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)
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