ATLANTA, Ga. --- Six Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) women's basketball programs met the qualifications for consideration for the 2025-26 Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Academic Team Top 25 Honor Roll, but were slotted outside the top 25 and received special mention.
The WBCA Academic Top 25 recognizes college women’s basketball teams across the nation in their respective divisions that carry the highest combined GPAs inclusive of all student-athletes on their rosters for the entire season. A team must have a combined GPA of 3.0 or better and be nominated by its head coach who must be a member of the WBCA to be recognized. The 2025-26 season is the 31st in which the WBCA has compiled the honor rolls.
Benedictine University, coached by Oliver Wiseman, posted the top marks among the six NACC programs recognized with a 3.688 GPA. St. Norbert College (3.632) was next, followed by Lakeland University (3.530), Edgewood University (3.528), Marian University (3.502), and Illinois Insitute of Technology (3.426).
- Benedictine, Oliver Wiseman, 3.688
- St. Norbert, Amanda Perry, 3.632
- Lakeland, Ashley Lona, 3.530
- Edgewood, Kole Vivian, 3.528
- Marian (WI), Josh Ward, 3.502
- Illinois Tech, Carissa Sain, 3.426
Nebraska Wesleyan, coached by Sydney Golladay, took top honors in NCAA Division III with a 3.897 GPA.
A team’s GPA is calculated by dividing the total number of quality points (A=4, B=3, C=2, D=1, F=0) earned by the total number of academic hours attempted by all team members in the academic terms (semesters or quarters) that the season spans. Weighted grades are converted to a 4.0 scale. The GPAs are rounded to the nearest thousandth of a point. Teams must be nominated for the honor by their head coach who must be a WBCA member. A team must have a 3.000 or better GPA to be nominated.
NCAA Division III
| Rank |
Institution |
Head Coach |
GPA |
| 1 |
Nebraska Wesleyan |
Sydney Golladay |
3.897 |
| 2 |
Hamline |
Joshua Hersch |
3.847 |
| 3 |
MIT |
Lucia Robinson-Griggs |
3.846 |
| 4 |
Saint Benedict |
Mike Durbin |
3.842 |
| T5 |
St. Catherine |
Donald Mulhern |
3.826 |
| T5 |
Dubuque |
Madeline Jansen |
3.826 |
| 7 |
SUNY Canton |
Chris Klassen |
3.821 |
| 8 |
Albion |
Doreen Carden |
3.815 |
| 9 |
Colorado College |
Katherine Auguste |
3.793 |
| 10 |
Emerson |
Bill Gould |
3.784 |
| 11 |
Guilford |
Sarah Mathews |
3.783 |
| 12 |
Messiah |
Mike Miller |
3.782 |
| 13 |
Carthage |
Megan Jones |
3.780 |
| 14 |
Shenandoah |
Melissa Smeltzer-Kraft |
3.778 |
| 15 |
Gustavus Adolphus |
Laurie Kelly |
3.777 |
| 16 |
Hardin-Simmons |
Kendra Whitehead |
3.774 |
| 17 |
Smith |
Lynn Hersey |
3.771 |
| 18 |
Thiel |
Jessica Vormelker |
3.766 |
| 19 |
Baldwin Wallace |
Cheri Harrer |
3.765 |
| 20 |
St. John Fisher |
Sarah Cartmill |
3.764 |
| 21 |
Middlebury |
KJ Krasco |
3.758 |
| 22 |
Wis.-Eau Claire |
Tonja Englund |
3.757 |
| 23 |
Wis.-Stevens Point |
Matt Hockett |
3.743 |
| T24 |
Hope |
Brian Morehouse |
3.738 |
| T24 |
Trine |
Andrew Rang |
3.738 |
Special Mention: Mount Union, Suzy Venet Pietz, 3.737; Dickinson, Aby Diop, 3.737; Wis.-Oshkosh, Brad Fischer, 3.736; Chicago, Michelle Gardner-Bilek, 3.729; Bowdoin, Megan Phelps, 3.727; Johns Hopkins, Rodney Rogan, 3.721; Wash. & Lee, Brittney Kemp, 3.721; Wartburg, Bob Amsberry, 3.721; Williams, Pat Manning, 3.718; Trinity, Maria Williamson, 3.709; WashU, Lisa Stone, 3.708; Redlands, Rich Murphy, 3.705; Huelsman, Mark Huelsman, 3.704; Cedar Crest, Jason Rhine, 3.700; Widener, Alisa Kintner, 3.695; Concordia-M’head, Kim Wagers, 3.691; Manhattanville, Kate Vlahakis, 3.689; Benedictine, Oliver Wiseman, 3.688; Buena Vista, Kylee Boettcher, 3.688; Houghton, Phil Pellegrino, 3.683; CWRU, Jennifer Reimer, 3.677; Husson, Kissy Walker, 3.674; NYU, Meg Barber, 3.673; Elizabethtown, Veronica Nolt, 3.672; Otterbein, Diana Noles, 3.671; SUNY Plattsburgh, Ben Sarraf, 3.669; Susquehanna, Gabrielle Holko, 3.662; Carnegie Mellon, Kathy McConnell-Miller, 3.662; Marywood, Tara Macciocco, 3.660; UW-Stout, Samantha Clayton, 3.647; Wis.-River Falls, Shelby Lyman, 3.646; Ohio Wesleyan, Cody Hartzler, 3.644; Oberlin, Stephany Dunmyer, 3.642; Occidental, Anahit Aladzhanyan, 3.641; Waynesburg, Sam Jones, 3.638; La Verne, Anthony Mason, 3.637; John Carroll, Elizabeth Andrews, 3.634; St. Norbert, Amanda Perry, 3.632; Lawrence, Riley Woldt, 3.627; Elmira, Thad Phillips, 3.625; William Paterson, Erin Monahan, 3.622; Illinois Wesleyan, Mia Smith, 3.620; Luther, Amanda Bailey, 3.618; Simpson, Brian Niemuth, 3.611; Manchester, Josh Dzurick, 3.608; Chatham, David Saur, 3.605; Bryn Mawr, Carla Coleman, 3.601; Utica, Allison Coleman, 3.599; Macalester, AD Donovan, 3.597; Claremont-M-S, Chanel Murchison, 3.596; Penn College, Britni Mohney, 3.589; Denison, Maureen Hirt, 3.589; Wis.-Platteville, Kelly McNiff, 3.589; SUNY Brockport, Corinne Jones, 3.585; Bard, Alaina Walker, 3.583; Moravian, Mary Beth Spirk, 3.580; Calvin, Mark Christner, 3.578; Suffolk, Ed Leyden, 3.577; Stevens, Megan Haughey, 3.575; Penn St. Harrisburg, Ross Patrick, 3.573; RIT, Melissa Kuberka, 3.571; Emory, Misha Jackson, 3.571; Randolph-Macon, Lindsey Burke, 3.570; Gallaudet, Stephanie Stevens, 3.567; Chris. Newport, Bill Broderick, 3.563; Kenyon, Mary Corbett, 3.563; UMN-Morris, Tim Grove, 3.556; Yeshiva, Orri Cohen, 3.542; Alfred, Michael Moskowitz, 3.541; Caltech, Madison Quan, 3.54; Hunter, John Garrett, 3.534; Bethany Lutheran, Emma Purfeerst, 3.532; Salisbury, Aprile Guy, 3.531; DePauw, Kristin Huffman, 3.531; Marietta, Jenna Andersen, 3.531; Lakeland, Ashley Lona, 3.530; Arcadia, Diane Decker, 3.529; Edgewood, Kole Vivian, 3.528; Buffalo St., Scott Foster, 3.520; Wooster, Olivia Besancon, 3.513; Catholic, Matt Donohue, 3.509; Chapman, Carol Jue, 3.502; Marian (WI), Josh Ward, 3.502; Ursinus, Bobbi Morgan, 3.498; Regis, Samantha Crough, 3.494; Mary Washington, Deena Applebury, 3.489; Rochester, James Scheible, 3.482; Roger Williams, Kelly Thompson, 3.481; Anderson (IN), Jon Gin, 3.479; Colby-Sawyer, Tim Viola, 3.471; Westminster, Rosanne Scott, 3.465; McDaniel, Christin Gowan, 3.458; Rhode Island Col., Jenna Cosgrove, 3.451; Lehman, Eric Harrison, 3.451; Principia, Ramiro Dominguez, 3.444; Franklin & Marshall, Brianna Spector, 3.429; Illinois Tech, Carissa Sain, 3.426; Gettysburg, Nate Davis, 3.425; Eastern Conn. St., Mandy King, 3.423; Kalamazoo, Ryan Clark, 3.422; Ozarks, Seth McDowell, 3.421; Babson, Kate Barnosky, 3.415; Immaculata, Brittany Whalen, 3.411; Webster, Jordan Olufson, 3.405; St. Mary’s (MD), LaTanya Collins, 3.401; Coe, Kayla Waskow, 3.400; Mt. St. Mary (NY), Marion Dietz, 3.393; Capital, Camille McPherson, 3.390; Central (IA), Justin Weiland, 3.366; DeSales, Fred Richter, 3.364; Willamette, Peg Swadener, 3.320; Stevenson, Jackie Boswell, 3.318; Mount Aloysius, Brian Giesler, 3.281; Hendrix, Wes Sullivan, 3.259; Gordon, Carter Shaw, 3.218; Keuka, Paige Emborsky, 3.211; Millsaps, Jeffery Wilbur, 3.189; UMPI, Mark Knight, 3.188.
About the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association
The Women’s Basketball Coaches Association is the professional association for coaches of women’s and girls’ basketball at all levels of competition. Founded in 1981, the WBCA offers educational resources that coaches need to help make themselves better leaders, teachers and mentors to their players; provides opportunities for coaches to connect with peers in the profession; serves as the unifying voice of coaches to those organizations that control the game; and celebrates those coaches, players and other individuals who excel each year and contribute to the advancement of the sport. Visit WBCA.org for more details about the association.
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