The Gettysburg College women’s basketball team climbed the national rankings in both the D3hoops.com and Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) polls, it was announced this week.
After tying at No. 22 in the WBCA Top 25 Poll last week, the Bullets move up two spots to No. 20 with 44 points, while George Fox University (11-4) holds the No. 19 position with 46 points. In the D3hoops.com Top 25 Poll, Gettysburg climbed three places to No. 22 (127 points) after holding No. 25 a week ago. Ranking above the Orange and Blue is the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse (12-4) at No. 21. Tufts University (16-0), Bowdoin College (17-0), and Hope College (16-0) remain at the top three positions in both national polls.
Gettysburg won its 14th consecutive game after defeating Centennial Conference opponents Dickinson College and Washington College last week. Head Coach Nate Davis picked up his 100th career victory at Gettysburg in the 62-52 decision against Dickinson, becoming the second in program history to achieve the milestone. The legendary Mike Kirkpatrick, who was at the helm for 26 years, is the all-time leader in wins at Gettysburg with a 379-271 record. Senior Ashley Gehrin (Chester, N.J./West Morris Mendham) finished with a team-high 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting against the Red Devils. In the win against Washington, four players registered double-figure scoring as Gettysburg tied a program record 14 made three-pointers to claim its 14th win in a row. Gehrin paced the scoring with 16 points on 7-of-12 shooting, seven rebounds, and two assists. Classmate Kiera Cesareo (Randolph, N.J./Randolph) accumulated 15 points, and sophomores Carly Rice (Pennington, N.J./The Pennington School) and Mackenzie Tinner (Newtown, Pa./Council Rock High School North) followed with 14 and 12 points, respectively.
With 14 straight victories, the Bullets are only three games away from tying the program record. The 1984-85 squad holds the longest winning streak in program history at 17, which is also the season they appeared in the NCAA tournament.
Gettysburg’s hot-shooting has the team ranked first in Division III in three-point percentage (41.9) and third in field goal percentage (48.5) while ranking sixth in defensive rebounds per game (32.8).
In league action, the Bullets continue to keep the top spot. Haverford College (11-3, 8-1 CC) is right behind in second with its only loss coming against the Orange and Blue, and Johns Hopkins University (10-5, 7-3 CC) is in third.
Gettysburg welcomes Johns Hopkins to Bream Gym on Wednesday, January 22, at 6 p.m.
This story was originally posted on the Gettysburg College Website.