ST. LOUIS, Mo. – This morning the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference announced the Women's Basketball Coaches Preseason Poll for the upcoming season. The Gorloks, who won the SLIAC Regular Season Title last season, were picked to finish second behind Westminster (Mo.) College. They had 45 total points in the poll and five first place votes.

The Gorloks return 10 players from last years team that finished the COVID ridden year with an 11-2 overall record and 8-1 mark in the SLIAC. The team also brings in 13 newcomers. Of the 13 newcomers, 10 are freshman and three are transfer students.

Last season, the Gorloks led the conference in points per game (83.6), field goals made per game (31.8), field goal percentage (46.6), free throws made per game (16.5), offensive rebounds per game (16.2), assists per game (19.5), steals per game (17.3), and points allowed per game (61.4). They finished second in the SLIAC in free throw percentage (72.6), turnovers per game (16.8), and blocks per game (3.5).

Julie Baudendistel and Addison Beussink will look to lead the team again this year as both players earned First Team All-SLIAC recognition a season ago. Baudendistel, the reigning SLIAC Player of the Year averaged 17.9 points and 5.0 rebounds per game while shooting over 52 percent from the floor and nearly 40 percent from behind the arc. Beussink averaged a league high 21.8 points per game while bringing down a second best 10 rebounds per contest. She shot nearly 60 percent from the floor while blocking 18 shots and racking up 34 steals. She currently sits at 966 career points which ranks ninth all-time in program history.

In addition to Beussink and Baudendistel, Hannah Cottrell, Naomi Johnson, and Lauryn Freeman will also look to play significant minutes. Cottrell, a Third Team All-SLIAC and SLIAC All-Defensive Team selection in 2020-21, averaged 11.1 points per game while shooting 44 percent from the field last season. Johnson, a two-time All-SLIAC selection, finished with 9.6 points per game while shooting just under 39 percent from behind the three-point line in 2020-21. Freeman averaged 5.8 points per game while racking up 26 steals on the year.

To go along with the returners, the team will also look to rely on big minutes from several transfers. Emily Kuntze, a transfer from Missouri Southern University, is an excellent long-range shooter who can score the ball in many ways. Kate Rolfes, a transfer from Maryville (Mo.) University, averaged 2.7 points per game last season for the Saints while knocking down 10 threes in 167 minutes. Addie Timmer, a transfer from Neosho (Mo.) Community College, averaged 2.2 points and 2.3 rebound per game last season while shooting nearly 35 percent from the floor.

The team also brings in a talented group of 10 freshman who will all look to see some action this season. The freshman include Jena Stannard, Nysa Gilchrist, Taylor Brown, Brianna Beamer, Haylie Sims, Rylee Smith, Emily Wilson, Mariana Brick, Amanda Kaiser, and Amaya Johnson.

The Gorloks will open their season on Friday, November 5^th when they travel to Anderson, Indiana, to take on the Anderson (Ind.) University Ravens in a nonconference matchup. The game is set to start at 5 p.m. ET.

For the full 2021-22 women's basketball schedule, click here.

For the full 2021-22 women's basketball roster, click here.