LORETTO, Pa. – Saint Francis University women's basketball faces a quick turnaround as they visit No. 22 West Virginia on Tuesday, Nov. 16 at 7 p.m. The Red Flash are coming off a 71-45 loss at Kent State, where Jada Dapaa grabbed 12 rebounds, while the Mountaineers are playing their season opener on Tuesday.
 
Scouting West Virginia
West Virginia enters the 2021-22 season No. 19 in the Associated Press rankings and No. 23 in the USA Today/Women's Basketball Coaches Association Preseason Poll. The Mountaineers moved to No. 22 in the AP rankings ahead of Tuesday's game. Forward Esmery Martinez was named to the 2022 Women's Naismith Trophy Women's Watch List, presented by the Atlanta Tipoff Club to the nation's top player. Martinez and teammate Kari Niblack were two-of-20 players named to the 2022 Katrina McClain Award Watch List, presented to the top power forward in women's college basketball. West Virginia returns four-of-five starters, though the one starter they lost was Kysre Gondrezick, who was selected No. 4 in the WNBA draft. Martinez returns her team-leading 11.6 rebounds and 13.6 points per game, while KK Deans returns 13.7 points and Niblack returns 1.6 blocks. The Mountaineers were picked to finish fourth in the Big 12 Preseason Poll, trailing AP-ranked No. 6 Baylor, No. 12 Texas and No. 14 Iowa State. West Virginia ended the 2020-21 season ranked No. 17 in the AP Poll after a season-ending loss to No. 5 Georgia Tech in the NCAA Tournament.
 
Last Time Out
The Red Flash fell to Mid-American Conference foe Kent State, 71-45, that snapped a four-game winning streak over the Golden Flashes. Jada Dapaa grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds, four offensive, and Jordan McLemore led the scoring with seven points. Freshman Adison Novosel and Nyla Rozier saw their first collegiate game action, as every Red Flash player has now made an appearance this season. The Red Flash paced the game with 37.5 percent three-point shooting and seven fast break points, while the Golden Flashes led in all other categories. Kent State's Katie Shumate led all scorers with 21 points, 19 of them in the first half.
 
All-Time vs. West Virginia
The Mountaineers hold a 6-0 advantage over the Red Flash since the matchup's inaugural meeting in 2004. Most recently, West Virginia defeated Saint Francis 74-45 in 2019, which marked the tied-lowest points the Red Flash allowed. Saint Francis scored a game-high 68 points in 2004 and game-low 29 in 2007. West Virginia's largest margin of victory was a 101-46 win in 2014 and the lowest was 74-68 in 2004. In the 2019 matchup, Sam Miller led all Saint Francis players in 14 points and six rebounds, while Jada Dapaa added six rebounds of her own.
 
Red Flash Picked Third in NEC Preseason Poll
Saint Francis was picked to finish third in the 2021-22 NEC Women's Basketball Preseason Poll. The Red Flash trail Mount St. Mary's, unanimously selected to win the conference, and Wagner. Sacred Heart and Fairleigh Dickinson rounded out the top-five voting. Mount St. Mary's won the NEC in 2020-21 after defeating Wagner, 70-38.
 
Dapaa, McLemore Named Team Captains
Seniors Jada Dapaa and Jordan McLemore were named captains, selected by their teammates. Both will serve as captain for the first time, McLemore serving her captaincy in her first season with the Red Flash. "We opened up voting this year to our players," said head coach Keila Whittington. "She [McLemore] earned that respect from the work she put in during the summer."
 
2021-22 Non-Conference Schedule Highlighted by Two Power Five Opponents
The Red Flash non-conference schedule features marquee matchups against Georgia and West Virginia. Georgia finished the 2020-21 season ranked 10th, while West Virginia finished 17th in the Associated Press Poll. MAC opponents Toledo and Kent State and AAC opponent Temple join the group of notable non-conference opponents.
 
Taylor Returns to Saint Francis as Assistant Coach
Former Red Flash forward Brooklyn Taylor rejoined the program as an assistant coach in May 2021. She previously spent the past three seasons with Akron and two seasons at Mercer after her 2016 graduation from Saint Francis. As a player, Taylor appeared in 70 games across four seasons with the Red Flash.
 
Brown Named to Red Flash Coaching Staff
Assistant coach Erika Brown joined the Red Flash staff in May 2021 after previously coaching at Harcum College, Stony Brook and Florida International. During her time with Stony Brook in 2019-20, she assisted a team that went 28-3 and won the America East Championship. They were poised for a NCAA Tournament run before it was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a player at Delaware, Brown ranked 10th in program history with 1,402 career points.
 
The Red Flash Return Two Starters, Three Others with Saint Francis Starting Experience
Kaitlyn Maxwell and Lili Benzel return after starting 22 and 18 games, respectively. Jenna Mastellone (six), Jada Dapaa (three) and Sam Miller (one) also bring starting experience to the 2021-22 season. Benzel, Mastellone and Dapaa all averaged more than 22 minutes per game. Dapaa led the team with 8.6 rebounds-per-game, which ranked second in the NEC. Benzel had an NEC-leading 48 made three-point shots and team-leading 36.1 percent from three. She has a chance to reach the Saint Francis top-10 rankings in just three seasons with the team. Mastellone's 105-career appearances with Saint Francis is 47 more than second-most on the team (Dapaa, 58). Maxwell and Miller will fill larger roles with three key departures after averaging 18.6 and 15.8 minutes-per-game, respectively.
 
Five Newcomers Added
The Red Flash welcomed five new members, one transfer, Jordan McLemore, and four freshman, Layla Laws, Maria McConnell, Adison Novosel and Nyla Rozier. McLemore, a senior, comes from Hartford where she was fifth in the America East with 95 assists in 2019-20. The four freshman all stand 5-foot-11 or taller and have two forwards and two guards. McConnell grew up in Nanty Glo, Pa. and played basketball at Blacklick Valley, 20 minutes away from Saint Francis.
 
Next
The Red Flash host their first home game of the season on Saturday, Nov. 20 at 2 p.m. when they welcome Longwood.