The Penn State Altoona women's basketball team makes its return to full regular season, intercollegiate competition this season, and the 2021-22 edition of the Lions features plenty of new faces.

The team debuts a new head coach, Halee Adams, who is entering her first regular season at the helm of the program. Adams was announced as the Lions' coach in September 2020, then saw her team's 2020-21 regular season cancelled due to COVID-19. After her squad competed in a six-game exhibition schedule last spring, Adams is looking forward to getting into to full regular season play this year in her first full season as an NCAA head coach.

"I am so very excited to finally have a full season this year and be able to coach the team," said Adams, who was a standout player locally at Bishop Guilfoyle High School, then Division I Saint Francis University, and also served as an assistant coach with the Division III Mount Aloysius College women's basketball program.

Penn State Altoona's roster will also be comprised largely of new players, as the Lions return just two players from their 2019-20 squad that went 14-12 overall and 12-8 in the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference.

Those two returning players are senior forward Alexis Cannistraci (Tyrone, PA/Tyrone) and junior guard Sarah Huston (Coatesville, PA/Coatesville), who were each tabbed as "Players to Watch" for the team this season in the AMCC's Preseason Coaches' Poll, in which Penn State Altoona was voted to finish in fourth place.

Cannistraci was chosen as the 2021-22 AMCC Preseason Co-Player of the Year, after having been a first team All-AMCC selection in each of the past two seasons and coming off of a 2019-20 campaign that saw her reach the 1,000-point mark in her career, finishing that season with 1,111 career points through three years. In the AMCC in 2019-20, Cannistraci ranked first in free throws made (110), second in points (440), points per game (16.9), blocks (49), and blocks per game (1.9), third in defensive rebounds (171), fifth in rebounds per game (9.0) and field goals made (151), and sixth in total rebounds (234), steals per game (1.9), and minutes per game (34.4).

Huston finished the 2019-20 season ranked third in the AMCC in steals (59), steals per game (2.3), and free throw percentage (84.1%), 14th in free throws made (69), 17th in points per 40 minutes (16.4), 23rd in assists (50), 27th in assists per game (1.9), and 33rd in assist-to-turnover ratio (0.9).

"I have a large group of underclassmen, so I expect my returners to be leaders on the court and in the locker room," said Adams. "Alexis and Sarah will be a huge part of what we want to do on the court this year with their experience, and they are also both captains on our team."

The Lions also bring back three players from last spring who are entering their first real seasons with the program: sophomore guard Megan Hartman (Claysburg, PA/Claysburg-Kimmel), sophomore forward DeAsia Speaks (Royersford, PA/Spring-Ford), and junior guard Emma Kitko (Houtzdale, PA/Moshannon Valley), who transferred to Penn State Altoona from Mount Aloysius following her freshman season.

"Emma is also a captain on our team, and she is an awesome three-point shooter and has been a great leader this preseason for our freshmen," Adams said. "Megan is also someone I expect to make a significant impact."

The other eight student-athletes on Penn State Altoona's roster are first-year players for the team: sophomore guard Lacee Barnhart (Bellefonte, PA/Bald Eagle), sophomore guard/forward Anaya Phillips (Middle Island, NY/Longwood), freshman forward/center Emily Munson (New Hartford, CT/Northwestern Regional), freshmen guard/forwards Brianna Smith (Fayetteville, NC/American International School of Conakry) and Ellie Matthews (Kennett Square, PA/Kennett), and freshmen guards Hannah Zimmerman (Troy, PA/Troy), Jordan Bisignani (Venetia, PA/Peters Township), and Emily Marines (Nanty Glo, PA/Blacklick Valley).

"I'm extremely excited for this year because it is my first recruiting class. Ellie Matthews and Emily Munson will be a definite presence for our offense and add more height to our roster," said Adams. "Emily Marines and Jordan Bisignani give us quickness, great passing ability, and more ball handlers. I expect Hannah Zimmerman to knock some shots down from behind the arc."

Penn State Altoona women's basketball faces a challenging slate of non-conference games in addition to its AMCC schedule. As the team progresses through the season, Adams hopes that her young roster can develop while putting forth the effort required to put themselves in position to win games.

"My overall expectation for the team is to go out and play every game as hard as they can, control what we can control, and compete to win," she said.

Penn State Altoona women's basketball opens its 2021-22 schedule on the road this Wednesday, November 10 at 6:30 p.m., traveling to Meadville to face Allegheny College.