Newburgh, N.Y. – The Mount Saint Mary College Women's Basketball team will begin the new campaign at home Tuesday evening when it plays host to New Paltz at 6:00 p.m. at the Kaplan Center. The Knights then take the hike up north to Vermont for a meeting with Middlebury on Saturday at 4:00 p.m. Live Stats and Video will be available for both games this week.
At A Glance: The Knights 2021-22 season was a memorable one, as they went 24-4 overall and an impressive 19-1 against Skyline Conference opponents, which led to them earning the top seed in the conference tournament. The Knights went on to win the conference crown and earn an NCAA Tournament berth, where they knocked off Johns Hopkins in the opening round before falling to #1 Christopher Newport.
Mount Saint Mary returns 12 players from last year, including three of the top five scorers from 2021-22. Katie Smith (Goshen, N.Y.) and Lauren Desrats (Warwick, N.Y.) headline the returners as the two top scorers from a year ago.
Head Coach: Colleen Ames has returns for her third season (fourth year) as the Knights head coach, looking to continue to build on the 24-4 mark she manufactured in 2021-22. The Knights non-conference scheduled created by Ames includes non-conference clashes with New Paltz, Middlebury, and Oneonta.
Backcourt: The backcourt is loaded, as the Knights return ten players from 2021-22 while welcoming one new addition.
Smith and Desrats lead the Knights backcourt entering the new campaign. Smith averaged 11.8 points per game last season, while also leading the team in assists with 78. Desrats averaged 7.6 points while pulling down 3.1 boards per contest, while also coming up with 51 steals on the year.
Erin Smith (Goshen, N.Y.) and Asia Rivera (Saddle Brook, N.J.) return to the Knights backcourt as well as two key pieces. Smith averaged 6.9 points per game in 2021-22 in her first season, while also ripping down two boards and an assist per game. Rivera has been a big defensive presence for the Knights, recording 35 steals and five blocks a season ago.
The guard group also welcomes back Cailean Nolan (Cortlandt Manor, N.Y.), Casey Love (Staten Island, N.Y.), Alyssa Caswell (Fishkill, N.Y.), Charlotte Twohig (Syosset, N.Y.), Shannon Phelan (Tappan, N.Y.) and Katelyn McCann (Blooming Grove, N.Y.). Phelan appeared in 23 games, knocking down 19 threes at a 38.8% clip. Twohig saw action in 18 contests in her rookie season with McCann seeing time in eleven. Love appeared in ten contests, with Caswell and Nolan getting time in nine and eight matches, respectively.
The backcourt will also welcome newcomer Kaeli McAnally (Bay Shore, N.Y.) for her freshman campaign.
Front Court: Ciarra Quinn (Bayside, N.Y.) and Kate Hughes (Belle Harbor, N.Y.) are the lone returners to the frontcourt for the Knights, a group that lost multiple players from the 2021-22 campaign. Quinn saw action in 20 games, averaging 2.0 points and 2.0 rebounds per contest. Hughes saw time in ten contests, recording 3.7 points per game to go along with 2.5 rebounds per game.
Newcomers Marissa Campbell (Franklin, N.Y.), Brianna Guglielmo (Smithtown, N.Y.) and Ava DiScala (Seaford, N.Y.) will have opportunities to make an impact right away for the Knights.
The Schedule: The Knights host New Paltz Tuesday before traveling north to take on Middlebury Saturday afternoon.
Mount Saint Mary will open conference play with games against Old Westbury and Purchase on November 19 and 22, respectively.
Beginning with the meeting with Purchase, the Knights will play four straight on the road before coming home on December 8 to play league rival Mount Saint Vincent.
When the Knights return from the break, they open the New Year with conference tilts against Farmingdale State and Merchant Marine at home. That begins a stretch of 15 straight conference games for the Mount.
