JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. — The Winthrop University women’s basketball team was picked to finish fifth in a tie with UNC Asheville in the Big South Conference Preseason Poll, the conference office announced on Wednesday morning.
Last season, the Eagles were picked fourth and finished the season with a 15-17 overall record while going 7-9 in conference play, earning the fifth seed in the Big South Conference tournament. The Eagles would go on to beat fourth-seeded Gardner-Webb in the quarterfinals before falling to top-overall seed High Point, the eventual champions.
Following up her Big South Conference All-Conference Honorable Mention nod, Madison Ruff returns for the Eagles and being garnered with the Preseason All-Big South Conference First Team. During the regular season, Ruff averaged 11.2 points and 4.1 rebounds per game in 30 contests, finishing with 336 points and 123 rebounds on the year. She shot 47.9% from the field, recording four double-doubles while posting 58 steals and 13 blocks. She also dished out 48 assists during the season. Ruff set her new career-high mark multiple times, setting a new one against Southern Illinois, then breaking it later on in the conference season with a 19-point outing against Radford.
Head coach Semeka Randall Lay enters her sixth season at the helm of Winthrop. Randall Lay earned herself a contract extension in the 2025-26 offseason after showing consistent improvement year after year.
Randall Lay also returns Big South Conference All-Freshman guard Ryiah Wilson to the squad for 2026-27. Wilson averaged 6.5 points and 2.9 rebounds per game in 30 contests during the 2025-26 season, finishing with 196 points and 88 rebounds in her true freshman campaign. Wilson was one of the most disruptive defensive players in the Big South, recording 82 steals on the season, second in the conference and 24th in the NCAA. She averaged 3.2 steals per game, which ranked second in conference play.
The full poll and preseason teams can be found down below:
2026-27 Women’s Basketball Preseason Poll
| Rank | Team (First-place votes) | Points |
| T-1 | High Point (4) | 75 |
| T-1 | Radford (4) | 75 |
| 3 | Longwood | 63 |
| 4 | Gardner-Webb | 43 |
| T-5 | UNC Asheville (1) | 41 |
| T-5 | Winthrop | 41 |
| 7 | USC Upstate | 36 |
| 8 | Presbyterian | 18 |
| 9 | Charleston Southern | 13 |
Note: points are based on a weighted system. First-place votes received 9 points, followed by 8 points for second-place, and so on.
2026-27 Big South Conference Women’s Basketball Preseason All-Conference Team
First-Team
Georgia Simonsen, Radford (Preseason Player of the Year)
Madison Ruff, Winthrop
Aubrie Kierscht, USC Upstate
Jesstynie Scott, Longwood
Jamaria Freeman, UNC Asheville
Second-Team
Makayla Legette, Gardner-Webb
Cate Carlson, Radford
Grace Booth, USC Upstate
Taylor Feldman, High Point
Juliann Woodard, High Point (tie)
Krystal Haddock, Presbyterian (tie)
Story courtesy of Winthrop Athletics.
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Thomas Hyslip lives in Tega Cay with his wife and daughter. After 27 years in the U.S. Army and Federal Law Enforcement, he retired to pursue his passion for teaching. Tom is now an Associate Professor of Instruction at the University of South Florida. In 2 short years he has won 10 awards from the South Carolina Press Association, including first place in column writing, education beat reporting and best podcast.
