Danny Pfrank & Blaine Kinsey

GoSycamores.com

TERRE HAUTE, Ind.—The Indiana State women's basketball team began their 41st season on the hardwood on Friday with a 64-62 win over Detroit in the Preseason WNIT. The Sycamores now turn their attention toward the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame on Sunday with a 2 p.m. tipoff in South Bend, Ind.

Sunday's game can be heard live on ESPN Radio 92.7 FM and AM 1300, with Brent Holl calling all the action on the Nelligan Sports Marketing Radio Network. 

This will be the first ever meeting between the Sycamores and Fighting Irish. ISU and Notre Dame both got season opening wins during the frst round of the Preseason WNIT on Friday. The Irish won their season opener in convincing fashion with a 81-61 victory at home over Akron. The Sycamores battled with Detroit and came away with a 64-62 season opening win over the Titans at Hulman Center.

Sunday's game is set to tipoff at 2:00 p.m. inside Purcell Pavilion in South Bend, Ind.

Scouting The Fighting Irish

The Fighting Irish of Notre Dame enter Sunday's contest being ranked No. 2 in the country and sport a 1-0 record after defeating Akron on Friday. The Irish are coming off a 2010-11 season that saw them achieve a 31-8 record and a trip to the National Championship game before falling 76-70 to Texas A&M. The Irish are led by Skylar Diggins who averaged 15 points for the Irish last season.

Starting Off With A W

With Friday's 64-62 win over Detroit, the Sycamores got their third consecutive win their season opener. The Sycamores put three in double figures en route to the victory. Taylor Whitley led the way with 16 points, Shannon Thomas had 15 points and Brittany Schoen had 10 for the Sycamores.

Women's Basketball Tabbed Fifth In Preseason Poll

The Indiana State women's basketball team has been picked to finish fifth in the Missouri Valley Conference for the upcoming 2011-12 season, as announced by the league office during Media Day in St. Louis on Tuesday (Oct. 25). Head coaches, sports information directors and members of the media vote in the poll.

ISU will return four of their five starters from last year's squad, in seniors Deja Mattox (9.7 PPG, 3.8 RPG), Brittany Schoen (10.6 PPG, 87 3PTs) and Shannon Thomas (13.1 PPG, 8.6 RPG) and junior Taylor Whitley (12.1 PPG, 4.7 APG). Along with the four starters, MVC All-Freshman Team selection Anna Munn (7.0 PPG, 2.7 RPG), Andrea Rademacher (2.5 PPG, 1.4 RPG), Nikki Gunning (0.8 PPG) and Sadie Oyer (0.5 PPG, 1.1 RPG) are back for their sophomore seasons.

The Sycamores welcome six newcomers to this year's team as freshmen Travecia Franklin (Columbus, Ohio / Brookhaven HS), Racheal Mahan (Mansfield, Ohio / Mansfield HS), Marah Morris (Columbus, Ohio / Brookhaven HS), Jessica Valley (Lafayette, Ind. / McCutcheon HS) and Natasha Zurek (St. John, Ind. / Andrean HS) will look to earn playing time as they begin their collegiate careers. Sophomore Allie Henderson (Euless, Texas / Univ. of Houston / Euless Trinity HS) will sit out the 2011-12 season after transferring into the program.

Thomas Named To Preseason All-MVC Team

Senior center Shannon Thomas earned preseason accolades, being selected to the five-member preseason all-conference squad. The Springboro, Ohio, product was a Second Team All-MVC selection last season, leading the conference with an average of 8.6 rebounds per game while placing eighth in scoring, at 13.1 points per contest.

Joining Thomas on the Preseason All-MVC team where Missouri State's Casey Garrison and Christiana Shorter, Wichita State's Haleigh Lankster and Creighton's Carli Tritz. MSU's Garrison was named the Preseason Player of the Year for the second straight season.

11/11/11

Indiana State's Preseason WNIT opener takes place on Friday, Nov. 11, or 11/11/11. ISU has had success in this decade when the month, day and year can be shortened into the same number. ISU went 3-0 at the beginning of the decade on those dates, all taking place inside Hulman Center in Terre Haute.

March 3, 2003 (03/03/03) -- 74-54 win vs. Illinois State

February 2, 2002 (02/02/02) -- 70-65 win vs. Northern Iowa

January 1, 2001 (01/01/01) -- 71-69 win vs. Bradley

Thomas, Munn Collect Conference Hardware

Senior Shannon Thomas and sophomore Anna Munn both earned All-Missouri Valley Conference selections following the 2010-11 season, with Thomas being name to the All-MVC Second Team and Munn earning All-Freshman Team status.

Whitley Named To All-Tournament Team

After leading ISU with 66 points over their three games in the conference tournament, junior Taylor Whitley received a spot on the 2011 MVC All-Tournament Team. Whitley is the first Sycamore to be named to the All-Tournament Team since the 2005-06 season.

No Streaking Allowed

ISU did not have a streak of winning or losing of more than two games throughout the entire 2010-11 season, the only team in the MVC without a streak in either direction. The Sycamores had six two-game winning streaks and six two-game losing skids during the season.

Thomas Claims ISU Blocks Record

Senior Shannon Thomas entered the 2010-11 season in second place for career blocks after just two seasons at Indiana State, beginning her junior campaign with 87 career blocks. Thomas went over the century mark against USC Upstate on Dec. 12, and set the school record against Illinois State during the State Farm MVC Tournament. The Springboro, Ohio, product passed Laura Rudolphi for the record and currently has 162 for her career. Thomas' 162 career rejections puts her in 12th place in MVC history and just 35 away from breaking into the top 10 in the conference record books.

Schoen Moves Up Three-Point List

Senior Brittany Schoen continues to march up the Indiana State career standings for three-point field goals made. Schoen entered last season in ninth on the all-time list after just two seasons in a Sycamore uniform, but with her 87 3-pointers in 2010-11, Schoen currently sits in fourth place with 198 for her career. Schoen tied the Indiana State record for threes in a single game when she knocked down seven triples against Drake on Saturday, Feb. 19, also passing Hazel Olden (180 threes from 1990-94) within the ISU record books during that game. The Elizabeth, Ind., product is 16 treys away from the top three, with third place being held by Lisa Verhoff, who hit 214 from 2002-06.

Schoen Moves Up Three-Point List (Part II)

Senior Brittany Schoen set the Indiana State record for 3-pointers in a single season during ISU's final game, with her second of five for the game passing Kourtney Mennen's record of 82 from the 2002-03 season. Schoen finished the season with 87 treys, also tying for the seventh highest total in MVC history.

Back To The Final Four

The 2011 State Farm MVC Tournament marked the first time that the Sycamores had remained as one of the final four teams standing since the 2005-06 season when ISU made it to the championship game of the tournament.

Three-Point Attack

Indiana State's run to the semifinals of the conference tournament was fueled by their hot shooting from beyond the three-point arc, as the team went 31-for-66 (.470) from long range during the tournament. In fact, ISU's 31 3-pointers set a new tournament standard, passing Creighton's previous record of 26 set back in 2002.

First Year In Charge

With Indiana State's win over Evansville on Sunday, Feb. 27, head coach Teri Moren passed Andi Myers' 13 wins from the 1982-83 season for the most wins for the Sycamores under a first-year head coach. Moren finished the year with 16 wins in her rookie season and became the only first-year head coach to lead ISU to at least an even season in year number one.

On To The Next One...

Indiana State continues in the Preseason WNIT for their next game, with both a time and date to be announced. Check GoSycamores.com for the next game on the schedule for the Sycamores.