Tuesday, December 8, 2015

Gold Nuggets reach top 10 for first time since 2013


NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana reached the top 10 in the NAIA Division I Women's Basketball Coaches' Top 25 Poll for the first time since the 2012-13 season. The Gold Nuggets climbed from 21st to ninth in the poll, which was announced Tuesday.
     
Xavier (9-2) has won 3-of-4 games against ranked NAIA DI teams, including Shawnee State and Langston on consecutive days and Our Lady of the Lake in a fourth-quarter rally from 17 points down. Xavier was behind all three opponents in the preseason ranking but has leapfrogged all three. Our Lady of the Lake is tied for 10th, Shawnee State is 12th, and Langston is 18th.
     
The top-10 appearance is the Nuggets' first since Feb. 26, 2013, and it's their highest ranking since they were ninth on Jan. 8, 2013. The climb of 12 places is the largest in Bo Browder's 17 seasons as head coach.
     
The poll is the first of the regular season since the preseason ranking Oct. 27. The next top 25 will be announced Jan. 5.
     
The Gold Nuggets are taking fall-semester final exams this week. They'll resume their schedule Dec. 17 against Indiana Wesleyan — ranked ninth in NAIA Division II — at 11 a.m. EST in the Cruzin Classic at Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The next home game will start at 3 p.m. Jan. 2 against NAIA No. 22 LSU-Shreveport at the Convocation Center.

NAIA Division I Women's Basketball Coaches' Top 25 Poll(first-place votes in parentheses — records through Dec. 6)

RankTeamRecordPointsLast
1Vanguard (8)4-02193
2Westmont8-12095
3Montana State-Northern8-11996
4Campbellsville8-31931
5Bethel (Tenn.)8-31874
6Carroll (Mont.)11-118624
7Freed-Hardeman5-31742
8Benedictine (Kan.)9-117015
9Xavier9-215721
10-tieMidAmerica Nazarene5-11569
10-tieOur Lady of the Lake4-2156tie-7
12Shawnee State10-215216
13Oklahoma City4-3127tie-7
14Lyon6-212217
15Cumberland8-311212
16Columbia (Mo.) (1)9-0111RV
17John Brown7-3103RV
18Langston6-210218
19The Master's6-29914
20-tieRocky Mountain9-280NR
20-tieMartin Methodist8-28020
22LSU-Shreveport5-27025
23Pikeville9-06022
24Wayland Baptist3-35110
25Great Falls7-34511

Dropped from rankings:  No. 13 Loyola, No. 19 Lewis-Clark State, No. 23 Baker. Others receiving votes:  Baker 41, Talladega 40, Lewis-Clark State 28, Loyola 18, Wiley 16, Lindsey Wilson 10, Hope International 5, Culver-Stockton 4, Central Methodist 3


Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
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