Women's Basketball Selected to Play in Preseason WNIT

FORT COLLINS, Colo. — Coming off its best season in six years (14-14), the Dartmouth women's basketball team has accepted a bid to participate in the 16-team 2015 Preseason Women's National Invitation Tournament this November. The event is formatted to guarantee three games for each team with a formal announcement of the brackets and game times in the upcoming weeks.

"We are very excited for the opportunity to compete in the Preseason WNIT,” head coach Belle Koclanes said. “It is an awesome challenge for our team as we continue to develop and we look forward to the experience."

This is the second time the Big Green will partake in the preseason WNIT. Their first appearance was on Nov. 10, 2006 when they fell at Hartford, 62-45. Princeton represented the Ivy League the following season when the format was changed to guarantee three games.

The tournament opens Nov. 13 with round one. Round two will be played Nov. 15-17; semifinals will be Nov. 19, and the championship is set for Sunday, Nov. 22. The championship game will be nationally televised live on CBS Sports Network.

Teams that lose in the first two rounds will play consolation games at selected home sites on Nov. 20-21.

Dartmouth is set to return its top two performers from last season in junior Fanni Szabo and senior Lakin Roland. Szabo, an All-Ivy Second Team honoree last season averaged 16.3 points per game and 4.9 rebounds per contest. The Hungarian also had 59 steals as a sophomore. Roland is poised to lead the team on the glass in her final season in Hanover and pulled down eight rebounds per game and averaged 12.0 points as a junior.

The WNIT field consists of: Alabama State (SWAC); Baylor (Big 12); Chattanooga (Southern); Dartmouth (Ivy); DePaul (Big East); Drexel (Colonial); Indiana (Big Ten); Jacksonville (Atlantic Sun); McNeese State (Southland); Siena (Metro Atlantic); South Florida (American); Southern Illinois (MVC); Southern Miss (Conference USA); St. Bonaventure (Atlantic 10); Tennessee State (Ohio Valley); and UT Arlington (Sun Belt).

Ten of the 16 teams advanced to postseason play in 2015; this is the Preseason WNIT debut for Alabama State, Jacksonville, Southern Miss, St. Bonaventure, Tennessee State and UT Arlington.

Teams making their first return to the event are DePaul (2010), Dartmouth (2006), Siena (2002), South Florida (2004) and Southern Illinois (1997). Others with multiple appearances are Drexel (2011, 2005), Indiana (2008, 1998), McNeese State (2011, 2004), Baylor (2011, 2006, 1998) and Chattanooga (2011, 2005, 2000). The No.-1 ranked Baylor Lady Bears won the 2011 Preseason championship after defeating No. 2 Notre Dame 94-81 in front of a sold-out home crowd. Baylor went on that season to capture the NCAA Tournament Championship and finish with a 40-0 record.

About the WNIT

The Preseason WNIT began in its modern form in 1994. Since its inception, over 200 teams representing all 32 conferences have competed in the tournament. The UConn Huskies have won the championship a record three times. It is organized and produced by Triple Crown Sports, a national sports event company based in Fort Collins, Colo. For more information on the WNIT visit: www.womensnit.com.

Schedules