NAPERVILLE, Ill. – Illinois Wesleyan was selected to win the 2017-18 College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) women’s basketball title according to the results of a preseason coaches’ poll announced Wednesday.
 
The Titans (18-10, 12-4) won the poll with 61 points and five first place votes after the Titans placed second in the CCIW last season and earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Division III Women’s Basketball Championship.
 
Wheaton (24-5, 14-2) was second in the poll with 60 points and four first place votes after the Thunder won their ninth CCIW title and third straight under head coach Kent Madsen last season. Wheaton earned the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA postseason and advanced to the regional final.
 
Carthage (14-11, 8-8) was third with 45 points, while Elmhurst (19-7, 11-5) was fourth with 44 points. The Bluejays qualified for the CCIW Tournament for the fourth-straight year last season.
 
Augustana (17-9, 10-6) finished fifth with 32 points as the Vikings qualified for the 2017 CCIW Tournament, their first appearance in the conference postseason since 2003.
 
North Central (14-11, 8-8) placed sixth with 30 points, followed by Millikin (10-15, 4-12) in seventh with 29 points. North Park (11-14, 4-12) and Carroll (1-23, 1-15) rounded out the poll with 15 and eight points respectively.
 
Voting is done by the CCIW's head women’s basketball coaches. Each coach votes for the eight other schools in the conference in order of predicted finish. Points are assigned in reverse order of voting (eight points for first, seven for second, etc.). Coaches do not vote for their own teams. The CCIW women’s basketball season begins November 15.
 
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The College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) was founded in 1946 and currently services nine member institutions including Augustana College (Rock Island, IL), Carroll University (Waukesha, WI), Carthage College (Kenosha, WI), Elmhurst College (Elmhurst, IL), Illinois Wesleyan University (Bloomington, IL), Millikin University (Decatur, IL), North Central College (Naperville, IL), North Park University (Chicago, IL) and Wheaton College (Wheaton, IL). During the 2016-17 academic year, the CCIW honored over 1,900 academic all-conference recipients, 10 CoSIDA Academic All-Americans, 33 CoSIDA Academic All-District recipients, one CoSIDA Academic All-American of the Year and over 100 all-Americans.