By: Jill Wunrow (@JillWunrow)
GreenBayPhoenix.com

GREEN BAY, Wis. (GreenBayPhoenix.com) - For the fifth consecutive season on record the Green Bay women's basketball team has been picked first in the Horizon League Preseason Poll, released by the league office on Monday. The Phoenix received 25 of a possible 27 first-place votes, topping the poll with 241 points. Green Bay has won a record 14 consecutive regular season Horizon League championships.

"I don't place a lot of stock in polls, they're generally based on results in the past," said head coach Kevin Borseth. "Everyone right now is just getting their teams ready to play for the season. The end result is what really matters."

Senior Adrian Ritchie (De Pere, Wis.) was a preseason First Team All-League selection while classmate Lydia Bauer (Lake Zurich, Ill.) earned Second Team All-League preseason recognition.

"It's great for them. We obviously could have had more players on the teams but right now it's just about getting ready for the season," Borseth said.

After earning Second Team All-League honors in the 2011-12 season, Ritchie makes her first appearance on a Preseason All-League team in her final season with the Phoenix. Ritchie finished fourth in the voting among all league players to earn a spot on the First Team along with Wright State's Kim Demmings, Detroit's Shareta Brown, Cleveland State's Shalonda Winton and Youngstown State's Brandi Brown.

"I've been working all summer on trying to be the versatile player that my team needs," said Ritchie. "It's a team award because I can't be the player I am without my team so I'll take it as that and move forward to be the best we can be this season."

Ritchie finished the 2011-12 campaign tied for seventh in the league shooting 35.1 percent from beyond the arc and enters her senior season ranked fifth and seventh respectively in three-point field goal attempts and three-point field goals made on Green Bay's individual career record lists.

For the first time in her career, Bauer's play is recognized as the senior finished seventh among players in the voting, earning a spot on the Preseason Second Team All-League. During the 2011-12 season, Bauer led the Phoenix with 55 three-point field goals, ranking 10th on Green Bay's individual season record list. The lefty shooter enters her final season with the Phoenix six three-point field goals shy of cracking Green Bay's top 10 individual career record list.

"I'm grateful and honored to receive this recognition by our coaches and the Horizon League. The accolade is a great testimony to our successful Green Bay program," Bauer said. "As nice as individual awards can be, I continue to stay focused on doing what I can to help the team reach our highest level of play in this upcoming season."

Bauer is joined by Loyola's Simone Law, Valparaiso's Tabitha Gerardot, Milwaukee's Sami Tucker and Loyola's Patrice King.

2011-12 runner-up Detroit finished second in the preseason team poll picking up two first-place votes and 210 points. Wright State rounded out the top three with 191 points while sophomore Kim Demmings was selected as the Preseason Player of the Year. Demmings finished second in scoring averaging 18.4 points per game in the 2011-12 campaign behind Green Bay's Julie Wojta.

Green Bay tips off its 2012-13 season hosting Judson in exhibition play Saturday, Oct. 27 at 2 p.m. followed by Michigan Tech Saturday, Nov. 3 at 7 p.m. Regular season play begins on the road at Northern Iowa Saturday, Nov. 10 at 2:30 p.m.

Complete Preseason Team Poll Results:

Green Bay (25) 241
Detroit (2) 210
Wright State (191)
Loyola (152)
Cleveland State (123)
UIC (90)
Milwaukee (85)
Youngstown State (77)
Valparaiso (46)

Preseason Player of the Year - Kim Demmings, Wright State

All-League First Team

Kim Demmings, G, Wright State
Shareta Brown, F, Detroit
Shalonda Winton, F, Cleveland State
Adrian Ritchie, G, Green Bay
Brandi Brown, F, Youngstown State

All-League Second Team

Simone Law, F, Loyola
Lydia Bauer, F, Green Bay
Tabitha Gerardot, F, Valparaiso
Sami Tucker, G, Milwaukee
Patrice King, G, Loyola

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