The Tusculum College Women's basketball team moved up one spot to fifth in the second NCAA Division II Southeast Region rankings, which were released Wednesday afternoon.

The Pioneers (16-8 overall, 15-8 in-region) lost 58-51 to Anderson last Wednesday but defeated Catawba, ranked fourth in last week's poll, by a score of 76-60 last Saturday to leap past the Indians into fifth place.

The top three spots in the rankings are unchanged from last week, with Clayton State (21-2 overall, 21-2 in-region), USC Aiken (21-3, 21-2) and Lander (18-5, 17-5) leading the way out of the Peach Belt Conference. Wingate (16-7, 16-7), Tusculum and Lenoir-Rhyne (19-5, 17-5) each moved up one spot to fourth, fifth and sixth, respectively, while Catawba (16-8, 16-8) tumbled from fourth to seventh.

Barton (17-7, 17-7) entered the rankings in eighth place, Limestone (19-5, 19-5) slipped one spot from eighth to ninth, and Georgia Southwestern (13-7, 13-7) moved into the survey in tenth place. Newberry and Mount Olive dropped out of the rankings.

Tusculum, which is seeking its fifth straight appearance in the NCAA Division II Tournament, has a 5-2 record against the other teams appearing in this week's rankings. Tusculum owns two wins over Catawba, plus victories over Clayton State, Wingate and Lenoir-Rhyne.

The postseason champions of the Peach Belt Conference, the South Atlantic Conference and Conference Carolinas will earn automatic bids to the NCAA Division II Tournament, and will be joined by five at-large teams. The rankings are the official poll recognized during the NCAA Women's Basketball Championship selection process. The NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Committee will release updated rankings each week leading up to Championship selections on Sunday, March 4.