MANSFIELD, Pa. - The Mansfield Mountaineers women's basketball team returns eight players from last season's roster as well as welcome in four freshmen and one transfer.
Coming off a difficult 2022-2023 season where they went 3-23 overall and 2-20 in conference, the Mansfield Mountaineers look to return to the playoffs for the first time since the 2017-2018 season.
Head coach Amy Senefelder says "Preseason has gone well so far. A couple of early injuries but we are working through them. The team is working hard and being efficient in practices and the weight room. I'm confident in our returners and the experience they have. This may be our most experienced team in terms of PSAC play and I'm confident in our ability to compete this season."
The Mountaineers will play a total of 27 games including 22 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference games. Mansfield will host a total of 11 games at home in Marion Decker Gymnasium where they averaged 57.4 points per game, which is just under six more points per game than they did on the road. The remaining 16 games will be a mix of neutral site and road contests.
Mansfield opens their 2023-2024 campaign with two neutral site games against Bowie State University on November 10 and Fayetteville State University on November 11. Both games will be played as part of the Shippensburg University Conference Challenge hosted by Shippensburg.
The Mountaineers were picked to finish second to last in the PSAC East which would put them 8th. Coach Senefelder says "Our goals for this season are higher than eighth." However, "we have to be realistic in terms of where we finished last year, we almost expected a lower ranking but we are definitely motivated by the eighth place pick. I hope the team continues to get better and the rankings will work themselves out in PSAC play."
THE BREAKDOWN
Guards
The senior Emilie Leidig appeared in 24 games last season, making eight starts. She averaged 5.6 points, 1.3 rebounds, and 1.5 assists in a total of 18.8 minutes per game. Leidig led the Mounties in 3-point shooting, knocking down a total of 36 last season and shooting 35.6% from behind the arc. She had five games last season recording 3+ made threes.
Coaches' Take: "Emilie will be responsible for making shots for us again this year. She has grown into a great vocal leader over her time at Mansfield and has some great game experience as well. Emilie led us in three point field goal percentage last season, and we are hoping she can take that role this year as well.
The Stewartsville native, junior Kristen Fulford, returns at the point for the Mountaineers. She started 14 of the 19 games she appeared in last season. She led the Mounties in assists last season with a total of 55 and an average of 2.9 per game. Fulford averaged 4.6 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.1 steals per game.
Coaches' Take: "Kris has two years of experience now running the point. We are looking for her to run the offense and be a key defensive player as well. She brings energy and a great work ethic to the game."
Sophomore Danae Ellzy started in five of her 24 appearances for Mansfield last season. She averaged 4.8 points, 2.3 rebounds, and just under an assist per game. Ellzy had a standout performance against West Chester when she recorded career-highs in points (23), made threes (5), and assists (6).
Coaches' Take: "Danae got great experience as a freshman last season. She had to adjust quickly to play at the level of play in the PSAC. Danae is a strong guard who can be physical and go strong to the basket."
Sophomore Lauren Miller enters her second year with Mansfield after a season in which she appeared in 13 games, averaging 5.8 minutes per game, scoring a total of 11 points, and grabbing a total of 14 rebounds. Miller was also second on the team in free throw percentage, shooting 80% from the line.
Coaches' Take: "Although plagued with injuries last season, Lauren is a hard worker and we will be looking for her to make shots for us this year. She's worked hard in the off-season and will be fighting for minutes at the shooting guard spot."
Freshman Abril Bowser enters her first year on the Mountaineer women's basketball team. Bowser played at Abington High School where she averaged 11 points per game, shooting 75% from the field and 90% from the free throw line. She holds the steals records at Abington with 222 career steals as well as the record for career threes made.
Coaches' Take: "Abril's role will be to make shots and play solid defense. Despite her size, she tends to play big. She had a great first scrimmage and we are looking for her to build off that."
Also joining the team is the all-time leading scorer at Otto-Eldred High School freshman Katie Sheeler after a stellar high school career where she scored a total of 1,699 points. Sheeler played 102 games in her high school career averaging 16.7 points, grabbing 3.2 rebounds, and dishing out just under three assists per game. In her senior season, Sheeler recorded 85 threes, shooting 36% from deep.
Coaches' Take: "Katie has had a great preseason so far, and is surprising a lot of us. We knew she was good when we were recruiting her, however, she has come in and really stepped up to the college level of play. We will look for her to be a leader on the floor even as a freshman."
Freshman Meghan Kruszka from Hamburg High School joins the Mansfield roster to provide depth off the bench. Meghan was a four-year member of the Hamburg varsity women's basketball team where she was an integral piece to a team that won 14 plus games each season.
Coaches' Take: "Meghan has worked really hard this preseason and has picked up on things quickly coming in. She has a very high basketball IQ, and despite an early nagging injury, she has pushed through and continues to get better."
Forwards
Alivia Paeglow enters her fifth year with the Mountaineers. Last season, she played in all 26 games for the Mounties, starting in 25 of them. Paeglow averaged 10.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.2 assists, and 1.4 steals in 24.6 minutes per game. She led the team in field goal percentage at 45% and scored double digits 13 times on the season. She also scored a career-high 23 points on Senior Night against Bloomsburg.
Coaches' Take: "Alivia decided to come back for her fifth year at Mansfield and she's had her best preseason yet. She will be a scoring option in the post for us, has a high basketball IQ, and is a great leader for our program."
Currently sitting at 16th all-time in points for women's basketball at Mansfield, Senior Jasmine Hilton is just 75 points away from cracking the top 10. Last season, Hilton started all 26 games played and averaged 16.5 points, 8.5 rebounds, and 1.9 steals per game. Hilton was able to eclipse 1,000 career points on February 11 against Shippensburg. She recorded 31 points against D'Youville on November 12. Hilton scored over 20 points in six games, in two of those games she scored 30+ points.
Coaches' Take: "Jasmine continues to be an excellent leader for us. Coming off a 1st team All-PSAC performance last season, we are looking for her to be that player for us again this year. Jasmine has grown her game so much since being at Mansfield. She puts in the work that nobody sees, and it has paid off for her in her career."
Junior Kennedy Stroup started 12 of her 24 appearances for the Mountaineers last season. She averaged 3.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 1.5 assists in 22.8 minutes per game. Stroup finished last season third on the team in rebounds, hauling in one short of 100 on the year. She recorded a career-high ten points against Kutztown and grabbed a career-high nine rebounds twice, one against IUP and the other against Shippensburg.
Coaches' Take: "Kenedy is a player everyone wants on their team. She's a great teammate, a hard worker, and very coachable. We will look for Kenedy to be a scoring option this season, as well as that kind of glue player that can do it all on the court."
Tori Tolson is a transfer junior from Prince George's Community College. Tolson started in all 23 games last season for the Owls, averaging 8.2 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 2.3 assists, and 2.0 steals per game. She recorded a season-high 20 points on 7-15 shooting against Rowan College of South Jersey-Cumberland on November 17.
Coaches' Take: "Tori has come in and adjusted well to the new atmosphere here at Mansfield. She got great experience playing for her community college, is athletic, and is a great rebounder. We are looking for her to use her experience and be a defensive stopper as well as a big-time rebounder for us."
From Easton, Pa., sophomore Cydney Stanton appeared in 25 games for Mansfield last season. She averaged 3.2 points, 3.6 rebounds, and just under an assist a game in 15.4 minutes. Stanton scored double digits twice last year including a career-high 15 points and nine rebounds game against Shippensburg.
Coaches' Take: "Cydney is another sophomore who got great experience last season. She came in as an undersized forward and was able to play big for us. Cydney is starting to realize her capabilities and I think she will be a spark for us this season."
Center
Freshman Minyhah Easterling enters her first year at Mansfield following a high school career where she averaged 17.9 points, 13.1 rebounds, and 2.0 blocks per game. Easterling shot 65% from the floor in her high school career and scored 823 points in only two years.
Coaches' Take: "Minyhah comes in as the true center for us. Despite an early preseason injury, she continues to work and be present in what we are trying to accomplish. Minyhah is very skilled, can shoot the 3, and is an excellent passer at her position. If she can stay healthy, she will provide us with valuable minutes."
