LOCK HAVEN, Pa. – For the second straight year the Gannon women's basketball team has been selected as the preseason favorite in the PSAC West. On Thursday, the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference released its 2024-25 Women's Basketball Preseason poll, with the Golden Knights voted the unanimous preseason favorite in the Western Division. Voting was conducted among the division's coaches.
Head coach
Cleve Wright's Golden Knights received seven of a possible eight first-place votes with coaches unable to vote for their own teams. Earlier in the week the WBCA announced its 2025-26 WBCA Division II Pre-Season Poll with Gannon picked fifth.
Gannon finished in a tie for second in the PSAC West a year ago with a 16-4 league ledger, one game behind Edinboro (17-3). Seton Hill (24-7) received the remaining first-place vote after tying the Golden Knights for second place. Indiana (Pa.) is third in the poll. A year ago Gannon and IUP met in the Atlantic Regional championship game with the Golden Knights pulling away for a 72-59 win and a berth in the Elite Eight.
Wright enters his 18th season overall as head coach at Gannon. He is in his second stint with the Golden Knights. After coaching Gannon from 2002-03 to 2012-13, he returned in 2019. In the six years since then the Golden Knights have compiled a 154-28 record with five NCAA Div. II Tournament appearances and three PSAC championships. Overall Wright is the all-time winningest coach at Gannon and has a 387-129 record. In 21 seasons as a head coach he has a 422-216 record.
WRIGHT WELCOMES BACK VETERAN ROSTER
All five starters return from last year's squad that ended the year at 28-7 and earned a second straight trip to the Elite Eight. The veteran roster has just one freshmen with three seniors and five juniors lending plenty of experience.
Bri Claxon (South Webster, Ohio/South Webster) earned first team All-PSAC West honors for the second straight year and was the 2022-23 PSAC West Freshman of the Year. The senior guard led the Golden Knights in scoring (15.1 ppg.) and assists (65) while making 62-of-159 3-pointers. Claxon enters the season ranked 14th in career scoring with 1,293 points.
Kate Ratliff (Canal Winchester, Ohio/Canal Winchester) was a second team All-PSAC West honoree. A junior forward, she averaged 14.1 ppg. and 5.1 rpg. while leading the team with 60 steals and 37 blocked shots. Ratliff was named the MVP of the Atlantic Regional.
Senior
Maddy Wheatley (Canberra, Australia/UCSSC Lake Ginninderra) is another double-figure scorer after averaging 10.1 points and a team-high 5.6 rebounds. The native of Australia is another 3-point threat with 38 in 90 attempts. She is approaching 800 career points.
SEASON BEGINS WITH POWERFUL FIELD IN D2 CCA TIP-OFF CLASSIC
Gannon has played in the D2 CCA Tip-Off Classic the last two years. In 2023-24 they played in Montana and last year the tournament was in British Columbia. This year they will host one of two pods in western Pennsylvania along with Edinboro. The sites will host doubleheaders on three days from Friday, November 7 to Sunday, November 9.
Three of the top five teams in the WBCA Top 25 will take to the court at the Highmark Events Center. The Golden Knights open the season on Nov. 7 against second-ranked Union (Tenn.), a team that was 33-4 and advanced to the national semifinals.
On Sunday the tournament wraps up with Gannon squaring off against No. 4 North Georgia. The Nighthawks finished at 31-3, advancing to the Sweet 16 before falling to Coker in the Southeast Regional final. In between Gannon faces Northern Michigan on Saturday. The Wildcats were 23-9 last year reaching the Midwest Regional semifinals.
2024-25 PSAC Women's Basketball Preseason Poll (# of first place votes in parentheses)
WESTERN DIVISION
1. GANNON (7) – 28-7, 16-4
2. Seton Hill (1) – 24-7, 16-4
3. Indiana (Pa.) – 23-8, 15-5
4. California (Pa.) – 16-12, 12-8
5. Clarion – 14-15, 8-12
6. Edinboro – 25-7, 17-3
7. Slippery Rock – 7-19, 4-16
8. Pitt-Johnstown – 3-24, 1-19
EASTERN DIVISION
1. Lock Haven (6) – 20-9, 14-7
2. Kutztown (3) – 22-12, 14-7
3. Bloomsburg – 18-12, 11-10
4. West Chester – 15-15, 11-10
5. Millersville – 16-13, 11-10
6. East Stroudsburg – 13-15, 10-11
7. Shippensburg – 8-19, 5-16
8. Shepherd – 7-21, 4-17
9. Mansfield – 10-17, 6-15
