SAINT PAUL, Minn. – The Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) revealed its preseason poll ahead of the 2025-26 women's basketball season Wednesday morning, and the Yellowjackets were tabbed in second place.
 
Collecting all six first-place votes and accumulating 36 points was Minnesota Morris.
 
The 'Jackets welcome nine newcomers to the team under first-year head coach Eveline Parsons, while returning a key trio in seniors Elsa Olson (Cottage Grove, Minn./Park) and MyKenzie Leccia (Somerset, Wis./Somerset), alongside junior Charlotte Ferstl (Plain, Wis./River Valley), that provided UWS with its fourth UMAC Tournament Championship in the 2024-25 season.
 
Olson accumulated 748 minutes on the hardwood while averaging 8.5 points per game. She collecting an average of 3.1 rebounds per game on her way to receiving an honorable mention citation from the UMAC. Leccia set a career-high 759 minutes last year, starting in all 28 contests. She was slated to the All-UMAC Defensive Team while also being tabbed as the league's defensive player of the year, collecting 42 steals and grabbing 114 rebounds. Ferstl returns after posting 507 minutes and a UMAC-fourth 192 rebounds. She also collected 18 blocks while producing 214 points offensively.
 
Martin Luther and Bethany Lutheran finished third and fourth in the poll, picking up 24 and 23 points, respectively. Northwestern was slotted fifth with 17 points, while North Central (10) and Crown (nine) rounded out the league.
 
The Yellowjackets commence the new year Friday, Nov. 7 where they take on St. Catherine. The opening tipoff is set for 7 p.m. inside the Butler Center.