AUGUSTA, GA -- The Peach Belt Conference has released the 2023-24 women's basketball season preview which includes the preseason coaches poll and preseason All-Conference team. Team-by-team interviews with coaches and players are also included.

North Georgia is the preseason favorite in the coaches poll. The Nighthawks earned eight first-place votes and 80 total points to stand atop the poll with Columbus State in second place and USC Aiken third. UNG finished in a tie for fourth in the standings last season, reaching the PBC Tournament semifinals and the NCAA tournament. Head coach Buffie Burson returns five graduate students and seniors including All-Conference guard Caroline Martin and transfer junior All-Conference forward Emily Trushel.

The preseason coaches poll is below with first-place votes in parentheses.  Coaches were not permitted to rank their own teams.
 

Rank	Team	Points
1.	North Georgia (8)	80
2.	Columbus State	61
3.	USC Aiken (1)	59
t4.	Augusta (1)	57
t4.	Clayton State	57
6.	Georgia Southwestern	43
7.	Lander	33
8.	Flagler	26
9.	Georgia College & State University	24
10.	USC Beaufort	10

Preseason All-Conference Team

Kayla Langley, Georgia Southwestern (Sr., F, Spring Hill, Fla.)

• A third-team All-Conference selection last season, she was also named the PBC Player of the Week on Dec. 12th
• Averaged 11.2 points and 6.4 rebounds per game; ranked 17th in the PBC in scoring, 11th in rebounding and ninth in blocks
• Scored in double figures 21 times with four double-doubles

Caroline Martin, North Georgia (Sr., G, Forsyth, Ga.)

• A first-team All-Conference selection last year, her third overall All-Conference selection, she was a WBCA All-America honorable mention and D2CCA All-Region second team
• Was second in the PBC in scoring with 17.2 ppg, going over 1,000 points for her career last season; also ranked seventh in the league in rebounding, sixth in field goal percentage and 10th in assists
• Scored 20 or more points 10 times during the season with seven double-doubles and was named the PBC Player of the Week on Nov. 21

Kennedi Manning, Augusta (Sr., F, Stone Mountain, Ga.)

• A PBC second-team All-Conference selection in 2022-23, she was also named the PBC Player of the Week on Nov. 14
• Led the PBC in blocks and was third in rebounding, ninth in scoring and fourth in field goal percentage
• Set career-highs with 28 points and 17 rebounds against Claflin, one of her seven double-doubles on the year; scored 20 or more points five times

Olonna Rawls, Columbus State (Sr., G, Pembroke, Ga.)

• A PBC third-team All-Conference selection last year who led her team in rebounds and steals and was second in scoring
• Ranked eighth in the PBC with 13.3 points per game; also sixth in the league with 6.8 rebounds per game and led the conference with 85 steals
• Had six double-doubles on the year including 21 points and 13 rebounds against Clayton State and 17 points with 15 boards against Georgia Southwestern

Emily Trushel, North Georgia (Jr., F, Brentwood, Tenn.)

• A first-team All-Conference selection last season at USC Aiken, she was also named second-team All-Region by the D2CCA
• Led NCAA Division II in free throw percentage (.935), led the PBC in field goal percentage and was ranked fifth in the PBC in scoring, 14th in rebounding and seventh in made three-pointers per game
• The PBC Player of the Week on Jan. 3, she scored in double figures in every game with seven games of 20 or more points including a career-high 29 against Winston-Salem State

Team Interviews