LORETTO, Pa. (June 25, 2010) – The Saint Francis women’s basketball team will open defense of its 2010 Northeast Conference championship by playing Toledo in the Preseason Women’s National Invitation Tournament, which recently announced its pairings.

The Red Flash were selected to the 16-team invitation only 2010 Preseason Women’s WNIT after winnings its Northeast Conference record 10^th league title, earning an automatic spot into the NCAA Tournament. Head coach Susan Robinson Fruchtl has taken Saint Francis from last in the Northeast Conference (2007-08) to the league’s championship game (2008-09) to the NEC Tournament title (2009-10) in her three seasons in Loretto.

SFU’s first-round Preseason WNIT contest, and 2010-11 season opener, will be played at 7 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 12, at Toledo. The Rockets return three starters to a team that finished 25-9, won the Mid-American Conference West Division title, and advanced into the postseason WNIT. Toledo will open next season with a 13-game home winning streak.

“We are thrilled to be playing in this year’s preseason WNIT,” Robinson Fruchtl said. “To be one of 16 teams invited is an honor for our university and program. Playing Toledo will be a really good challenge to start the season. They are a tough MAC team and we think it will be a great match-up. We will prepare diligently for the WNIT so we can represent the NEC well. It will be such an exciting way to begin our season for our team, our university, and our fans!”

The winner of the Red Flash-Rockets clash will face the Purdue-Austin Peay victor in the second round, at a site to be determined, on the following Sunday or Monday, Nov. 14-15.

The Preseason WNIT features a three-game guarantee format. The event opens Nov. 12-13 with first-round games. Second-round games will be played Nov. 14-15; semifinals will be Nov. 17-18; and the championship is set for Sunday, Nov. 21. Teams that lose in the first two rounds will play consolation games on the second weekend, Nov. 19-20. All games are hosted by participating schools, and sites are announced by the end of the preceding round.

In last year’s Preseason WNIT, Saint Francis’ first round NCAA opponent, Ohio State, defeated Oklahoma State, 93-72.

The remainder of the Saint Francis women’s basketball schedule will be announced soon.