PAC Release

TRAFFORD, Pa. -- Allegheny College has been voted No. 1 in the North Division in the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) Women's Basketball Preseason Coaches' Poll, announced by the conference office on Tuesday afternoon.

A year after winning the ECAC Division III Championship, the Gators received a maximum of 11 first-place votes and led the North Division with 66 points. Grove City College was second with the remaining first-place vote and 54 points, followed by Geneva College in third with 42 points.

With the addition of the conference's 12th full-time member, Hiram College, the PAC will debut a two-division format for the 2025-26 campaign. In the South Division, Washington and Jefferson College finished in first place with 65 points. Chatham University was the runner-up with 57 points. 

Allegheny also placed four student-athletes on the PAC's list of Players to Watch this winter. Three of the four Gators featured are returning All-PAC selections, headlined by senior forward and All-PAC First Team honoree Sarah Santicola (Moon Township, Pa./Moon Township). Guards Jess Bickart (Cranberry Township, Pa./Seneca Valley) and Isabella Antonacci (Indiana, Pa./Indiana Area), the 2024-25 PAC Newcomer of the Year, both return after earning All-PAC Honorable Mention accolades. Second-year forward Ava Kobus (Pittsburgh, Pa./Norwin) was also recognized.

The Gators kick off the new season with the second annual Women Leaders Tip-Off Tournament. Allegheny's first contest is scheduled for Saturday, November 8, at 3 p.m. against Washington and Lee University.