EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Women's Basketball opens its 2024-25 season at home Monday at 6 p.m. against Brescia University (Ky.). The contest will be the first in the newly renamed Liberty Arena, home of the Screaming Eagles.
 
The season-opening contest can be seen with a subscription to ESPN+ and heard on The Spin 95.7 FM.
 
Monday's season tipoff is a whiteout theme. Fans are encouraged to wear white and help white out Liberty Arena.
 
Southern Indiana enters year three of its Division I transition, coming off a magical and historic season in 2023-24. The Screaming Eagles went 25-7 last season with a 17-1 in Ohio Valley Conference play, culminating in a regular season and tournament title in the OVC. The two championships were the first OVC team championships in USI Athletics history.
 
As a reclassifying program, USI was not eligible for the NCAA Tournament. However, the Screaming Eagles made its first-ever appearance in the Women's National Invitation Tournament (WNIT), reaching the second round against the University of Wisconsin and hosting two record crowds inside Liberty Arena.
 
The Screaming Eagles won 22 of their last 25 games in 2023-24 and had two separate winning streaks of 10 or more victories during the season, which were a team best since USI won 13 in a row in 2017-18.
 
USI was projected to finish first in the 2024-25 OVC preseason poll, receiving 20 first-place votes. Graduate forward Meredith Raley and Madi Webb alongside senior guard Vanessa Shafford were named to the OVC's Preseason Players to Watch List after their All-OVC selections at the end of 2023-24. USI also returns junior guard Ali Saunders, an OVC All-Newcomer selection last season, while the reigning OVC Coach of the Year Rick Stein leads the squad into his 26^th season as the head coach.
 
Southern Indiana also received a preseason ranking in the CollegeInsider.com Women's Mid-Major Top 25® at No. 23. USI started to receive votes last January before checking into the top 25 for the first time last season on March 12 after the two OVC championships. The Eagles ranked No. 24 in the final poll of the 2023-24 campaign.
 
Shafford paced USI last season in points (13.6), rebounding (7.7), steals (1.4), and minutes played (30.0). Raley was second on the team in scoring at just over 12 points per game. Webb and sophomore forward Chloe Gannon checked in third and fourth, respectively, with more than 10 points per contest. After making her way into the starting lineup consistently during OVC play, Saunders was nearly USI's fifth double-digit scorer averaging just under 10 points per game. Sophomore guard Triniti Ralston is also back after playing a significant role in OVC play and during USI's postseason run.
 
As a team, the Eagles led the OVC in field goal percentage (44.9) and field goal defense (36.0). USI was second in the conference in scoring (72.1) and scoring defensive (62.4).
 
With the lack of significant roster turnover, USI only welcomes two new faces to the team. Sophomore forward and Evansville, Indiana native Amiyah Buchanan transferred from OVC rival Southeast Missouri State University following 12 starts and 27 appearances as a freshman for the Redhawks. Buchanan led SEMO with 22 blocks while shooting over 45 percent from the floor (53-116). The other newcomer is freshman guard Lexi Sepulveda, an all-state selection from Plainfield East High School in Plainfield, Illinois.
 
Southern Indiana is celebrating 50 seasons of USI Women's Basketball during the 2024-25 season. The 50th season of USI Women's Basketball also coincides with the 50th year of women's athletics at Southern Indiana.
 
Monday's opponent, Brescia, is an NAIA program out of the River States Conference. The Bearcats went 6-21 last season but are off to a 2-0 start in 2024-25. Brescia grabbed a pair of wins this weekend in the Brescia Classic against Cumberland University (Tenn.), 68-58, and the University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy, 67-65. Caroline Lucas came out of the two games leading the Bearcats with 14.5 points per game. Three other Bearcats averaged 10-plus points across the two games.
 
USI and Brescia are meeting for the eighth time on Monday. USI leads the all-time series, 4-3, after winning four straight matchups in the head-to-head series. Last season, Southern Indiana defeated Brescia, 86-37, at the end of the non-conference schedule. Raley led the Eagles with 22 points in the win.
 
Tickets for Monday and all home games at Liberty Arena can be purchased online at usiscreamingeagles.com or the USI Ticket Office.