WBCA NCAA Division III Preseason Coaches’ Poll — 10/27/2026
The WBCA NCAA Division III preseason Top 25 women’s basketball coaches’ poll, WITH TEAMS’ RECORDS FROM LAST YEAR in parentheses, total points based on 25 for first place through one point for 25th, ranking in last year’s final poll, and first-place votes received.
| Rank | School (Record) | Points | Last season’s final rank | First-Place Votes |
| 1 | Denison (30-2) | 240 | 1 | 9 |
| 2 | NYU (29-1) | 236 | 3 | 1 |
| 3 | Bates (26-4) | 192 | 6 | 0 |
| 4t | Scranton (32-1) | 190 | 2 | 0 |
| 4t | UW-Oshkosh (28-4) | 190 | 4 | 0 |
| 6 | Smith (28-2) | 186 | 10 | 0 |
| 7 | Johns Hopkins (27-2) | 184 | 7 | 0 |
| 8 | Hope (26-4) | 169 | 8 | 0 |
| 9 | Bowdoin (25-3) | 160 | 11 | 0 |
| 10 | Washington-St. Louis (21-7) | 149 | 14 | 0 |
| 11 | Chicago (20-8) | 144 | 9 | 0 |
| 12 | Washington and Lee (31-1) | 138 | 5 | 0 |
| 13 | Christopher Newport (24-5) | 125 | 16 | 0 |
| 14 | Baldwin-Wallace (25-4) | 118 | 15 | 0 |
| 15 | John Carroll (26-5) | 101 | 12 | 0 |
| 16 | Concordia-Moorhead (26-5) | 74 | 13 | 0 |
| 17 | Ohio Wesleyan (21-6) | 70 | 21 | 0 |
| 18 | Hardin-Simmons (24-6) | 59 | 24t | 0 |
| 19 | UW-La Crosse (21-10) | 58 | 18 | 0 |
| 20 | Illinois Wesleyan (23-6) | 57 | 20 | 0 |
| 21 | Ripon (26-3) | 56 | 17 | 0 |
| 22 | Southern Maine (27-3) | 53 | 19 | 0 |
| 23 | Trine (23-6) | 50 | 24t | 0 |
| 24 | Carroll (WI) (23-6) | 33 | 22 | 0 |
| 25 | UW-Whitewater (20-9) | 30 | RV | 0 |
Dropped out: No. 23 Bethel, MN (24-7).
Others receiving votes: SUNY- Cortland (23-5) 23; Bethel (MN) (24-7) 22; William Paterson (25-3) 21; Wisconsin Lutheran (24-6) 18; Otterbein (23-6) 17; Transylvania (24-5) 17; Whitman (21-8) 17; Brooklyn (24-5) 13; Johnson & Wales (23-5) 9; SUNY-New Paltz (26-3) 7; Gettysburg (21-7) 6; UW-River Falls (16-12) 4; Calvin (16-11) 3; Messiah (24-5) 3; Merchant Marine (23-5) 2; Randolph-Macon (21-8) 2; Rochester Institute (20-7) 2; Washington and Jefferson (22-7) 2.
The WBCA NCAA Division III Coaches Poll Committee is composed of one head coach from each of the 10 NCAA Division III regions. The committee for the 2026-27 season: Keri Carollo, UW-Whitewater; Samantha Crough, Regis (MA); Eric Harrison, Lehman; Jasen Jonus, Oglethorpe; Melissa Kolbe, Wittenberg; Casey Kushiyama, Puget Sound; Bobbi Morgan, Ursinus; Mia Smith, Illinois Wesleyan; Daphne Thompson, SUNY Oneonta; Kelly Thompson, Roger Williams.