./Altoona Area |
| Madelyn Lieb |
So. |
F |
5-10 |
Nicktown, Pa./Bishop Carroll |
| Demi Marshall |
Fr. |
G |
5-4 |
Washington, D.C./Dunbar |
| Sarah Miller |
Fr. |
G |
5-7 |
Johnstown, Pa./Bishop Carroll |
| Saint Vincent |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Ht. |
Hometown/High School |
| Brooke Evans (HM) |
Jr. |
G |
5-9 |
McKeesport, Pa./McKeesport |
| Emerson Peffer |
Jr. |
F |
5-11 |
Harmony, Pa./Seneca Valley |
| Danielle Pontius |
Sr. |
G |
5-5 |
New Castle, Pa./Laurel |
| Olivia Yancy |
Sr. |
G |
5-7 |
Kittanning, Pa./Armstrong |
| Thiel |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Ht. |
Hometown/High School |
| Issy Green (HM) |
Jr. |
G |
5-9 |
Slippery Rock, Pa./Portersville Christian |
| Kayley Risser |
Jr. |
F |
5-8 |
Reynoldsville, Pa./DuBois Central Catholic |
| Emily Betsinger |
So. |
C |
5-10 |
Indiana, Pa./Indiana |
| Caylee Sundy |
Fr. |
G |
5-7 |
Aliquippa, Pa./Hopewell |
| Caitlin Stephens |
Jr. |
F |
5-10 |
West Middlesex, Pa./West Middlesex |
| W&J |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Ht. |
Hometown/High School |
| Katie Kovalchick (1) |
Sr. |
C |
6-3 |
Shelocta, Pa./Indiana Area |
| Marina Grado |
Sr. |
G |
5-5 |
Monroeville, Pa/Gateway |
| Raegan Kadlecik |
Sr. |
G |
5-8 |
McKees Rocks, Pa./Montour |
| Waynesburg |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Ht. |
Hometown/High School |
| Mia Henkins |
Sr. |
G |
5-3 |
Morgantown, W.Va./Morgantown |
| Kara McFadden |
Sr. |
G |
5-3 |
Painsville, Ohio/Fairport Harding |
| Julz Mohrbacher |
Sr. |
F |
5-10 |
Freedom, Pa./Freedom |
| Westminster |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Ht. |
Hometown/High School |
| Kennedy Arison |
Sr. |
G |
5-4 |
Medina, Ohio/Akron Hoban |
| Grace Cano |
Sr. |
F |
5-11 |
Greenville, Pa./Greenville |
| Maddie Syka |
Jr. |
G/F |
5-9 |
Darlington, Pa./Lincoln Park |
| Angelina Brush |
Jr. |
G |
5-7 |
Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional |
| Katie Maryo |
Jr. |
G |
5-8 |
Cleveland, Ohio/Magnificat |