FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The Indiana Tech women's basketball team opens its regular season on Tuesday when they head to Hammond, Indiana, to face off with T-No. 11 Purdue Calumet before making the trek south to Upland, Indiana, to battle with Taylor on Friday night.
 
Indiana Tech (0-0)
 
Tuesday, Nov. 3, 7 p.m. at T-No. 11 Purdue Calumet (0-0) – Hammond, Indiana (Purdue Calumet Fitness and Recreation Center)
Friday, Nov. 6, 7 p.m. – at Taylor (0-1) – Upland, Indiana (Odle Arena)
 
Following the Warriors: Links to live video and stats for bath games will be available at IndianaTechWarriors.com. You can also follow @INTechWBB and @INTechWarriors on Twitter to catch the action.
 
Head Coach Jessie Biggs: Now in fourth season at the head of Indiana Tech, Jessie Biggs has amassed 44 wins through her first three years, including a 19-13 mark in 2013. That season, Biggs led the Warriors to a 14-7 mark in Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) action and a fourth place finish. The Warriors would defeat Aquinas in the quarterfinals before falling to top seed and No. 2 Davenport in the semifinals. The Northern Iowa alum has had five players on the WHAC All-Academic Team, five WHAC All-Conference selections, two NAIA All-Americans, two NAIA Scholar-Athlete and one WHAC All-Newcomer Team selection.
 
Scouting the Opposition: Purdue Calumet – The Peregrines come into the season tied for 11^th in the NAIA Coaches' Preseason Top 25 Poll after receiving 192 votes, the same as Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) rival Cardinal Stritch. Purdue Calumet is coming off a 21-8 season in 2014-15. Nine players return to ninth-year head coach Tom Megyesi's squad, including NAIA Honorable Mention All-American Jada Buggs. The senior led the Peregrines in scoring (17.4 ppg) and was second on the team in rebounding (6.9 rpg) and also was named First-Team All-CCAC. Second-Team All-CCAC guard Cassidy Deno and Honorable Mention All-CCAC center Patrice McBee are also players to watch. Purdue Calumet is coming off a 94-78 exhibition loss to NCAA Division I foe Valparaiso on Saturday.
 
Taylor – The Trojans fell in their season opener last Saturday to Judson, 74-59. Taylor will square off with Georgetown College on Tuesday in their home opener before welcoming the Warriors on Friday night. Freshman Kendall Bradbury led the Trojans with 20 points on 6-of-19 shooting in the loss while also picking up a game-high nine rebounds. Senior Monica Compton, who missed all of last year with an injury, finished with 15 points and was 3-4 from behind the arc.
 
Series History: Purdue Calumet – This is the second time the Warriors will face off with the Peregrines. Last year in Fort Wayne, Tech fell to the then No. 10 team in the country, 97-83. Baylee Rinehart scored 16 points for the Orange and Black and was 4-5 from behind the arc.
 
Taylor – Tech has gone 2-5 against the Trojans since 2005, most recently losing, 89-74, on Nov. 24, 2012, in Upland.
 
New Rules, Same Game: With the recent changes rule changes in the NCAA, the NAIA has adopted those same rules. Instead of two 20-minute halves, teams will now play four 10-minute quarters. Teams will reach the bonus once its opponents have committed five fouls in a given quarter. 1-and-1 free-throw scenarios have been eliminated in favor of two shots for all common fouls. And teams will now have the option to advance the ball to the frontcourt in the final 59.9 seconds of the game.
 
Stacking Up Against the Competition: The Warriors will take on eight teams who are ranked or receiving votes in the NAIA Coaches' Preseason Top 25 Poll. Along with opening the season against the Peregrines, Tech hosts T-No. 9 Marian in its home opener on Nov. 9 before traveling to No. 2 Davenport on Nov. 14. The Orange and Black travel to No. 17 Huntington on Dec. 19 and hosts crosstown rival and 20^th ranked Saint Francis on Dec. 20. Other WHAC opponents that made the preseason rankings include No. 21 Madonna and Cornerstone.
 
Poll Thoughts: Tech was picked to finish fifth in the WHAC Coaches' Preseason Poll, receiving 83 votes to finish in a tie with Lawrence Tech. The Warriors finished in sixth last season with a mark of 11-11 in the conference.
 
Staying Close to Home: Freshman Kendall Knapke didn't have to look far away when making her college decision. The Heritage High School product decided to stay in Fort Wayne when she signed with the Warriors last winter. The 5'11" forward averaged 10.5 points per game and 5.3 rebounds in her final prep season with the Patriots and is expected to start right away for the Orange and Black.
 
Carving it Up Again: Senior Taylor Carver will look to lead the Warriors again this season after finishing first on the team in points (14.4 ppg) and second in rebounds (6.7). The former Toledo Rocket was named to the WHAC All-Conference Honorable Mention team last season, and the 6'1" forward will look to control the paint with newcomer Kendall Knapke.
 
Hitting their Mark: Junior Taylor Seiss and sophomore Baylee Rinehart both average double digit points last season, 12.7 and 10.9 ppg, respectively, and also led the Warriors in three-point percentage among those returners qualifying. Seiss, who was named to the WHAC All-Conference Honorable Mention squad, shot 34.1% from behind the arc, while Rinehart made her 30.9% of her three point attempts.