opening tip... Wednesday's home opener between Mount St. Mary's and American marks the 12th meeting in the all-time series dating back to the 1978-79 season.
• The Eagles have won the last three meetings to grab a 6-5 edge in the all-time series, including a 67-52 decision in the last matchup on Nov. 24, 2004.
• Mount St. Mary's last win in the series was a 63-56 decision in 1995.
•The Mount leads the series 4-1 in Emmitsburg, including 2-1 at Knott Arena.
• Mount St. Mary's is 34-17 all-time against the Patriot League.

about the eagles... American comes into the contest 1-1 after falling 60-59 at High Point on Sunday. The Panthers converted a traditional 3-point play with 10 seconds left to comeback to down the Eagles.
• Senior F Michelle Kirk paced the Cavaliers with 20 points against High Point. Kirk, who had 21 points and eight rebounds in a 72-68 win against East Carolina on Friday, leads the team with 20.5 points and 6.0 rebounds per game.
• Junior C Tori Halvorsen added 11 points and seven rebounds against the Panthers. The junior is averaging 8.0 points and 5.5 rebounds per game.
• Senior F Liz Leer tallied 15 points and 13 rebounds against the Pirates. Leer leads the team in rebounding (9.0 rpg.) and ranks second in scoring (11.5 ppg.).
• Junior G Liz Strack also had 15 points against East Carolina. The junior ranks third on the team with 11.0 points and 5.0 rebounds per game.

last time we met... Joanna Barnes posted 22 points and 10 rebounds to lead American past Mount St. Mary's 67-52 on Nov. 24, 2004. Tala Hadavi (14 points), Chanel Hunt (12 points) and Kim Salem (10 points) also reached double figures for the Eagles. Dita Krumberga paced the Mount with 16 points while Dominique Mazzuchi registered 14 points and LaToya Butler tallied 10 points and 11 rebounds in the loss. With the game tied at 46 with 7:04 left in the game, American closed the game on a 21-6 run to clinch its third-straight win against the Mount.

last time out... The Mount St. Mary's women's basketball team opened up the 2010-11 campaign with an 81-58 loss at Virginia Sunday. Sophomore Sydney Henderson paced the Mount with a career-high 17 points. Freshman Ashley Christie added 13 points in her collegiate debut.

quick hits on virginia game... Mount St. Mary's held the lead four times in the first seven minutes.
• Sophomore Sydney Henderson scored a career-high 17 points in 24 minutes of action. The sophomore recorded 13 points in the first eight minutes of the second half.
• Freshman Ashley Christie posted 13 points in her collegiate debut, including 10 points in the second half.
• Freshman Jessie Kaufman recorded eight points and three rebounds in her collegiate debut. The freshman scored the Mount's first points of the year when she drained a 3-pointer 35 seconds into the game.
• Senior Mary Dunn posted seven points, five rebounds and three assists. The senior moved into 30th place on the program's all-time career points list with 843 points.
• Sophomore Selina Mann made her first collegiate start, registering three points, five assists, four assists and two steals.
• Freshmen Kayla Grossett (six points) and Rachel Mathews (three points) also scored in their collegiate debut while Kelly Guerriero played the final 1:55 and missed her only shot attempt.

home opening omen... Mount St. Mary's is 24-12 in home openers and 11-11 at Knott Arena in the squad's first game in Emmitsburg.
• After winning the home opener, the Mount went on to post a winning season 20 times and eight times in Mount Division I history.
• It marks the 12th time in program history the squad will have a home opener after a loss on the road in the season opener. The Mount is 8-3 in the home opener after a loss.
• Head coach Bryan Whitten is 1-2 in the first game of the year at Knott Arena.

starting the season after two games... Mount St. Mary's looks to go to 1-1 for the fourth-straight campaign under head coach Bryan Whitten.
• The Mount has opened the season .500 after the first two games of a season 16 times, including 11 times in the Mount Division I era. • When the squad starts the year 1-1, the Mountaineers have gone on to post winning record in 12 of the 16 years, including eight times since switching to Division I.
• Mount St. Mary's has lost the first two games eight times in program history, including seven times in the last 13 years. The squad has had a winning season twice after losing the first two games of the year.
• The Mount started 2-0 12 times in program history.

next on tap... The Mount hosts UMES on Saturday afternoon.
• The squad travels to Cincinnati on Tuesday before returning to Knott Arena against Towson on Dec. 1.

freshmen for one-two-three... Freshmen Jessie Kaufman, Ashley Christie, Rachel Mathews and Kayla Grossett each knocked down their first career shot attempt in the game against Virginia.
• Kaufman gave the Mount a 3-2 lead with a 3-pointer 35 seconds into the game and Christie nailed 3-ball of her own to reclaim the lead for the Mountaineers at 6-4 with 18:28 left in the first half.
• Mathews recorded a 3-point play the traditional way after scoring a layup at 15:55 and then converting the free throw to give Mount St. Mary's a 9-7 advantage.
• Grossett nailed a 3-pointer on her first collegiate attempt at 5:25 in the second half.

in their debut... The five freshmen each saw action against Virginia on Nov. 14.
• Ashley Christie and Jessie Kaufman both made their collegiate debut in the starting lineup. Christie posted 13 points, including 10 in the second half, along with two rebounds and two assists. Kaufman had eight points, three rebounds, an assist and a block.
• Kayla Grossett, Rachel Mathews and Kelly Guerriero each saw time off the bench. Grossett had six points and two rebounds while Mathews had three points, three rebounds and an assist. Guerriero played the final 1:55 and missed her own shot attempt.

hearing your name called at the start... Head coach Bryan Whitten has only had 15 players start in his four-year tenure at the Mount.
• Senior Mary Dunn has started 89-straight games in her career.
• Senior Leah Westbrooks started 67 games in her career and 55 of the last 57 games.
• Junior Sandra Andresson has started 48 of the 59 games she has played.
• Sophomore Sydney Henderson has started 15 of the 29 games she has played, including 10 straight.
• Freshmen Ashley Christie and Jessie Kaufman both started in their collegiate debut against Virginia on Nov. 14.

in the non-conference slate... Mount St. Mary's is 71-108 in non-conference games since joining the Northeast Conference in 1989-90.

in the month... Mount St. Mary's is 53-48 in the month of November in program history. The Mount is 29-16 at home, 15-26 on the road and 9-6 at a neutral site in the month.
• The Mountaineers are 27-41 in November since switching to Division I in 1988-89. The team is 16-16 at Knott Arena, 9-20 on the road and 2-5 at a neutral site.
• Under head coach Bryan Whitten, the Mount is 6-9 overall, 3-6 at home and 3-3 on the road in the month.
• The Mount is in its 37th campaign in program history, but did not have a game in November seven times.
• Mount St. Mary's won its first 17 home November games in program history.

preseason poll... Mount St. Mary's was picked 11th according to the Northeast Conference Preseason Coaches Poll. Long Island, who advanced to the NEC Championship Game last season, received six first-place votes to be tabbed as the preseason favorite while the defending league regular season champions Robert Morris was selected second after garnering three first-place nods. Sacred Heart placed third ahead of the defending NEC Tournament champions Saint Francis (Pa.), who picked up two first place votes while Monmouth nabbed the final first-place vote to finish fifth in the poll. Quinnipiac, Central Connecticut State, Bryant, Fairleigh Dickinson, Wagner, the Mount and St. Francis (N.Y.) rounded out the 12-team field.

we are on defense last year, let's see what we can do this year... Mount St. Mary's ranked second in the NEC with 56.7 points per game allowed last season.
• The squad also ranked 39th in the NCAA Division I for scoring defense.

let's play to 60 points... Mount St. Mary's is most successful under head coach Bryan Whitten when it scores 60 points in a game or holds the opponent under that total.
• The Mount is 18-11 when it scores 60 points in a game, but 14-45 when it does not reach 60 points.
• Defensively, the Mountaineers are 25-21 when the opponents are held under 60 points and 7-36 when the opponent reaches 60 points.

three keys to whitten success... The Mount is most successful under head coach Bryan Whitten when the squad leads at halftime, in rebounding or keeps the opponent under 60 points.
• The Mount is 24-13 when he holds the lead at halftime, 2-2 when the game is tied, but just 6-42 when trailing at the break.
• The squad is 15-14 when it holds a rebounding edge in a game, but just 15-39 when the opponent has the advantage and 2-4 when the two teams have equal boards.
• Mount St. Mary's is 25-21 when it holds opponents under 60 points.

hitting 20 points in a game... Senior Mary Dunn is the only player on the roster that has scored 20 points in a game in her career. The senior accomplished the feat twice last season when she posted a career-high 21 points against Colgate on Nov. 24, 2009 and had 20 points against Long Island on Jan. 16, 2010.
• The Mount has registered 16 20-point performances and two 30-point games under head coach Bryan Whitten. The squad is 9-7 when a player reaches 20 points and 2-0 when a player scores 30 in a contest.

1,000-point scorer... Mount St. Mary's has had a player reach the 1,000-point plateau in five of the last seven campaigns.
• Senior Mary Dunn is the closest player to 1,000 points with 843 career points.
• Senior Leah Westbrooks (528 points) is next on the Mount's active point list.

dunn on the all-time lists... Senior Mary Dunn is making a mark on the program's all-time list.
• The senior currently sits in 30st place in program history with 843 career points. She can pass Jan Everly (848, 1982-86) with six points to move into 29th place.
• The senior also ranks seventh in program history in rebounds per game (7.3 rpg.). Dunn can move into the program's all-time career rebounding Top-10 with 50 caroms.
• Dunn also ranks eighth in Mount Division I history with 13 career double-doubles. She can move up a spot with her next double-double.
• The senior is also ninth on the Mount's games started list with 89 career starts and can move ahead of former teammate Hassanah Oliver (93, 2006-10) with five starts.

other players on the move... Along with senior Mary Dunn, the Mount has several players making a move on the program's all-time scoring chart.
• Senior Leah Westbrooks has 528 career points and can move into the Mount's Top-50 with one point and move into 49th place with nine points. Westbrooks also ranks 13th in Mount Division I history with six double-doubles and can move into eighth place with four double-doubles.
• Junior Sandra Andresson currently sits in 65th place in program history with 335 points and can move into 64th place with one point, 63rd place with three points, 62nd place with five points and 61st place with 11 points.
• Sophomore Sydney Henderson has 160 career points to sit in 85th place. She can move intp 84th place with 13 points and 83rd place with 15 points.
• Sophomore Selina Mann is right at 100 points for her career and can move into the program's Top-100 with 23 points.

home sweet home... In its 24th season at Knott Arena, Mount St. Mary's has posted a 203-95 overall mark, including 68-40 in non-conference play and 135-55 in league play since moving across Route 15 from Memorial Gym.

tops in the league... Mount St. Mary's has posted the most wins in the Northeast Conference since joining the league in 1989-90 with 241 victories.
• The Mount has the third-most wins in league history, trailing only Monmouth (253) and Saint Francis (Pa.) (247).
• The Mount is 241-131 in Northeast Conference play, including 135-54 at Knott Arena and 106-77 on the road.

northeast conference history... Prior to last season, the Mount had advanced to 20-straight Northeast Conference Tournaments.
• Mount St. Mary's is 17-17 in the NEC Tournament.
• The Mountaineers have not won a tournament game since a 50-45 win against Sacred Heart on Mar. 4, 2001.
• Mount St. Mary's won tournaments in 1992-93, 1993-94 and 1994-95, including earning the league's first two NCAA Division I bids.

the underlining whit... Head coach Bryan Whitten is in his four season at the Mount in 2009-10. The Mount is 32-56 overall under Whitten.
• Whitten has defeated all 11 other teams in the NEC.
• The Mount is 14-27 overall at Knott Arena and 10-18 in NEC play under Whitten.
• The Mountaineers fair better on the road with an 18-30 overall mark away from Emmitsburg and 10-16 in league play.
• Whitten picked up his first Mount win with a 55-51 decision at Lafayette on Nov. 17, 2007 and earned his 25th career in at Lafayette on Nov. 30, 2009.
• Whitten earned his 250th win of his career against Quinnipiac on Jan. 30, 2010.

foreign flavor... Mount St. Mary's has three international players on the roster at the same time for the first time in program history.
• Senior Leah Westbrooks (Ireland) was the third international player at the Mount, junior Sandra Andresson (Estonia) became the fourth international player in Emmitsburg and freshman Kayla Grossett (Canada) became the fifth international player at the Mount.
• The trio follows Katie Walton (Canada, 1998-02) and Dita Krumberga (Latvia, 2004-07).

new to the mountain... Fourth-year head coach Bryan Whitten added freshman Ashley Christie, Kayla Grossett, Kelly Guerriero, Jessie Kaufman and Rachel Mathews to the roster in 2010-11. Each player signed a National Letter of Intent last season.

coaching changes... For the third-straight season, head coach Bryan Whitten has made changes to his coaching staff. Denise King and Lisa Steele both moved up a chair while Whitten added Mount alumni Brianna Gauthier this season.
• King is in her second season at the Mount after serving as an assistant coach at her alma mater, Rhode Island, for the last four years.
• Steele is also in her second season at the Mount after ending her four-year career at George Washington in 2008-09 after registering 206 points and 107 rebounds with the Colonials.
• Gauthier returns to the Mount after serving as an assistant coach under former Mount assistant Mark Zacher at Norwich, a Division III school in Vermont. A 2009 graduate of the Mount, she finished her career 18th in program history in all-time career points (1,128), second in 3-pointers made (164), second in 3-pointers attempted (490) and ninth in assists (335). Gauthier briefly played professionally in Sweden before joining the Norwich coaching staff last season.