Women's Basketball | 10/16/2015 9:49:00 AM

Wingate, N.C.----Basketball season is quickly approaching. For Wingate University head women's basketball coach Ann Hancock, her team's upcoming schedule will be challenging, yet promising (2015-16 Wingate women's basketball schedule link). "All the games are important," Hancock says. "We have some early games that I think will help us prepare for the conference season."
 
The Bulldogs will play 26 games during the regular season in their 2015-16 campaign. Before opening the season in Aiken, S.C. against the USC Aiken Pacers on Nov. 18, the Bulldogs will travel to the Triangle area to play two exhibition games against UNC Chapel Hill and N.C. State.
 
"I think it's very important for us," Hancock says when discussing what it means for her program to face two major Division 1 programs. "…especially for the players who grew up in N.C. and S.C. and have seen those programs and the success they have had. It's fun for us to get a chance to compete with teams at the highest level."
 
The Dogs will play in historic Carmichael Arena on Nov. 4 in Chapel Hill against the North Carolina Tar Heels. On Nov. 8, they will travel to Raleigh to take on the N.C. State Wolfpack at local Broughton High School in downtown Raleigh.
 
Last season, Wingate saw huge success in Hancock's third season as head coach. The Bulldogs finished with a final record of 22-10 and 19-3 in the South Atlantic Conference (SAC). Wingate was second in the SAC regular season race, one game behind Anderson.
 
The Bulldogs participated in the NCAA Division II Southeast Regionals, defeating Lander in the first round and falling to Limestone in the semi-finals. The Saints were the number two-ranked team in the nation at the time and eventually went on to play in the Final Four.
 
"We had a great season last year," Hancock says. "We came up a little bit short and had some injuries at the end of the season. We want to go further into the NCAA tournament (this season), so that's our goal since the last two years we have made it there. We want to play in the Final Four and the national championship game."
 
After beginning their non-conference season against USC Aiken, the Bulldogs immediately start SAC play versus Lenoir-Rhyne in Hickory, N.C. on Nov. 24. Wingate fell to L-R in the first round of the SAC tournament last season. Tip-off against the Bears will commence at 4 p.m. After the first SAC contest, the Bulldogs will play their home opener at Cuddy Arena against the UNC Pembroke Braves on December 1 at 6 p.m.
 
After facing the Braves, the Bulldogs will play five consecutive SAC games leading into the Christmas season and the New Year. The Bulldogs will face Mars Hill (Dec. 5) on the road before playing Newberry (Dec. 8) and Tusculum (Dec. 13) back in the comfort of their own home at Cuddy Arena. The Newberry contest marks the fourth annual Future Bulldog Day, an event for local fifth-grade students to visit the Wingate campus for a day and enjoy tours, motivational speakers and NCAA Division II basketball.
 
Wingate will hit the road to Lincoln Memorial (Dec. 16) and Brevard (Dec. 19) before hosting non-conference opponent Fayetteville State (Dec. 30) to close out 2015.
 
To kick-off the New Year, the Dogs will travel to Raleigh, N.C. to take on Shaw on Jan. 2. January will be a significant month for Coach Hancock's young squad, as they will face many tough SAC opponents. They will see some familiar faces from earlier in the conference season, but also many new ones.
 
The Bulldogs will entertain Coker (Jan. 6) and Carson-Newman (Jan. 9). Following the first two SAC match-ups of 2016, they will take part in a key two-game road trip as they face local rival Catawba (Jan. 13) and defending SAC champion Anderson (Jan. 16). Next, they will finish out January with three out of the last four SAC games of the month taking place at Cuddy Arena.
 
In February, Wingate concludes the SAC regular season campaign with four home games and four away contests. The Bulldogs make the short drive down East Independence Boulevard to see Queens University Charlotte for the first time on Feb. 10. They will take on Anderson once more at Cuddy to close out the regular season on Feb. 27.
 
Wingate will start the post-season campaign in the SAC Tournament March 2, when first-round contests will take place at the site of the higher seeds. The SAC final four is slated for Timmons Arena in Greenville, S.C. March 5-6. The NCAA Division II Southeast Regionals will occur from March 12-15 and the NCAA Division II Elite Eight will be from March 23-26.
 
WINGATE UNIVERSITY
 
Wingate University, consistently ranked as a top 10 "best value" in the South by U.S. News & World Report, serves more than 3,100 students on three campuses in Wingate, Charlotte and Hendersonville, N.C. Founded in 1896, the University offers 35 undergraduate majors, 37 minors and career concentrations, numerous pre-professional programs, master's degrees in business, accounting, education, physician assistant studies and sport management and doctorates in pharmacy, physical therapy and education.
 
With a 15 to 1 student/teacher ratio, Wingate students gain the tools and support needed to excel in academics and apply that learning toward an extraordinary career and life. To view current news, video and story ideas, visit www.youtube.com/wingateuniversity. 
 
In addition to a robust intramural athletics program, Wingate student athletes compete in 22 NCAA Division II sports. The University has won the South Atlantic Conference Echols Athletic Excellence Award for the past nine years. For more information, go to www.wingate.edu.
 
Wingate is first among NCAA Division II Academic All-America®-producing colleges in the 2000's with 77 selections. Among North Carolina's colleges and universities, Wingate's 77 Academic All-America® honorees are number one during this millennium. Wingate's 86 lifetime Academic All-America® picks are tops among all SAC schools. For more information on WU athletics, go to www.wingatebulldogs.com.
 
(Wingate University sports information/sports network student assistant Jackson Kaplan contributed this article. A freshman from Raleigh, Kaplan is a Communication Studies major at Wingate. The former Millbrook High School baseball player is the son of Harrison and Dona Kaplan.)