[Women's Basketball] Mount Mercy up one spot in new poll

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The new NAIA Division II Women's Basketball Coaches' Top 25 Poll is out, and Mount Mercy moved up a spot this week to No. 12, the association announced today.

The Mustangs (23-7, 15-3 MCC) had been at No. 13 for two straight weeks, but they extended their winning streak to eight games with road wins over Iowa Wesleyan, a team receiving votes in the poll, and Viterbo (Wis.).

Indiana Wesleyan (28-2) maintained its grip on No. 1, but not by much. The Wildcats hold a slim, four-point lead over Concordia (Neb.) (28-2). Rounding out the top five are No. 3 College of the Ozarks (Mo.) (27-3), No. 4 Concordia (Mich.) (26-4) and Morningside (23-7).

The next five includes No. 6 Davenport (Mich.) (26-4), No. 7 Jamestown (N.D.) (26-3), No. 8 Northwestern (22-6), No. 9 Grand View (25-5) and No. 10 Corban (Ore.) (21-6). Briar Cliff (22-8) is 11th with 245 points, followed by Mount Mercy with 230 points and Tennesse Wesleyan (22-7) with 216 points.

Grand View has won 15 games in a row and is the top seed in the 2012 Midwest Collegiate Conference Women's Basketball Tournament, which gets underway on Thursday. Mount Mercy is the second seed and Iowa Wesleyan, which is 32nd in the coaches' poll with 14 points, is seeded third.