The Youngstown State women's basketball team begins its 33rd season and the fifth under Head Coach Tisha Hill when it visits Buffalo, Sunday, Nov. 11, at 2 p.m. in Buffalo's Alumni Arena.

The Penguins (0-0) enter the 2007-08 campaign with the most-veteran squad in Hill's tenure. Four seniors, seven juniors, 11 letter winners and all five starters return from last season's 7-21 team.

Seniors Lauren Branson, Heather Karner, Kira Mowen and Jessica Schloemp lead a cast which has played in a combined 531 games with 245 starts at the Division I level.

Also returning for the Penguins are juniors Monique Godfrey, who averaged 10.8 points per game last season, Nikita LaFleur, Ashley Pendleton, Toni Roscoe and Velissa Vaughn and sophomores Anjalia Lyons and Kaitlyn March.

The Penguins have two newcomers in juniors Kelsey Gurganus and Tiara Scott. Gurganus sat out last season after transferring from Southern Miss and Scott joined the Penguins via Western Nebraska Community College.

The Buffalo Series
This will be the 21st meeting between the Penguins and Bulls and the 13th consecutive season the two schools have squared off.

The Penguins own a 12-8 lead in the all-time series, including a a 78-44 win over the Bulls last season. However, the Penguins have lost four straight in Buffalo and have not won in Alumni Arena since a 66-65 victory during the 1997-98 season.

Scouting Buffalo
Buffalo enters the 2007-08 season with a veteran squad returning 13 letterwinners and four starters from last year's 10-21 team. Senior forward Heather Turner is the Bulls' top scorer from last season with 12.1 points and 8.1 rebounds per game. Senior Stephanie Bennett returns for her fourth season at point guard and 11.2 points and 3.5 rebounds per game a season ago. Buffalo dropped a 50-47 decision to Holy Family in its lone exhibition game on Nov. 1.

Last Time Against Buffalo
Youngstown State shot 48 percent from the field on its way to a 78-44 win over the Bulls at the Beeghly Center last year. Monique Godfrey and Velissa Vaughn each scored a team-high 17 points while Heather Karner added 16 points in the Penguins 34-point victory.

YSU in Season Openers
Youngstown State has enjoyed quite a bit of success in season openers throughout the program's history. The Penguins own a 20-12 overall record in season openers and are 2-2 in season openers under Tisha Hill. In season openers away from the Beeghly Center, Youngstown State is 11-7. The Penguins own a record of 9-5 when they open the season at home. The last time YSU won a season-opening game on the road was a 76-59 win over Saint Louis in 2004-05.

Guins Gaudy in Openers Under Hill
Youngstown State has fared well under Head Coach Tisha Hill in season openers. The Penguins are 2-2 under Hill's tutelage and average 73.3 point per game in those four games. The Penguins defeated Bowling Green, 79-67, in 2003 and Saint Louis, 76-59, in 2004 while losing to Robert Morris, 68-60, in 2005 and Cincinnati, 85-78, last season.

Up Next
The Penguins continue its trek through the Empire State when they visit Niagara, Tuesday, Nov. 13, at 7 p.m.

Road Warriors
The Penguins have a tough grind throughout the first month of the season. YSU plays eight of its first 11 games on the road, including its first four in the State of New York. Besides playing Buffalo and Niagara, the Penguins are taking part in the LIU Turkey Classic on Nov. 23-24. The 'Guins take on Long Island on Nov. 23 and either Albany or Holy Cross on Nov. 24. YSU also faces St. Francis (Pa.) (Dec. 1), Cincinnati (Dec. 15), No. 16 Ohio State (Dec. 19) and Akron (Dec. 21) on the road.

Upperclass Society
The 2007-08 Youngstown State will be the most veteran squad in Tisha Hill's tenure. The Penguins return four seniors, five juniors and two sophomores. Also newcomers junior Kelsey Gurganus, a Southern Miss transfer who is eligible this season, and junior college transfer Tiara Scott each have two years of collegiate playing experience.

Seniors Tabbed Team Captains
Guards Lauren Branson, Heather Karner and Kira Mowen and senior forward Jessica Schloemp have been named team captains for the 2007-08 basketball season.

Branson Now Seventh All-Time
Senior Lauren Branson continues her ascent up the YSU all-time assists chart. The Cincinnati, Ohio, native currently has 326 career assists and ranks seventh on the YSU all-time career assists list. She also needs 51 more assists to move into sixth place and 74 more to become the sixth player in school history to post 400 career assists.

Karner Reaches Top 10
Senior Heather Karner, the Penguins' top 3-point shooter from last season, just barely entered the YSU single-season 3-pointers made top 10 list. With 52 treys last year, Karner ranked tied for 10th.

Schloemp Streak at 73
Enter this season, senior Jessica Schloemp owns a games played streak of 73 straight. Schloemp has also played in 83 of 84 career games.

A Win Will
• Mark YSU's first victory of the season.
• Give Head Coach Tisha Hill her 32nd career victory.
• Be YSU's third season-opening victory under Tisha Hill
• Mark YSU's first victory in Alumni Arena since 1998.

Penguins Picked Sixth
Youngstown State was predicted to finish sixth in the Horizon League standings with 118 points in a poll of the League's head coaches, sports information directors and select media, the Horizon League announced.

Milwaukee was picked to win the league with 253 points and 13 first-place votes while Green Bay was second with 244 points and nine first-place votes.

Butler ranked third while UIC and Valparaiso placed fourth and fifth, respectively. Wright State was picked seventh and Cleveland State, Detroit and Loyola placed eighth, ninth and 10th, respectively.

Karner Nabs Preseason Laurels
Senior Heather Karner was named to the Horizon League Preseason All-League Second-Team in a vote of the circuit's head coaches, sports information directors and select media. Karner led the Penguins with 10.9 points per game and was named to the all-newcomer team last season.

Vaughn Eight in Circuit
Junior Velissa Vaughn led the Penguins and ranked eighth in the Horizon League with a .381 3-point percentage, converting 32-of-84 from behind the arc. As a freshman, Vaughn was just 2-of-24 in 3-point attempts.

Godfrey Improved From Arc
Junior Monique Godfrey vastly improved on her 3-point shooting from her freshman year to sophomore season. Godfrey made 45 treys in 2006-07 compared to just nine in 2005-06.

May I Assist You?
Senior Lauren Branson, who ranks fifth in YSU history with a career average of 4.79 assists per game, set the YSU freshman assist record with 159 in 2004-05 and her 121 in 2006-07 was the sixth highest mark set by a junior.