ROCHESTER, N.Y. - The RIT women's basketball team starts its 2023-24 season on Thursday (Nov. 16) against St. John Fisher. Here are six things you need to know about this year's Tigers:
 
LAST SEASON
The Tigers finished 8-17 overall and 6-12 in league play last season. Their largest margin of victory came against Bard on Dec. 2, winning 75-33. RIT began its 2022-23 season winning four out of six games.
 
PRESEASON RANKINGS
RIT is ranked sixth in the Liberty League preseason poll with 41 votes. Skidmore sits at the top of the standings with 80 votes, followed by Ithaca (74), Vassar (57), St. Lawrence (53) and RPI (43) in the top-five. Union (39), William Smith (34), Clarkson (20) and Bard (9) round out the bottom four.
 
WAITE, SHE'S BACK?
The Tigers' top returner is senior guard Emma Waite. Waite started all 25 games last season and logged a team-high 787 minutes of playing time. The senior guard averaged 12.5 points per game. She led the team in points (313), three-pointers made (48), free throws made (55), defensive rebounds (69), assists (86) and steals (41). Waite was named 2022-23 Liberty League All-Conference Team Honorable Mention and Liberty League Women's Basketball Performer of the Week for Dec. 5.
 
RETURNING TIGERS
Along with Waite, senior guard Mya Richardson, junior guards Kaitlyn Bockelman, Rachel Mandaro, Lila McGuiggin, junior forwards Sydney Pearson and Sonya Shivok, and sophomore guards Erin DiPaola, Ansley Orrell and Ayanna Broome all return for the Tigers. Orrell was fourth on the team in scoring averaging 7.0 points per game, while Richardson was third for field-goal percentage, shooting .452 percent from the field. DiPaola was second on the team in minutes averaging 27.6 per game and McGuiggin led the team in three-point percentage shooting .360 from behind the arc.
 
NEW FACES
The new additions to the Tigers' roster this season include junior transfer Hannah Durand (Onondaga Community College), first-years Lauren Sabia (Simsbury, CT), Faye Kaplinski (Simsbury, CT), Grace Murphy (Clifton Springs, NY), Ella Wilson (Millbrook, NY), Sydney Dodds (Springfield, MA) and Emma Rose (Millwood, NY).
 
 SCHEDULE
The Tigers open up their season heading to Nazareth for the Mark's Pizzeria Crosstown Shootout against St. John Fisher (Nov. 16) and Nazareth (Nov. 18) before traveling to Brockport the following Tuesday (Nov. 21).

RIT begins Liberty League play at Bard (Dec.1) and travels to Union the following day (Dec. 2). The Tigers then travel to Geneseo the following weekend (Dec. 9). RIT returns to action in the Worcester Polytechnic Institute Winter Invitational facing Franklin and Marshall College (Dec. 29) and WPI (Dec. 30).

The Tigers start off the new year hosting the University of Rochester (Jan. 2), William Smith (Jan. 5) and RPI (Jan. 6), before heading to Ithaca (Jan. 9). RIT welcomes Skidmore (Jan. 12) and Vassar (Jan. 13), followed by a stretch of away games at Clarkson (Jan. 19), St. Lawrence (Jan 20), RPI (Jan. 26) and William Smith (Jan. 27).

RIT begins the month of February hosting St. Lawrence (Feb. 2), Clarkson (Feb. 3) and Ithaca (Feb. 6). The Tigers' last away games are against Vassar (Feb. 9) and Skidmore (Feb. 10). The regular season concludes at home against Union (Feb. 16) and Bard (Feb. 17).