Seeking its first NCAA Tournament berth since 2023, the University of Redlands has been selected to finish first in the 2026-27 Women's Basketball Preseason Poll, as voted on by the league's head coaches.
The Bulldogs garnered 72 votes to finish just ahead of last season's regular season champion California Lutheran, who collected 67 votes. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, who won the 2026 SCIAC Tournament, came in third with 63 points, while Chapman was picked to finish in fourth with 62 points.
Redlands will return three of its starters from the previous season, including AJ Wick and Teagan Mcllroy, a 2026 First Team All-SCIAC player and the reigning Newcomer of the Year, respectively. Andrea Perkins is also taking the court this upcoming year after making 25 starts in 2025-26. The three players alone accounted for over 40% of last year's scoring, led by Wick, who averaged a team-best 15.0 points per game. The senior center also recorded 10.7 rebounds per contest and earned a WBCA Honorable Mention All-America nod. A strong defensive team last year, the Bulldogs had the best turnover margin in the conference and allowed the second fewest points per game.
Coming off of both a regular season championship and a tournament championship appearance, the Regals are also bringing back three starters from 2026 in Kaiya Mack, Sydney Heyn, and Natalie Villamor. The trio combined for over 37% of last year's scoring and over 28% of the rebounding. Mack, who earned a Second Team All-SCIAC selection last year, is the team's leading returning scorer after posting 11.3 points per game. Notably, California Lutheran allowed both the fewest points and opponent rebounds per game in the conference, while also averaging a SCIAC-best 45.1 boards per contest.
The Athenas earned their first trip to the NCAA Tournament since the 2016-17 season last year and will hope to build off of the momentum, as they will be led by returning starters in Tanya Ghai and Haylie Wang. Kylie Wang, Payton Sugar, and Cate Shingler also played crucial minutes in last season's rotation and will once again look to be key contributors. Ghai was second on the team in both scoring and assists in 2026 with 12.5 points and 2.6 assists per game. She also anchored the team on the defensive end with 61 steals and 20 blocks.
In what could be a tightly contested finish for first place, the Panthers are also seeking their way back to the top with returning All-SCIAC players Maile Nakaji and Layla Woods. Woods led the team in both scoring and rebounding with 14.0 points and 7.4 boards per contest, highlighted by five double-doubles. Just behind her was Nakaji with 13.6 points and a conference-best 2.9 steals per game.
This season will also include Azusa Pacific University, who is currently in the reclassification process from Division II to Division III. The Cougars are set to play each SCIAC member once, although games will not count towards conference standings.
2026-27 SCIAC Women's Basketball Preseason Poll
1. Redlands, 72 points (five first-place votes)
2. California Lutheran, 67 pts (2)
3. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, 63 pts (1)
4. Chapman, 62 pts (1)
5. Pomona-Pitzer, 42 pts
6. Occidental, 35 pts
7. Whittier, 29 pts
8. La Verne, 25 pts
9. Caltech, 10 pts
Azusa Pacific*
* - Ineligible for SCIAC Championship as school transitions from Division II