Women's Basketball Team Drawing Attention

Just one year removed from a program that had posted just one winning season
in its first 10 years, the UT Dallas women’s basketball
team is starting to turn some heads on the national scale.

For the first time in program history, the Comets received votes in this week’s national NCAA Division III
poll, sponsored by d3hoops.com. The team has had a 6-1 start this season and leads the American Southwest Conference East Division with a
perfect 4-0 mark.

The Comets, who are one of just three ASC
teams listed in the poll, received 23 points in the most recent voting and are
just seven spots out of a listing in the nation’s Top 25 teams.

There are nearly 400 NCAA Division III schools that field women’s basketball
teams.

UT Dallas got the nation’s attention last weekend by posting a convincing
77-55 win over defending Division III national champion Howard Payne. The win
snapped a national-best 39-game win streak held by HPU, which was ranked No.
10 in the nation at the time. The loss dropped HPU down to No. 19 in this
week’s poll.

The Comets did not have a winning record during their first nine years of
program history, but have been gradually improving every year since Polly
Thomason took over in 2005. The team finished 12-13 and 11-15 in her first two
seasons before finally posting a winning record at 16-10 in 2007-08.

UT Dallas’ next game is Thursday, Dec. 18, in Sherman against Austin College.