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SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. - After countless hours of conditioning, a month of practice and an exhibition game at Indiana University, the Slippery Rock University women's basketball team will finally start its 2015-16 regular season this weekend with a pair of games in the PSAC-CIAA Challenge at Morrow Field House. Slippery Rock plays Virginia State University 5:30 p.m. Friday and Chowan University 4 p.m. Saturday.
 
PSAC-CIAA CHALENGE DETAILS
Opponents: Virginia State University (11/13, 5:30 p.m.) / Chowan (11/14, 4 p.m.)
Date: Nov. 13-14
Location: Morrow Field House | Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania
Live Stats: Link
Video: Link
In-game Updates: Twitter (@Rock_Athletics)
All-Time Series: First meeting against both opponents.
Last Played: N/A
 
THE OPENING TIP
• This weekend's games will be the first for The Rock against both Virginia State and Chowan.
• Slippery Rock is 21-18 in season-openers all-time.
• SRU is also 25-14 in home-openers. Slippery Rock began the season last year by defeating Salem International, 66-43.
• Slippery Rock plays five of its first six games at home to start the year. SRU won eight of its 11 games last season at the friendly confines of Morrow Field House.
• Last year's eight wins at home were the most in a season at Morrow Field House since 2001-02 when Slippery Rock went 9-3 at home.
• Slippery Rock returns 10 players from last year's team. The 10 returners are the most for SRU since the 2007-08 team brought back 12 players from the 2006-07 squad.
 
A LOOK BACK AT 2014-15
Slippery Rock had its best season in a decade a year ago, finishing 11-16 and qualifying for the PSAC Tournament. The 11 wins were the most by SRU since 2008-09 and its postseason bid was the program's first since the 2005-06 campaign.
 
PRESEASON RECOGNITION
Slippery Rock was ranked fifth by the league's coaches in the 2015-16 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference preseason coaches poll. The fifth-place preseason ranking was the highest for Slippery Rock in the last five seasons.
 
WHO'S BACK
Among Slippery Rock's 10 returners are three players who started at least nine games a year ago in senior guard Erica Aiello, senior forward Megan Hardiman and sophomore forward Mallory Heinle.
 
Aiello and Hardiman have combined to start 99 of 150 games over their Rock careers. Last year, Aiello produced 8.8 points per game (ppg), 3.6 assists per game (apg), 2.4 rebounds per game (rpg) and 1.3 steals per game (spg) in 26 starts as a junior. Hardiman averaged a career-high 4.9 rpg while chipping in 4.4 ppg as well.
 
Also back for The Rock is the sharp-shooting duo of sophomore guard Shannon Jack and junior guard Audrey Stapleton as well as senior forward Sorriyah Ranger.
 
Jack played in all 27 games as a freshman, ranking fourth on the team in scoring (5.0 ppg) and second in three-pointers made (20) while Stapleton registered 4.9 ppg on an efficient 45.4 field goal percentage.
 
Stapleton was the only player in the Atlantic Region to take at least 95 field goal attempts and 46 free throw attempts and compile respective shooting percentages of at least 46 percent and 89 percent.
 
Ranger is The Rock's top returning shot blocker. She tallied 18 rejections a season ago and her 0.8 blocks per game were tied for 14th in the PSAC.
 
TRANSFER INFUSION
Slippery Rock brought in a quartet of quality transfers that figure to significantly help The Rock improve on its 2014-15 season. Junior guard Lexi Carpenter (Dayton), sophomore guard Ciara Patterson (Wright State), sophomore guard Krista Pietropola (Youngstown State) and senior forward Sarah Beckham (Brewton-Parker College) all chose to continue their collegiate careers at Slippery Rock.
 
TRUE FRESHMEN
Rounding out The Rock's new additions is the freshmen post contingent of Morgan Henderson and Isabella Lacarbonara. Henderson is a local product out of Seton La Salle High School while Lacarbonara comes to SRU from White Plains High School in White Plains, New York.
 
WHO'S GONE
Slippery Rock will have to replace the production of three starters from last year's PSAC Tournament Team.
 
D'Asia Chambers is currently playing professionally in Germany after closing her Rock career by averaging 16.8 ppg and 9.6 rpg in addition to being named the PSAC-West Defensive Player of the Year.
 
Danielle Garroutte started all 27 games on the interior and Taylor Siggers, who is a senior on this year's team, but suffered a season-ending injury in the preseason, was SRU's top scoring threat down the stretch in The Rock's run to the PSAC Tournament a year ago with 15.7 ppg over SRU's final nine games.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Slippery Rock played an exhibition game at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana Nov. 8. Patterson led The Rock with 10 points while Pietropola finished just shy of a double-double with eight points and eight rebounds. Defensively, Ranger produced a game-high four blocks.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
• 7-0 - Slippery Rock's record in 2014-15 when leading at halftime.
 
• .667 - Slippery Rock's winning percentage in 2014-15 when holding an advantage in rebounds over its opponent.
 
• 5 - Amount of rebounds by Henderson in 14 minutes against the Hoosiers in The Rock's exhibition game.
 
 • 10 - number of assists needed by Aiello to move into 10th place all-time in the SRU record books for career assists.
 
 • 10 - number of three-pointers needed by Aiello to move into 11th place all-time in the SRU record books career three-pointers made.
 
• 214 - number of defensive rebounds Hardiman has in her career, the 17th most in Rock history.
 
• 45 - consecutive games played by Hardiman, the most of any current Rock player.
 
• 40.3 - SRU rebounds per game in 2014-15, its most since 1999-00
 
• 17.6 - SRU turnovers per game in 2014-15, its lowest total since 2005-06.
 
SCOUTING VIRGINIA STATE
Virginia State enters the season as the reigning CIAA champions after winning the league title a season ago with a 20-10 overall record and a 9-7 conference mark. VSU went on to lose to eventual national champion California (Pa.), 86-75, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
 
The Trojans were predicted to win the CIAA Northern Division and finish second in the conference in the league's preseason poll. Virginia State returns six players from last season's championship team to including preseason all-conference honoree senior forward Wynterra Pittman, who averaged 6.7 points and 5.1 rebounds per game a year ago.
 
VSU is coached by James Hill Jr. Hill is a three-time CIAA Coach of the Year and has compiled a record of 157-109 in nine seasons in charge of the Trojan program.
 
SCOUTING CHOWAN
Chowan was predicted to finish sixth overall and third in the CIAA Northern Division in 2015-16. The Hawks tallied a 13-14 overall record and a 9-7 mark in conference competition before losing to Winston-Salem State, 73-58, in the first round of the CIAA Tournament.
 
Two-time All-CIAA performer Alisha Mobley was named to the preseason all-league team after averaging a team-high 14.1 points per game and hauling in 7.3 rebounds per outing a year ago. Dhyamond Crenshaw joins Mobley on the preseason All-CIAA Team after earning CIAA All-Rookie recognition a year ago. The Burke, Virginia native competed in 24 games as a freshman, scoring 5.4 ppg, averaging 3.3 rpg and notching 24 blocks.
 
Patrick Mashuda is 130-166 in 11 years at Chowan. One of Mashuda's assistants is former Rock graduate assistant Dominique Duck.
 
UP NEXT
Slippery Rock begins PSAC-West play 5:30 p.m. Wednesday at Edinboro University. Slippery Rock split the season series against Edinboro a year ago with each team winning on its respective home court. After the Edinboro contest, Slippery Rock returns home for three consecutive home games.