The North Carolina A&T Women’s Basketball team is ready for another successful season.

The Lady Aggies are ready to return this season with a fresh start and a new line up. The team faces this season with star sophomore guard Amber Calvin out with an ACL injury.  

The Lady Aggies also look to rebuild, after losing guard last year seniors, Ta’Wauna “Tweet” Cook and forward Lamona Smalley.

Despite losing key players and an injury that will keep Calvin out for part of the season, head coach Patricia Bibbs seems very confident in her freshmen players.

 “You need to watch all of them,” says Bibbs. “Their credentials are very good on paper but they haven’t played a day of Division I basketball and that’s going to be the key to how they are going to transition.”

The Lady Aggies have seven freshmen and three returning players that include two sophomores. The freshmen players are very excited and eager to play on a team with such a great legacy.

 “Once I start playing it’s like I got it and I know what I’m doing. We’re ready [for the season],” says freshman guard Lamesha Deal.

In the preseason the Lady Aggies look to face tough opponents such as Central Michigan, Clemson, Rutgers, and University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Coach Bibbs believes these preseason games will serve as learning tool for her players.

“Those are the teams that are supposed to help you take care of your conference,” says Bibbs. “We are one of the top mid majors but we have to play the majors to fulfill our schedule.”

One of the Lady Aggies key retuning players, sophomore guard Jaquayla Berry has faith in the team and the seven new freshmen.

 “I think we are ready,” says Berry. “We have a lot of great girls but we still have some things to work on.”

Coach Bibb believes this will be a promising season for the Lady Aggies.

“We are going to take some bumps I know that but they will grow.”

The Lady Aggies finished the 2009-10 season 23-10.

• Sejal Chappell