GREENVILLE, S.C. — The University of Mount Olive women's basketball team was selected to finish 13th in the 2026-27 Conference Carolinas Women's Basketball Preseason Poll, as announced by the league office Thursday.
The Trojans received 68 points to rank 13th in the 16-team preseason poll. Francis Marion University topped the rankings with 210 points and six first-place votes, followed by Lees-McRae College with 206 points and seven first-place votes. Belmont Abbey College rounded out the top three with 198 points and the remaining three first-place votes.
Barton College placed fourth with 179 points, followed by Chowan University with 152 points. Young Harris College (150) and UNC Pembroke (147) ranked sixth and seventh, respectively, while King University placed eighth with 135 points. Emmanuel University (104) and Shorter University (96) completed the top 10.
Ferrum College (95), North Greenville University (73), Mount Olive (68), Converse University (49), Southern Wesleyan University (43) and Erskine College (15) rounded out the poll.
Mount Olive returns several key contributors heading into the 2026-27 season, including Jayla Hicks,
Janna Tupola and
Emily Wiebelhaus, who were each named to the Conference Carolinas Women's Basketball Players to Watch list.
Hicks, a sophomore guard from Goldsboro, returns for her second season with the Trojans as Mount Olive prepares for the upcoming campaign. Hicks averaged 7.9 points, 3.1 assists, and 3.3 rebounds last year.
Tupola, a junior guard from Fayetteville, North Carolina, also returns to the backcourt for her third season after not playing last season due to injury.
Wiebelhaus, a junior guard from Bellevue, Nebraska, rounds out Mount Olive's selections on the Players to Watch list as the Trojans look to improve their standing in the conference during the 2026-27 season. Last season Weibelhaus competed in 15 games, a key contributor off the bench for the Trojans, averaging 2.7 points, 1.2 rebounds, and 0.9 assists.
The preseason poll was voted on by the league's head coaches, who were not permitted to vote for their own school.
