FORT COLLINS, Colo. – The University of Hartford women's basketball team will be making the program's third appearance in the Preseason Women's National Invitational Tournament (WNIT) in 2018, the organization announced on Tuesday.

"We are thrilled to be selected to participate in the Preseason WNIT and to be part of such a strong field," said Director of Athletics Mary Ellen Gillespie. "Our team is working hard after competing for an America East Championship, and our coaching staff has assembled a very strong non-conference schedule that will prepare us to compete in the championship game again this year. This will be an exciting year for Hartford women's basketball."

The Hawks also competed in the Preseason WNIT in the 2006-07 and 2011-12 seasons. In the latter season, Hartford defeated Manhattan and Long Island in the first two rounds before it fell at Notre Dame in the semifinals.

"We are very excited and honored to be invited to participate in this highly-regarded tournament," said head coach Kim McNeill, who enters her third season at the helm of the Hawks in 2018-19. "Our team and staff have worked extremely hard to prepare for this opportunity, and we look forward to the competition and the opportunity to represent our University on a national stage. We appreciate the WNIT for recognizing the growth that Hartford women's basketball has made over the past two years."

This season marks the 25th edition of the Preseason WNIT. Played in November, the event features a three-game guarantee for all teams, with first-round matchups and the bracket to be announced later this spring. Participating schools host all games, while the championship game will be televised on CBS Sports Network.
 
The 2018 Preseason WNIT field is stacked with nine teams that played in the 2018 postseason. Three teams played in the NCAA Tournament (Marquette, Miami and Nicholls State), five were in the WNIT field of 64 (New Mexico, Northern Iowa, Texas State, Delaware and Stephen F. Austin), while Yale, which won the 2018 Women's Basketball Invitational (WBI), is also included in the field.
 
Auburn, Iowa State, Montana State, Morgan State and Niagara round out the 2018 Preseason WNIT field of 16.
 
Despite losing three players to graduation – including a pair of starters – the Hawks bring back a strong core for the 2018-19 campaign. Highlighting the returners is Lindsey Abed, an America East Second Team All-Conference honoree. A rising senior, she led the team in scoring with 13.4 points per game in addition to recording a team-best 124 assists to just 53 turnovers.

Also returning to the mix for Hartford is rising junior Sierra DaCosta and rising sophomore Jade Young. DaCosta missed considerable time with an injury but made a strong return at the end of the season, averaging 9.2 points and 2.4 assists in her final five appearances. An All-Rookie Team selection, Young is coming off a solid rookie campaign that saw her average 7.6 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 26.7 minutes per game.