SAN ANTONIO – The Tiger women's basketball team has completed its non-conference schedule for the 2022-23 season and will finish off the season with a full slate of Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference games the rest of the way.
Trinity moved to 11-0 to start the season after defeating a pair of teams ranked in the top 25 last week. The Tigers began the week by holding off a comeback bid against No. 12/16 University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, then scored a hard-fought win over No. 14/20 University of Puget Sound. That gives Trinity four wins over ranked opponents this season, after also defeating Hardin-Simmons University in a home-and-home series around Thanksgiving.
By the Numbers
Trinity's 11 wins to start the season is the second-best beginning to a year in school history, as well as being tied for the top record in NCAA III so far this season. Only the 14-0 start by the Tigers in 2016-17 tops the current run, which also includes a school-record 33-game regular season winning streak.
This marks the 10th winning streak of 11 or more games for the Tigers since the 1997-98 season. Trinity has also won 22 consecutive games at home – a streak that is tied for the seventh-best current mark in NCAA III. Trinity has also won 28 straight games against SCAC schools, which is tied for the third-best streak in the division.
Trinity won 27 straight games last season, which bested the 17 consecutive wins in 2012-13 for the most in school history. The Tigers won 14 straight in 1999-00 and in 2002-03 before matching that same streak twice in 2016-17. The program posted 12 straight wins in 1997-98 and in 2019-20.
Honors and Awards
After leading Trinity to a pair of wins over ranked teams last week,
Ashlyn Milton (Amarillo, Texas / Amarillo) was named the SCAC Player of the Week. She averaged 23.0 points per game and shot 64.3% (18-for-28) from the field. Milton also connected on 7-of-13 (53.8%) from three-point range, grabbed five rebounds in each game and snagged five steals in the win over Puget Sound. This marks her fourth career SCAC Player of the Week honor.
NCAA III Polls: WBCA & D3hoops.com
Trinity is ranked third in the most recent national polls released by the Women's Basketball Coaches Association and D3hoops.com. Christopher Newport University (WBCA) and New York University (D3hoops.com) are the top-ranked teams in NCAA III so far this season. NYU is second in the WBCA poll ahead of the Tigers, while Transylvania University is second in the D3hoops.com ranking.
NCAA III Statistical Rankings
Trinity is tied with Christopher Newport for the best record (11-0) in NCAA III so far this season, while also topping the national charts in assists per game. The Tigers have scored the third-most points this season in the country, while ranking as the fourth-best scoring offense in points per game as a team. Trinity is also ranked fifth in turnovers forced per game and sixth in turnover margin, while also ranking sixth in scoring margin and total rebounds. The Tigers are ranked in the top 50 nationally in 15 different categories so far this season.
Maggie Robbins (Plano, Texas / Plano) is ranked second nationally in total steals and fifth in NCAA III in steals per game. She is also in the top 30 in the country in total assists. Milton is ranked 39th in steals and 31st in three-point field goals made, while
Josie Napoli (Beaverton, Ore. / Valley Catholic) is 27th in free throw percentage.
Stats Milestones
Milton scored her 1,000th career point in Trinity's win over Puget Sound last week, becoming the 19th player to reach the milestone. She is also just seven three-point field goals from tying Trinity's all-time record in that category. Last season, Milton shattered the single-season record with 78 three-pointers made.
Robbins moved up to 23rd on Trinity's all-time list in assists and is closing in on 200 for her career. She needs just 33 more assists to become the 18th ever to get to 200 or more in a career. Robbins and Milton are both also in the top 20 in school history in career steals.
Preview: Schreiner (12/29) and Colorado College (1/2)
Trinity will resume SCAC play by hosting Schreiner and Colorado College over the next few days. The Tigers take on the Mountaineers on Thursday, followed by a Monday afternoon matchup with the CC Tigers. Trinity has won 14 consecutive meetings against Schreiner and stands 23-4 overall in the series. Trinity is 34-5 all-time against Colorado College (since 1991-92), though Colorado College is the last SCAC team to beat Trinity. Colorado College won both regular season meetings in 2020-21, though Trinity won the SCAC Championship game against the CC Tigers, then won both regular season games and another SCAC Tournament Final last year.
Schreiner and Colorado College both head into this week's action with 6-5 records overall and both have matched Trinity's 2-0 start in SCAC play. The teams represent three of the four remaining teams that are undefeated in conference this year. Schreiner will bring a three-game winning streak to the games this weekend, including a victory over NCAA II St. Mary's University on December 17. The Mountaineers scored double-digit road wins over University of St. Thomas and Centenary College in SCAC play.
Colorado College opened SCAC action with home wins over Austin College and University of Dallas, winning by 20 or more points in both. The CC Tigers have won five of their last six games, falling only to nationally-ranked Christopher Newport.
Trinity and Schreiner meet up on Thursday evening, followed by Schreiner and Colorado College playing in the afternoon on New Year's Eve. The two Tiger teams will match up on Tuesday afternoon (January 2) to close out the holiday "weekend." Only one of the three teams could remain undefeated heading into the next weekend of SCAC action.
Looking Ahead: Dallas (1/6) and Austin College (1/7)
Trinity will kick off a string of four straight SCAC road games by taking on University of Dallas and Austin College on Friday and Saturday, January 6th and 7th.
