CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - Results of the American Rivers Conference's Women's Basketball Preseason Poll (as voted on by the league's head coaches):
| 2021-22 American Rivers Conference Women's Basketball Preseason Coaches' Poll |
| Rank |
School (1st place votes) |
Points |
2020-21 Record |
| 1. |
Simpson (6) |
61 |
12-0, 8-0 A-R-C (A-R-C Champions) |
| 2. |
Wartburg (2) |
56 |
13-3, 6-2 A-R-C |
| 3. |
Loras (1) |
53 |
6-7, 3-5 A-R-C |
| 4. |
Central |
40 |
6-4, 5-3 A-R-C |
| 5. |
Coe |
36 |
9-4, 6-2 A-R-C |
| 6. |
Dubuque |
32 |
6-7, 5-3 A-R-C |
| 7. |
Luther |
21 |
1-10, 0-8 A-R-C |
| 8. |
Nebraska Wesleyan |
13 |
1-8, 1-7 A-R-C |
| 9. |
Buena Vista |
12 |
2-7, 2-6 A-R-C |
After claiming the conference championship a year ago, Simpson College is the coaches' pick to win the 2021-22 American Rivers Conference title. The Storm earned 61 points in the poll, recording six of the nine first-place votes. Wartburg, who finished as runner-up with Coe, is picked to finish second. The Knights tallied 56 points and two first-place votes. Loras College received the final first-place vote, finishing in third with 53 points. Coaches are not permitted to vote for their own teams.
National Spotlight: The A-R-C has a storied history of success in the NCAA Tournament and has stayed at the forefront of the National Spotlight with continued success in recent years. In the last six years, the A-R-C owns an aggregate record of 15-8 in the National Tournament. In 2015, Luther advanced to the round of 32 after earning the League's Automatic Qualifier (AQ) bid. The following season saw Wartburg pick up an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament and battled their way to an appearance in the Final Four. Loras College also went dancing in 2016 after earning the Conference Tournament and AQ.
The Knight's success continued after the 2016 season, as they have now competed in five-straight NCAA Tournaments. The 2018 season, once again, saw Wartburg storm through the post-season field to earn a spot in the NCAA Final Four. The Knights turned in another deep post season run in 2019, advancing to the Elite Eight. Loras advanced to the 2019 NCAA Tournament with the program's first at-large bid. The Duhawk's 2020 campaign earned them a second-straight at-large bid to the big dance. Loras was set to play in the 2020 Round of Sixteen before the novel coronavirus pandemic shutdown the NCAA Tournament. Wartburg made their fifth-straight NCAA appearance in 2020, advancing to the round of 32.
The Schedule: The 2021-22 season kicks off on Saturday, November 6 with Wartburg hosting St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC) member, Fontbonne, Central is set to host Emmaus out of the Midwest Christian College Conference, and Loras is hosting Elmhurst, a member of the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW).
On Sunday, November 7, Nebraska Wesleyan will travel to Ashland, Wisconsin to take on Northland, a member of the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC).
Luther and Coe will begin their 2021-22 seasons on Monday, November 8. Luther is set to host Martin Luther, out of the UMAC, and Coe is traveling to Midwest Conference member Cornell. Tuesday, November 9 will begin the University of Dubuque's season as they travel to Fond du Lac, Wisconsin to take on Marian University, out of the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC).
Friday, November 12 will see the league's last two teams start their 2021-22 campaigns. Simpson is set to host Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference member, Gustavus. Buena Vista is traveling to Galesburg, Illinois to take on Knox, out of the Midwest Conference.
The 2021-22 American Rivers Conference schedule begins on Tuesday, November 23 with six of the nine schools competing. Simpson College will travel to Dubuque for a match-up with Loras College, the University of Dubuque is set to host Wartburg, and Luther College will host Coe College.
On Wednesday, December 1, the final three teams start their conference slate of games. Buena Vista is hosting Dubuque and Central is set to host Nebraska Wesleyan University.
The American Rivers Conference season is a 16-game double round-robin schedule finishing on Saturday, February 19. The league's top six teams from the regular season standings qualify for the A-R-C Tournament. The Conference Tournament will be held Tuesday, February 22 (First Round), Thursday, February 24 (Semifinals), and Saturday, February 26 (Championship). Game locations for the A-R-C Tournament are at the higher seeded team's venue. The American Rivers Conference Tournament champion receives the league's automatic qualifier to the NCAA Division III tournament.
2021 Season Review: In a classic ending to a never-forget season, the Simpson College women’s basketball team outlasted Coe College, 89-84, in overtime. The Storm won its first conference championship since 2013 and its 13th overall. Simpson finished with a perfect 12-0 season. Coe finished the year 9-4 overall and 6-2 in league play. Wartburg also went 6-2 in league play, finishing in second along with the Kohawks.
Due to a Covid-altered regular season schedule that employed an eight-game single round-robin, in place of the typical 16-game double round-robin, the coaches and Athletic Directors approved recognizing a single Conference Champion in lieu of a regular season and a tournament champion. With this, the coaches and Athletic Directors approved, for the first time, an all-comers tournament, which usually has six participants, that would determine the 2021 Conference Champion.
| 1st |
|
Simpson College
Head Coach: Brian Niemuth (35th season)
2020-21 Record: 12-0 overall, 8-0 A-R-C
2020-21 Conference Finish: 1st
Returning All-Conference: Jenna Taylor (MVP), Cam Kincaid (First-Team), Cassie Nash (Second-Team), Kia Rasmussen (Second-Team)
Starters Returning: 5
Starters Lost: 0
Brian Niemuth - “Hoping for a season that is more normal and allows the student-athletes to have a great experience competing in one of the toughest women's basketball conferences in the country." |
| Players to Watch: |
*Conference Only Statistics (8-game schedule) |
| Jenna Taylor - Forward (Sr.) |
20.1-ppg // 55.2-fg% // 51.1-3pt% // 88.0-FT% // 8.8-rpg |
| Cam Kincaid - Forward (Sr.) |
13.4-ppg // 96.7-FT% // 5.3-rpg // 15-stls |
| Cassie Nash - Guard (Jr.) |
13.2-ppg // 51.7-fg% // 3.7-apg // 15-stls |
| Kia Rasmussen - Guard (Sr.) |
10.6-ppg // 92.9-FT% // 2.9-rpg // 6.3-apg // 29-stls |
| 2nd |
|
Wartburg College
Head Coach: Bob Amsberry (16th Season)
2020-21 Record: 13-3 overall, 6-2 A-R-C
2020-21 Conference Finish: t-2nd
Returning All-Conference: Jaedon Murphy (Second-Team)
Starters Returning: 2
Starters Lost: 3
Bob Amsberry - "We are looking forward to building this team. We will be very young, but are excited about how this team will grow in the first several weeks to get ready to compete in a very strong league." |
| Players to Watch: |
*Conference Only Statistics (8-game schedule) |
| Jaedon Murphy - Forward (So.) |
9.75-ppg // 5.25-rpg // 7-stls // 6-blks |
| Macy Harris - Guard (Jr.) |
4.88-ppg // 83.3-FT% // 3.88-rpg // 11-stls |
| Hannah Anderson - Guard (Sr.) |
5.38-ppg // 16-reb |
| Sara Faber - Guard (So.) |
7.63-ppg // 11-ast // 9-stls |
| 3rd |
|
Loras College
Head Coach: Justin Heinzen (15th Season)
2020-21 Record: 6-7 overall, 3-5 conference
2020-21 Conference Finish: 6th
Returning All-Conference: Sami Martin (First-Team), Cierra Bachmann (Second-Team)
Starters Returning: 4
Starters Lost: 1
Justin Heinzen - "We're excited to play again in what is hopefully a more normal arena this year. While still a younger group, we have some good returning pieces and a nice incoming class and I'm excited to see where we progress to because I think we have talent to compete and our culture and character are showing well thus far. The national prominence of our league should show through again this year...good luck to all!" |
| Players to Watch: |
*Conference Only Statistics (8-game schedule) |
| Cierra Bachmann - Guard (Jr.) |
11.0-ppg // 80.0-FT% // 2.17-apg // 10-stls |
| Madison Haslow - Forward (Jr.) |
7.88-ppg // 5.0-rpg // 14-stls |
| Madison Fleckenstein - Guard (Jr.) |
6.2-ppg // 3.4-rpg // 5-stls // 4-blks |
| Sami Martin - Forward (So.) |
16.88-ppg // 49.5-fg% // 8.0-rpg // 14-stls // 5-blks |
| 4th |
|
Central College
Head Coach: Joe Steinkamp (5th season)
2020-21 Record: 6-4 overall, 5-3 A-R-C
2020-21 Conference Finish: 4th
Returning All-Conference: Kelsea Hurley (First-Team)
Starters Returning: 1
Starters Lost: 4
Joe Steinkamp - "We are really excited about the upcoming season. We really like our team, and look forward to getting back to a more normal schedule. The American Rivers Conference is one of the best in the country, and we are excited to see what we can accomplish together." |
| Players to Watch: |
*Conference Only Statistics (8-game schedule) |
| Kelsea Hurley - Guard (Jr.) |
15.4-ppg // 86.7-FT% // 4.25-rpg // 13-stls // 5-blks |
| Kassidi Steel - Guard (So.) |
3.40-ppg // 12-ast |
| 5th |
|
Coe College
Head Coach: Kayla Waskow (5th season)
2020-21 Record: 9-4 overall, 6-2 A-R-C
2020-21 Conference Finish: 2nd
Returning All-Conference: None
Starters Returning: 1
Starters Lost: 4
Kayla Waskow - “We will have a very young squad and look forward to getting to work with our players and watch them get better each day. With the conference looking to be extremely strong yet again, we are excited for a full schedule!" |
| Players to Watch: |
*Conference Only Statistics (8-game schedule) |
| Molly Buck - Guard (Jr.) |
7.75-ppg // 4.0-rpg // 9-stls |
| Kaalyn Peterson - Post (So.) |
4.0-ppg // 50.0-fg% // 5.88-rpg // 5-blks |
| Alyse Southard - Guard (Jr.) |
1.38-ppg // 1.25-rpg // 7-ast |
| 6th |
|
University of Dubuque
Head Coach: Justin Smith (2nd season)
2020-21 Record: 6-7 overall, 5-3 A-R-C
2020-21 Conference Finish: 5th
Returning All-Conference: Tabria Thomas (First-Team), Mimi Smith (Honorable Mention)
Starters Returning: 4
Starters Lost: 1
Justin Smith - "We are really looking forward to our continued growth as a team and to compete in one of the toughest DIII conferences in the country." |
| Players to Watch: |
*Conference Only Statistics (8-game schedule) |
| Alli Bailey - Forward (Sr.) |
10.0-ppg // 48.9-fg% // 78.9-FT% // 5.17-rpg // 8-stls // 9-blks |
| Karsen Kershner - Forward (So.) |
4.38-ppg // 3.38-rpg // 8-blks |
| Kat Mathias - Guard (Jr.) |
5.50-ppg // 21-ast // 14-stls |
| Bree Miller - Forward (So.) |
1.20-ppg // 12.9-fg% |
| Mimi Smith - Forward (Sr.) |
8.43-ppg // 6.14-rpg // 15-stls // 5-blks |
| Tabria Thomas - Guard (Jr.) |
13.38-ppg // 52.3-fg% // 57.1-3pt% // 6.25-rpg // 27-stls // 5-blks |
| 7th |
|
Luther College
Head Coach: Amanda Bailey (11th season)
2020-21 Record: 1-10 overall, 0-8 A-R-C
2020-21 Conference Finish: 9th
Returning All-Conference: Kristen Elliot (Honorable Mention), Jordan Rubie (Honorable Mention)
Starters Returning: 4
Starters Lost: 1
Amanda Bailey - "Every season is an opportunity for a reset. Following a season full of challenges, we are looking forward to seeing the potential of our young team as they compete in the A-R-C." |
| Players to Watch: |
*Conference Only Statistics (8-game schedule) |
| Kristen Elliot - Guard (Sr.) |
10.88-ppg // 5.25-rpg // 2.63-apg // 7-stls |
| Jordan Rubie - Guard (So.) |
13.5-ppg // 14-ast // 5-stls |
| Lizzie Kauls - Forward (Jr.) |
7.86-ppg // 54.3-fg% // 7.57-rpg // 9-stls |
| Grace Prokosch - Forward (Jr.) |
8.63-ppg // 5.38-rpg // 7-blks |
| 8th |
|
Nebraska Wesleyan University
Head Coach: Sam Dixon (5th season)
2020-21 Record: 1-8 overall, 1-7 A-R-C
2020-21 Conference Finish: 8th
Returning All-Conference: Anna Vandenack (Honorable Mention)
Starters Returning: 2
Starters Lost: 3
Sam Dixon - "Looking forward to a complete season. The conference should be very competitive." |
| Players to Watch: |
*Conference Only Statistics (8-game schedule) |
| Anna Vandenack - Forward (So.) |
12.38-ppg // 84.8-FT% // 8.38-rpg // 8-stls |
| Delaney Roberts - Guard (So.) |
5.5-ppg // 3.25-rpg // 17-ast // 23-stls |
| 9th |
|
Buena Vista University
Head Coach: David Wells (3rd season)
2020-21 Record: 2-7 overall, 2-6 A-R-C
2020-21 Conference Finish: 7th
Returning All-Conference: None
Starters Returning: 1
Starters Lost: 4
David Wells - "We have a younger team that we expect to have for a couple years. We look forward to competing in a full season." |
| Players to Watch: |
*Conference Only Statistics (8-game schedule) |
| Vanessa Hamlett - Center (Jr.) |
8.80-ppg // 71.0-FT% // 6.4-rpg // 13-stls |
| Emerson Else - Guard (Jr.) |
*Did not play |
