Gonzaga women picked to win the WCC

The Gonzaga Bulldogs women’s basketball team was picked to finish first in the West Coast Conference, narrowly beating out the BYU Cougars.

The Zags, which have won 14 of the last 15 WCC titles, received seven first place votes, enough to push past BYU, which received three first place votes.

• 1) Gonzaga (7), 78
• 2) BYU (3), 75
• 3) Pacific, 61
• 4) Saint Mary’s, 59
• 5) Santa Clara, 40
• 6) Loyola Marymount, 39
• 6) Pepperdine, 39
• 8) San Diego, 27
• 9) San Francisco, 18
• 10) Portland, 14

The Zags lost quite a bit from last year’s NCAA Tournament squad, but the hype is there for the upcoming season. Juniors Jenn Wirth and Jill Townsend were both named to the Preseason All-WCC Team, the first time both players have earned the nod.

Townsend is the top returning scorer for the Zags, averaging 9.4 points per game last season. Her season came to an unfortunate end after breaking her femur last year, but Townsend’s rapid comeback has her ready to take the team over.

With the departure of Zykera Rice, Wirth will be one of the Zags go-to-options for the post. Last season, she averaged 8.3 points per game and was the second-best shooter in the WCC, at 53.8 percent.

2019-20 Preseason All-WCC Women’s Basketball Team

• Brenna Chase Drollinger, BYU, Sr., G
• Chelsey Gipson, Loyola Marymount, Jr., G
• Sara Hamson, BYU, Jr., C
• Tia Hay, Santa Clara, Sr., G
• Valerie Higgins, Pacific, R Jr., G
• Paisley Johnson, BYU, Jr., G
• Brooklyn McDavid, Pacific, Jr., F
• Sam Simons, Saint Mary’s, So., G/F
• Jill Townsend, Gonzaga, Jr., G
• Jenn Wirth, Gonzaga, Jr., F