Storylines – vs PBC Challenge
UVA Wise will face a pair of Peach Belt Conference members who are coming off solid campaigns from last winter. Clayton State posted a 10-5 record and a 10-4 mark in league play before losing in the PBC Tournament Semifinals. The Lakers return their top leading scorer in 5-foot-11 forward Audrey Mcelhaney. The junior tossed in 14.7 points and 7.6 rebounds per game last season. Clayton State was picked third in the Preseason PBC Poll and has posted three consecutive winning seasons, including two trips to the NCAA Tournament. Host Flagler was picked sixth in the preseason conference poll after going 7-7 a year ago. Under the direction of third-year Head Coach Mo Smith, the Saints return four seniors. The quartet includes all-conference guard Tori Pearce who averaged 18.2 points per game last year and sixth-year senior N'Mya Pierce at forward who led the team with 8.6 rebounds a night.
About UVA Wise
Picked third in the Preseason SAC Coaches' Poll, UVA Wise returns a trio of all-conference players from last season's 15-5 squad. Junior guard Caitlyn Ross returns at point guard following a season that saw the 5-foot-6 guard become the only women in NCAA Division II to average at least 15 points, five rebounds and seven assists per game as she earned First-Team All-SAC honors. Redshirt-senior Kalee Johnson is back following a First-Team All-SAC season where she scored a team-high 17.3 points and grabbed a team-best 9.2 rebounds as part of a season that saw her score her 1,000th career point. The third returning all-conference player is junior Nia Vanzant. A Second-Team All-SAC selection, Vanzant scored 14.6 points per game, grabbed six rebounds a night and shot 44.7 percent from the floor. Overall, the club is one of the more experienced teams in recent history. The Cavaliers' roster features a combined eight juniors and seniors. UVA Wise begins the season with a lengthy  road trip, both in number of games and miles traveled. Following the two games in Florida, the team will return home before going to South Carolina to start SAC play against Limestone on Nov. 17.  Three days later the team will be back in the Palmetto State to face Anderson before opening the home slate on Nov. 23 against Mars Hill.