Different year, different team, same old goal. After barely missing out on the NCAA tournament for the second straight year last season, the reigning back-to-back ECAC champion women's basketball team hits the hardwood this year determined to attain the goal that has eluded it through two still successful seasons."When you only lose four games in a season it's hard to make any drastic changes," coach Carol Simon said. "It's a matter of creating our own identity from last year."

The Judges return four of their five starters from last season, including UAA Rookie of the Year guard Jamie Capra '08, and team scoring leader and honorable mention All-American forward Caitlin Malcolm '07 as well as coach Carol Simon and the UAA Coaching Staff of the Year. All of this experience, coupled with the addition of six rookies, has made for an all around optimistic team.

"We seem to be doing pretty well right now," Simon said. "We have a great work ethic and great team chemistry."

The dynamic inside-outside duo of Malcolm and Capra gave the Judges the bulk of their offensive firepower last season. Malcolm led the team in scoring with 15.3 points and 8.3 rebounds per game while Capra had 11.5 and 5.4 rebounds points per game.

Simon said Malcolm's size and physical abilities give her the edge in conference play.

"[Malcolm] is probably the strongest post, physically, in the UAA, and she's just continuing to work as hard as she can," Simon said.

Simon expects Capra to garner greater attention from opposing defenses after her breakout season.

"For [Capra], now she is known, which is the hardest thing to adjust to," Simon said. "So now it's just a matter of what teams are going to try to take away from her and how she will adjust."

Captains Amanda DeMartino '06 and Christine Clancy '06, as well as Alison Chase '07, will join Malcolm and Capra to form the starting lineup. DeMartino, an Honorable Mention All-UAA who took the helm as point guard last season and leads the team in assists, is already a tested leader, while Chase is a newcomer to the Judges' starting lineup. Clancy, a center, was a second team All-UAA selection last season.

Despite experienced starters, the Judges have a significantly more youthful team than last season and will be looking to the rookies to contribute.

"The [chemistry] is very different from last year, but it's coming along," Capra said. "The [first-years] have definitely stepped in, and they are stepping up and playing well."

"We are lacking in experience in some ways," Clancy said. "But in order to have a successful season we need our freshmen to step up."

DeMartino agreed that the first-years

"I was a little worried about the team chemistry this year because you never know what to expect," DeMartino said. "But I think that the chemistry is really great. I think that our freshmen need to get used to playing college basketball, but they can do a lot of big things for us and really help us out."

The Judges come into the season ranked No. 8 in the D3Hoops.com preseason Top 25 poll. Still, players are focused on the fundamentals.

"Defense and boxing out are two things that will get us where we really need to be, and we need to work on those," DeMartino said.

With only nine losses over the past two seasons and back-to-back ECAC Championship titles, the Judges are still hungry for an NCAA bid. Last season, the Judges were ranked as high as No. 3 in the nation before a string of late-season conference losses knocked them out of contention. Simon acknowledged the team's frustration in missing out on the tournament last season.

"It was a disappointment last year," she said. "It's always our goal to make and win the tournament."

If the Judges hope to reach the Big Dance this year, they will have to win consistently during challenging regional games and an even more grueling conference schedule.

"We want to go undefeated in non-conference games," Capra said. "Last year we beat [non-conference opponents] very easily, but this year I know it's going to be more of a challenge with a harder schedule."

The team opens the season with the annual Tip-Off Tournament, hosted by Brandeis. The Judges will take on Salve Regina College on Friday at 6 p.m. in the first round.

Editors Note: Kiersten Holgash '08, pictured on the right in the top left picture of this page wearing No. 13, is a staff writer for the Justice.