MANSFIELD - The Mansfield University women's basketball team makes its 2014-15 debut this Saturday, Nov. 15 when the Mountaineers host Central Penn.
 
Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m. at Decker Gymnasium with live stream provided by Doug Page of ESPN Radio Williamsport. Links for the broadcast and live stats are available at GoMounties.com.
 
It's also Mounties Go Blue for Diabetes Night with Mountaineer senior Alyssa DeRichie being recognized for her battle with type 1 diabetes in pregame ceremonies. Fans are encouraged to wear blue in support of DeRichie and funds will be raised for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.
 
Head coach Alison Tagliaferri and the new-look Mountaineer women's basketball team are determined to make a name for themselves in the highly competitive Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC).
 
Tagliaferri enters her third season at the helm of the Mansfield program where she'll look to repeat the same success as a coach that she did as a player at Mansfield.
 
The Mountaineers lose their leading scorer and rebounder from a year ago Jena Matter but return two starters from last year's squad in guards Katie Fitzpatrick (Drexel Hill, Pa./Upper Darby) and Alyssa DeRichie (Horseheads, N.Y./Horseheads). Returner Megan McSwain (Fort Washington, Md./Washington Christian/Gannon), who made starts in 21-of-26 games averaging 10.1 points per game, suffered a season-ending injury in preseason.
 
DeRichie enters her senior season with plenty of experience handling the point guard duties for the Mountaineers with 53 career starts. Last season, DeRichie led the team in assists with 3.3 and ranked fourth on the team in points per game at 8.2. She topped the Mounties in free throw percentage at 74.7%.
 
Fitzpatrick also brings a wealth of experience over her first two seasons, making starts in 45-of-51 career games. The guard/forward is the top returning scorer for Mansfield after putting up 12.2 points an outing while averaging 6.5 boards a game. Last season, Fitzpatrick recorded career highs in points (26 vs. Shippensburg), assists (9 vs. Merrimack) and rebounds (13 in four different games).
 
The Mountaineers return a pair of talented guards in Tianna Jackson (Harrisburg, Pa./Harrisburg) and Maria Kelleher (Lewisburg, Pa./Lewisburg) to the program. Jackson missed the first half of the season due to NCAA Clearinghouse issues before going on to start in eight of the final 12 games. Jackson averaged 5.7 points and 3.7 rebounds over that span. Kelleher hit 31 3-pointers in her freshman season last year to average 4.5 points a game.
 
The Mountaineers welcome a bevy of new faces to the program with 10 of 14 roster spots held by newcomers.
 
Jessica Crawley (Upper Darby, Pa./Upper Darby/Harcum) is a junior college transfer from Harcum who averaged 10.2 points and 7.0 rebounds a game last season. Madisen Slagle (McSherrystown, Pa. New Oxford) joins the basketball team this year after competing in the hurdles for the track & field program as a freshman.
 
Stephanie Davis (Tobyhanna, Pa./Pocono Mountain West) redshirted for the Mounties in 2013-14. She was a two-time 1^st Team All-Mountain Valley Conference selection and named league MVP in high school. Becky Evans (Ashland, Pa./Pine Grove) scored over 1,500 career points at Pine Grove and was a 2^nd Team All-State selection her senior year.
 
Alyssa Mullins (Vestal, N.Y./Vestal) averaged 10.2 points, 6 rebounds and 3.2 blocks a game and was a member of two Section 4 finalist teams. Mary Kate Rumbaugh (Folsom, Pa./Ridley) averaged 15 points a game at Ridley and was a 1^st Team All-Central League selection.
 
Brielle Kelly (Long Valley, N.J./West Morris Central) was a two-time 1^st Team All-Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference honoree where she averaged 19 points and 10 rebounds a game. Melanie Taylor (Wyoming, N.Y./Notre Dame – Batavia) was a three-time All-State selection at Notre Dame Batavia where she scored 1,306 career points. McKenzie Hatch (Altoona, Pa./Altoona) is one of the top assist leaders at Altoona.
 
Mackenzie Hafer (Sayre, Pa./Athens) brings a familiar name to the Mountaineer program being the fourth Hafer to play for Mansfield after sisters Mallory, Meredith and Morgan all wore the red and black. Hafer was an All-NTL selection and All-Region Defensive Team honoree as a senior.