City of Basketball Love

Jeff Griffith (@hooplove215)
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With the majority of area Division-III schools preparing for holiday break, it’s time to take an updated look around the local women’s basketball scene. Here’s a look at the latest CoBL-area D-III power rankings, as conference play approaches in earnest in the new year.  

Considering the general lack of games over the next few weeks, our next update will be in four weeks, Jan. 16, 2023.

Here are the rankings:

(Ed. Note: A reminder that CoBL's Division III coverage area includes from Philadelphia to Harrisburg, up to State College and over to the Lehigh Valley). 

Others to watch

Delaware Valley (6-6, 3-1 MAC Commonwealth), Mulhenberg (4-4, 3-1 Centennial), Immaculata (5-6, 0-0 Atlantic East), Penn State Harrisburg (4-4, 1-0 United East), Bryn Athyn (4-4, 2-1 CSAC)

10. Neumann (LW: NR)

Record: 5-5, 0-0 Atlantic East

Recent Results: vs. St. Mary’s College of Maryland (W, 64-37), at Ursinus (W, 61-59)

Several schools had a case for the No. 10 spot, but Neumann slides into the rankings largely on the basis of its current trend; the Knights, after starting the year 2-5, including losses to No. 9 Albright and No. 6 Lancaster Bible, have reentered the conversation with three consecutive victories. Sophomore guard Lauren Klieber has been fantastic for the Knights, holding top marks with 23.2 ppg (5th in D-III)and 10.5 rpg. She’s played a major role in Neumann’s recent streak of wins, contributing 26, 18 and 26 points respectively while shooting 58 percent from the field during that stretch. 

Next Up: neutral vs. William Patterson (Dec. 28), neutral vs. TBD (Dec. 29), vs. Penn State Brandywine (Jan. 4), vs. Marywood (Jan. 7)

9. Albright (LW: OTC)

Record: 6-5, 2-2 MAC Commonwealth

Recent Results: vs. Gwynedd Mercy (W, 72-59), vs. Messiah (L, 56-41), at Alvernia (L, 74-47)

Albright looked poised for an even bigger jump up the list after it defeated Gwynedd Mercy, but back-to-back losses dropped the Lions’ record closer to .500 and pumped the brakes on what had been a four-game win streak. Graduate forward Gabby Boggs continues to be the headliner for Albright; Boggs has logged single digit rebounds and points in just one game each, and leads the way with 15.9 ppg and 13.1 rpg (7th in D-III) while shooting 46 percent from the field. Boggs tallied 20 points and 13 rebounds, alongside graduate guard Amina Rauf’s 23 points, in the Lions’ recent win over Gwynedd Mercy.

Next Up: at St. Mary’s College of Maryland (Dec. 20), vs. York (Jan. 5), at Stevenson (Jan. 7)

8. Gwynedd Mercy (LW: 4)

 Record: 7-3, 0-0 Atlantic East

Recent Results: at Albright (L, 72-59), at John Jay (W, 84-62), vs. Rowan (L, 79-72)

A pair of recent losses knock the Griffins down a few pegs, but Gwynedd Mercy is still off to a strong overall start. Senior forward Hayley Crossley has been one of the area’s more productive players, averaging 19.1 points and 9.0 rebounds, both of which top Gwynedd Mercy’s charts. The Griffins will face a pair of the season’s toughest challenges to date when they face Catholic University — which reached last year’s NCAA Tournament and is off to an 8-2 start — prior to facing a Division I opponent, Penn, just before year’s end. 

Next Up: at Catholic (Dec. 19), neutral vs. Berea (Dec. 20), at Pennsylvania (Dec. 30), vs. Immaculata (Jan. 4), at Marymount (Jan. 7)

7. Dickinson (LW: 8)

Record: 6-2, 4-1 Centennial 

Recent Results: vs. Susquehanna (W, 46-31)

Dickinson has logged just one contest since the last update to these rankings; the Red Devils slide up to No. 7 following a lone victory over Susquehanna in which Clair Marion led the way with 28 points — more than half of Dickinson’s total — and 10 rebounds. Marion has been the Red Devils’ top scorer on the season with 14.6 ppg, to go with 6.0 rpg. Dickinson still has a bit of a busy rest of the month, with a pair of neutral-site games remaining  in Puerto Rico — the latter of which features a 2022 NCAA Tournament team — before its holiday break. 

Next Up: neutral vs. Kean (Dec. 19), neutral vs. SUNY Cortland (Dec. 20), vs. Johns Hopkins (Jan. 4), vs. Washington College (Jan. 7)

6. Lancaster Bible (LW: 6) 

Record: 6-2, 1-0 United East

Recent Results: at Centenary (W, 57-46), at Eastern Mennonite (W, 63-54), at Hood (L, 61-47)

The Chargers were riding a hot streak prior to a 14-point loss at Hood — a defeat in which Lancaster Bible had just seven players available — but have still done enough to hold serve at the sixth spot, now having won four of their last five including a pair of road victories. Junior guard Jenna Dombach came on strong in the Chargers’ most recent outing, leading the way with 24 points. On the season, though, sophomore forward Jade Eshelman continues to be the driving force, now averaging team-highs in scoring (17.0 ppg) and rebounding (14.3 rpg, 3rd in D-III). Lancaster Bible’s schedule features a three-week holiday break, which will set the Chargers up for a stretch of four out of five games away from home to start the new year, including three in conference. 

Next Up: at Salisbury (Jan. 4), vs. Penn State Berks (Jan. 7)

5. Haverford (LW: OTC)

Record: 8-3, 5-1 Centennial

Recent Results: at Cabrini (W, 66-56), at Bryn Mawr (W, 66-26), at Alvernia (W, 49-42)

Haverford — which, in this ranking, fell from a preseason No. 5 to the outside looking in after a 3-3 start and a loss at Swarthmore — has since ripped off five consecutive victories and is the biggest mover in the list’s latest update. The Fords have been especially impressive away from home, winning three road games in a row, including two by double digits. While last year’s CoBL D-III all-area rookie of the year, Ally Landau (16.0 ppg, 5.9 rpg) has been as advertised, senior forward Kayla Robinson’s numbers — 13.5 ppg and 12.7 rpg — have been just as impressive. 

Next Up: at Gettysburg (Jan. 4), at Johns Hopkins (Jan. 7)

4. Arcadia (LW: 4)

Record: 9-3, 3-1 MAC Freedom

Recent Results: neutral vs. Delaware Valley (L, 48-43), at King’s (W, 60-42), vs. Rutgers-Camden (W, 65-47)

Rising up one spot in the latest rankings, Arcadia has heated up to end 2022, winning five of its last six, including three on the road, with its lone loss coming by five against a .500 Delaware Valley squad. The Knights are packed up for the winter break and won’t play again until early January, but wrapped up 2022 on a high note, led by Scarlett Glasser-Nehls’ 20 points and Delaney Bell’s 17 rebounds in a resounding win over Rutgers-Camden. Glasser-Nehls continues to scorch the nets from beyond the arc, averaging 47.7 percent on deep. 

Next Up: at Misericordia (Jan. 4), vs. Wilkes (Jan .7)

3. Messiah (LW: 3)

Record: 9-2, 3-0 MAC Commonwealth

 Recent Results: vs. Gettysburg (W, 53-43), at Albright (W, 56-41), vs. Immaculata (W, 61-52), vs. Westminster (W, 63-49)

Messiah is back on a winning tear after getting blown out at DeSales November 28; the Falcons have won six in a row, making up nicely for a middling 3-2 start. Recent weeks featured an impressive double-digit win at Albright — in which top scorer and graduate forward Megan Zimmerman logged a double-double with 12 points and 11 boards — and a sweep of the Cruzin’ Classic in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Messiah gets a little bit of time off before a busy stretch of four games in 10 days to open up the new calendar year and run full-steam into conference play. 

Next Up: vs. Penn State Harrisburg (Jan. 2), vs. Hood (Jan. 4), at Eastern (Jan. 7)

2. Elizabethtown (LW: 2)

Record: 9-0, 1-0 Landmark

Recent Results: vs. Cabrini (W, 69-42), vs. Delaware Valley (W, 84-59), vs. Washington & Lee (W, 80-68)

One of just two undefeated teams left among the area’s D-III women’s programs, Elizabethtown holds serve at No. 2 after making quick work of its December schedule. The Blue Jays capped off a dominant week with a 12-point win over Washington & Lee, which — like Elizabethtown — earned an NCAA Tournament bid a year ago. Sophomore guard Summer McNulty has continued to lead the way for the Blue Jays, now averaging 15.9 ppg and 3.1 rpg, alongside fellow sophomore DaniRae Renno, whose 8.0 rpg — to compliment 15.0 ppg — are a team-high. 

Next Up: vs. Muskingum (Dec. 30), at Stevenson (Jan. 2), vs. Moravian (Jan. 7)

1. DeSales (LW: 1) 

Record: 9-0, 4-0 MAC Freedom

Recent Results: vs. Wilkes (W, 57-36), vs. Misericordia (W, 56-29)

DeSales continued its red-hot run in December, earning back-to-back wins by 20-or-more points and extending its regular season win streak to 19 games; the Bulldogs’ last regular season defeat came to then-No. 5 Messiah on November 20, 2021. On the wings of its unbeaten start, DeSales has rocketed up to No. 12 in d3hoops.com’s national rankings, the only local school on the current list. It’s been a balanced effort for the Bulldogs in recent victories, but the production of senior wing Megan Bealer has stood out; in DeSales’ two most recent wins, Bealer has combined for 27 points, 14 boards, 11 assists and seven steals. 

Next Up: at Cabrini (Dec. 20), neutral vs. Saint Joseph (Dec. 30), neutral vs CCNY (Dec. 31), at Lycoming (Jan. 4)

Previous Rankings: Preseason (Nov. 8) | Dec. 5 |