BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - The 13th-ranked Illinois Wesleyan University women's basketball team flies down to Florida for the Sunshine State Showdown Sunday-Monday, Dec. 28-29, in Kissimmee, Fla. The trip will see the Green and White take on No. 19 Bethel University and a Wisconsin Lutheran College team that is receiving votes in national polls. IWU will meet the Royals first Sunday, Dec. 28, at 12 p.m. ET before taking on WLC Monday, Dec. 29.
    Illinois Wesleyan will look to bounce back from a road loss at No. 21 University of Chicago, Dec. 16. The Titans (7-3) saw their five-game win streak snapped with a 73-54 loss to the Maroons in the Windy City. Bethel carries a 7-1 record into the holiday break classic. BU rolls into its second straight tournament following a 2-0 showing at Wisconsin Dells Dec. 19-20. There, BU downed University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, 63-57, and later surpassed Coe College in double-overtime, 88-84. The Royals will square off against Messiah University, who is receiving votes nationally, one day prior to taking on the Titans. Wisconsin Lutheran jets down to Florida with a 6-2 record. The Warriors, which battled NCAA Division I University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in an exhibition Saturday, Dec. 20, stumbled against University of Wisconsin-Platteville, 63-57, Dec. 13. Like Bethel, WLC's trip will begin with a bout with Messiah before its game against IWU.
    The tournament will stream the games via Baller TV, a subscription-based platform. Subscriptions are billed annually and can be purchased for $45 for a three-month pass, while annual subscriptions are also available at higher price points. Live stats will also be available. Links can be found on the women's basketball page of iwusports.com.
FLYING DOWN TO FLORIDA: Illinois Wesleyan's winter break trip to the Sunshine State Showdown will be IWU's first time playing in Florida in more than 20 years. In fact, under the direction of Mia Smith, the Green and White have traveled all around the country including stops in New York, Georgia, Texas, Colorado, Washington, California, and even Hawaii, but never Florida.
NEIGHBORS TO THE NORTH: The Titans hold a limited history against its holiday tournament foes, having played just two games total against Bethel and Wisconsin Lutheran previously. In fact, IWU and BU have never faced and will meet for the first time ever Dec. 28. Meanwhile, the all-time ledger with WLC is locked at 1-1.
    Both of the clashes between the Titans and Warriors have come in the postseason. Illinois Wesleyan overwhelmed Wisconsin Lutheran, 84-69, in the initial meeting March 5, 2011 to advance to the Sweet Sixteen. More recently, WLC edged IWU, 48-40, in the 2019 NCAA Tournament. The Warriors rode a halftime lead to bounce the Titans in the opening round March 1, 2019.
TOP-25 TILTS: With its trip to Florida, the Green and White will face yet another top-25 opponent in Bethel. The Titans have faced five top-25 opponents so far this year, compiling a 2-3 record against nationally-ranked foes. IWU notched wins over UW-La Crosse and WashU when the two were ranked 16th and 15th, respectively. Illinois Wesleyan's three losses have come versus UW-Whitewater, in overtime at Hope, and on the road at Chicago.
TURNING UP A NOTCH: In the month of December, senior Ava Bardic has taken her play to another level. The Lincolnshire, Ill. native is averaging 22.0 points per game through four contests. She has connected on 45.5 percent of her shots (25-of-55) and 78.9 of her free throws (30-of-38). Bardic's elusiveness and shifty ballhandling has seen the senior convert 17-of-26 shots inside the arc (65.4 percent)
SHE'LL STILL TAKE THAT: Senior Sawyer White, who has been equally as well-known for her bench griddy celebration, was originally made famous for wreaking havoc on the defensive end throughout her Titan career. With 293 steals in her career, White needs just four to surpass current all-time steals leader Rebekah Ehresman, who accrued 296 during her outstanding career as a Titan from 2014-2018. White ranks second on the all-time steals list, ahead of Sydney Shanks (233). Her sophomore season, White set the program's single season record with 112 takeaways.
    In the CCIW, White sits 116 steals behind Millikin's Jennifer Falbe, who had 404 takeaways in her career as a Big Blue from 1996-2000. In White's sophomore season, she set a single season steals record with 112, which ranks second all-time in a single season in league history.
Moreover, White's 293 career thefts ranked eighth-most among active women's basketball players across Division I, II, and III. She has the second-most steals to her name of any current NCAA Division III student-athlete, trailing only Hunter's Alexa Charles.
THE 55TH YEAR OF IWU WOMEN'S HOOPS: Illinois Wesleyan is in its 55th year of women's basketball and has compiled a 765-511 overall record. IWU's .599 all-time win percentage includes a 366-204 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin mark.
NEW KID ON THE BLOCK: Mia Smith and staff signed a key transfer earlier this week as Leah Palmer announced she was joining the Titans following the fall semester. Palmer, the younger sister of former IWU standout Kate Palmer, comes to Illinois Wesleyan as a redshirt freshman following one and a half years at NCAA Division II Lewis University.
    The Geneva, Ill. native was a four-year letterwinner at Geneva High School, where she scored 1731 career points and pulled in 711 career rebounds. She was an all-state pick as a senior and averaged 21.0 points, 7.8 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 1.5 steals per game at GHS.
POLLING PLACE: Illinois Wesleyan remains in the national polls through the first few weeks of the 2025-26 season. The Titans are 13th in the D3hoops.com Top-25 and No. 16 in the WBCA poll.
  IWU is one of two College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin team featured in both polls, as Carroll is 14th in the D3hoops rankings and 21st in the WBCA poll.
ON THE HORIZON: Illinois Wesleyan's trip to Florida marks the end of the non-conference portion of the 2025-26 slate. After the New Year, IWU turns its focus to CCIW play beginning with a clash with Carroll University Saturday, Jan. 3, at the Shirk Center. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. and will serve as the front end of a doubleheader alongside the IWU men's basketball team.
