A host of returning players will provide a solid foundation for the Crimson this year.

In 2009-10, the Harvard women’s basketball team finished its season with a 20-9 overall record while going 11-3 in league play.  With that record, the Crimson earned a second-place finish behind Princeton in the Ivy League standings, sending the team to its second consecutive Women’s National Invitation Tournament berth.

Unfortunately for Harvard, the young Crimson team’s postseason run ended quickly with an 87-68 loss to Syracuse in the first round of the WNIT.

After back-to-back second-place finishes in the Ivy League, Harvard looks to improve upon last year’s solid season and earn its 12th Ivy League title, which would be the team’s first since the Crimson earned a share of the crown in 2008.

“Our main goal is always to win an Ivy League championship,” co-captain Christine Matera says. “We’re taking the season one game at a time, and hopefully it will lead us to that.”

Encouraged by last season, Harvard is optimistic about the coming winter.

“Preseason has been going well so far,” Matera says. “We have focused a lot on rebounding and the defensive end of things. Our scrimmages have gone well, so everyone is really excited for [the start of the season].”

Because last year’s Crimson team did not have any seniors, Harvard boasts the return of 12 seasoned veterans, who will be aided by a strong class of four incoming freshmen for the 2010-11 campaign.

“It’s definitely a positive for our team to have everyone coming back,” junior guard Brogan Berry says. “Last year, we were still very young and trying to learn each other’s strengths…We’re a bit stronger now. We know each other’s roles better, and the four freshmen we have are fitting in nicely.”

Included in the long list of returners for the Crimson are three All-Ivy selections: Berry, sophomore guard Victoria Lippert, and senior forward Emma Markley. Sophomore guard Jasmine Evans, who missed last season due to injury, is now healthy and should add speed and athleticism to the Harvard lineup.

The Crimson had a deep bench last year, with nine different players scoring at least 90 points on the season. The team claimed the top spot in the Ivy League in three-point field-goal percentage, free-throw percentage, blocks, assists, and three-point field goals made.

But as solid as Harvard looks, the Crimson is not the only team that will return a strong nucleus of players for the upcoming season.

The Tigers, who are favored to defend last year’s title with another first-place finish, also return all five starters, including sophomore guard Niveen Rasheed, who was named Ivy League Rookie of the Year last season.

“In the Ivy League, we’re looking at Princeton as some tough competition,” Matera says. “They went undefeated in the league last year. They’re coming off of a great season and have everyone back, so we’re really looking to go out and try to beat them.”

In the 2010-11 Ivy League Women’s Basketball Preseason Media/SID poll, Harvard was picked to finish the season in second place for the third straight year.

Two of the Crimson’s three league losses last year came against the Tigers, while Dartmouth—a team looking to return as a contender this season—split games with Harvard.

Though ranked seventh in the Ivy League in points allowed, the Crimson dominated in scoring with Berry, Lippert, Matera, and Markley each averaging more than 10 points per game.

Harvard played especially well with homecourt advantage, winning 12 contests and losing just one at Lavietes Pavilion.

Though Ivy League play does not begin until January, the Crimson starts off its season tomorrow at Maine. Before Harvard meets the Big Green in its first league game, the Crimson will have to take on a tough non-conference schedule that includes six teams involved in postseason play last year.

“It’s important to play teams that challenge us to get some good experience,” Berry says. “You only get one, two bad games, and you’re out of the Ivy League run, so it’s crucial that you have a hard non-conference schedule to prepare you.”

—Staff writer Catherine E. Coppinger can be reached at ccoppinger@college.harvard.edu.