SPOKANE, Wash. — The Gonzaga University women's basketball team has been voted the preseason West Coast Conference favorite by the league's 11 head coaches, the conference office announced Wednesday.
The Bulldogs collected the most first-place votes with five and totaled 92 points, just one point ahead of Washington State University. Portland, Oregon State and the Cougars each had two first-place votes.
Yvonne Ejim of GU and Eleonora Villa of WSU were unanimous selections for the 2024-2025 All-WCC Women’s Basketball Preseason Team.
They are joined by Gonzaga's Maud Huijbens, Oregon State's AJ Marotte, Pacific's Anaya James, Portland's Maisie Burnham and Emme Shearer, San Francisco's Debora dos Santos, Santa Clara's Olivia Pollerd and Washington State's Tara Wallack.
Six of the ten players recognized were all-conference selections last season, and five, including Ejim, earned first-team honors.
All major award winners from last season return for the upcoming 2024-25 season.
From Gonzaga, these players include Defensive Player of the Year Yvonne Ejim, Maud Huijbens and Coach of the Year Lisa Fortier.
West Coast Conference women's basketball is coming off its fifth consecutive multi-bid season with two teams in the NCAA Tournament last season.
Gonzaga hosted the first and second rounds as a four-seed last year. The Bulldogs advanced to the Sweet 16 for the second time under head coach Lisa Fortier and fifth time in program history, while the Portland Pilots lost in the first round.
