MORAVIAN WOMEN’S BASKETBALL TEAM RANKED 15TH IN 2009-10 D3HOOPS.COM PRESEASON TOP 25 POLL

MINNEAPOLIS, MN --- The Moravian College women’s basketball team has been ranked 15th in the nation in the 2009-10 D3hoops.com Preseason Top 25 Poll announced Tuesday.  The complete poll can be viewed at http://www.d3hoops.com/top25/.

The Greyhounds, under the direction of 23-year head coach Mary Beth Spirk, received 216 points while Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri is the top pick in the poll with seven first-place votes and 588 points.  Coach Spirk’s squad returns 14 letterwinners and all five starters from last year’s 21-7 squad that was the Landmark Conference runner-up and reached the NCAA Division III Tournament while hosting the first and second rounds.  The Greyhounds have 99 percent of their scoring and 100 percent of their rebounding back from last season with seven seniors on the team.

Moravian has four games scheduled against three other teams in the top 25.  The Greyhounds will take on 21st ranked The College of New Jersey on Wednesday, November 18th in their second game of the season, and Moravian will host tenth-ranked Muhlenberg College on Monday, December 7th in the squad’s second home game of the year.  The Greyhounds will play fifth-ranked The University of Scranton twice in Landmark Conference action, Saturday December 5th in Scranton and Saturday, February 20th in Johnston Hall.

Moravian also has a game with DeSales University, which was sixth of the 32 teams receiving votes outside the top 25, on Tuesday, November 24th in Center Valley.

The D3hoops.com Top 25 poll is voted on by a panel of 25 coaches, Sports Information Directors and media members from across the country, and is published weekly during the season.  The first regular season poll will be on Tuesday, November 24th.

The Greyhounds begin their 2009-10 season on Sunday, November 15th versus Lebanon Valley College with a 2:00 p.m. tip-off in Johnston Hall.