Westminster basketball: Women begin year with No. 5 national ranking

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Westminster College women’s basketball team received a No. 5 ranking in the 2012-13 NAIA Division I Women's Basketball Coaches' Preseason Top 25 Poll; the national office announced Tuesday.

The No. 5 ranking is the highest for a Westminster team in school history. The Griffins received a No. 8 national ranking on three occasions during the 2010-11 season to establish a school-best. The previous high for a preseason ranking was the No. 9 spot the team received prior to the start of last season.

Westminster returns nine players from a team that finished 23-9 last season and advanced to a sixth-straight NAIA National Championship. Among that group of returners is 2012 NAIA Third Team All-American Nicole Yazzie. The senior guard was just named the Frontier Conference Preseason Co-Player of the Year and has played in 99 games at Westminster while averaging 12.9 points per game.

The Griffins begin the 2012-13 season Nov. 8, when they host The Master’s (Calif.) in the Behnken Field House.