Undefeated Transylvania women’s basketball to open pursuit of NCAA championship at home

The second-ranked Transylvania University women’s basketball team will serve as one of four hosts this weekend in the first and second rounds of the NCAA Division III Tournament.

Transylvania (27-0) is one of three undefeated teams in Division III women’s basketball, alongside No. 1 Christopher Newport (Newport News, Va.) and No. 3 Scranton (Scranton, Pa.). The Pioneers, who have not lost a Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference game since 2020, received nine first-place votes in the most recent Division III Top 25.

Transy won the HCAC regular season title with an 18-0 record, then captured its fifth straight conference tournament on Saturday at home with an 85-58 victory over Hanover, the No. 2 seed.

“This team entered the year with the goal of being undefeated and winning the conference tournament,” Transylvania head coach Juli Fulks said after the HCAC championship game. “To be able to accomplish that, for the second year in a row, is a testament to their competitive spirit and drive to get better every day.”

The Pioneers will face Rhodes College (Memphis, Tenn.) at 8:15 p.m. on Friday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament after 23rd-ranked Millikin University (Decatur, Ill.) and Emory University (Atlanta) battle it out at 5:45 p.m. at the Clive M. Beck Center in Lexington.

Rhodes pulled off a 61-52 upset win in the Southern Athletic Association Tournament on Sunday over top-seeded Centre College to earn its third-consecutive league title while denying the Colonels the league’s NCAA automatic bid and a spot in the field of 64.

Doors open an hour before the first game Friday. Tickets are $10 for adults and $7 for students and children. Admission is free for ages 2 & under.

The winners of each of Friday’s first-round games in Lexington meet Saturday at 8:30 p.m. in the round of 32.

The Pioneers have never won an NCAA championship in women’s basketball. Their furthest advancement in the tournament came last season when they reached the Elite Eight before falling to Trine University (Angola, Ind.) 54-47 in Lexington. Transylvania has won 54 of its last 55 games.

Transylvania has defeated two teams this season that will be in the NCAA Tournament beginning this week: Texas-Dallas (57-43 on Nov. 19) and Berea College (82-55 on Dec. 30).

Berea is the only team from Kentucky other than Transylvania to make this year’s NCAA field.

The Mountaineers (26-2) earned their berth by winning the Collegiate Conference of the South Tournament.

Berea opens NCAA play at Ada, Ohio, on Friday against 18th-ranked Ohio Northern (23-4) at 8 p.m.