Hampton: The past two seasons, no WPIAL Class AAA team has lost fewer games than the Talbots (eight). Several seniors graduated, but Hampton figures to be in the race for the crown in a section that was hit hard by graduation.

Mars: The Planets will be without P-G Fabulous Five selection Lily Grenci, who is playing at Siena, and three other seniors. Senior guard Ashley Lynch, junior guard Alexa Lee and junior forward Elaine Hasek were the top underclassmen last season.

Kittanning: Three of the Wildcats' top players -- guard/forward Leah McKelvey, point guard Brittany Adams and forward Sara Ohm -- were sophomores last season.

Knoch: Rob Greenleaf left section rival Franklin Regional to take over as coach of the Knights this summer and has a senior-heavy roster to work with.

Franklin Regional: Former Jeannette boys' coach Rick Klimchock takes over a team that went 4-17 last season but is what he believes to be deep and experienced enough to make a run at the postseason.

Highlands: The Golden Rams return senior guard Sidney Grabigel and junior forward Abby Hetrick as starters.

Valley: The Vikings have gone 3-40 the past two seasons and are a combined 9-59 in section play the past five seasons.

New Castle: The defending WPIAL champions are ranked No. 1 by the Post-Gazette to start this season, thanks largely to junior forward LaShauna Brothers and sophomore guard Kaylynn Waters, who combined to score an average of 24 ppg last season.

Hopewell: The Vikings also figure to be title contenders, with each of their top three scorers from last season's 16-8 team back as senior guards -- Elise Farris (15 ppg), Paige Alviani (14.1) and Amanda Tocci (8.6).

Ambridge: Five starters return from a team that went 15-9 last season, including juniors Precious McCracken and Erin Smith, who each averaged 12 points and eight rebounds. Senior forward Courtney Parisi and junior guards Kayla Haslett and Sam Santiago each averaged between 8-10 points.

Blackhawk: Coach Steve Lodovico returns four starters and seven letter-winners from a team that qualified for the playoffs, including 5-8 junior guard Alexa Hayward, whom he calls "one of the best guards in the WPIAL." She averaged 15 points and five rebounds per game last season.

Center: The Trojans must replace all five starters from a team that lost eight of its final 11 games.

Ellwood City: The Wolverines haven't won a section game since 2001-02.

Indiana: The Little Indians lost only one game against WPIAL Class AAA competition (to West Mifflin in the semifinals) in advancing to the PIAA quarterfinals last season, when guard Tiara Stossel and forward Aubree Frye were juniors.

Uniontown: Kelsey Sleighter, a 5-6 guard, was one of the top-scoring sophomores in the WPIAL last season (16.5 ppg) and most of the rest of the Red Raiders' primary contributors were juniors.

Mount Pleasant: Senior Shelby Way was voted the section's top player by its coaches last season, averaging 13.7 ppg. Junior forward Nicole Malara is coming off a season in which she had 12.7 ppg and 7.9 rebounds per contest.

Laurel Highlands: The Mustangs welcome back all-section honoree Taylor Mathers, a 6-1 senior center who averaged 15 ppg last season.

Greensburg Salem: Versatile 5-10 senior guard/forward Emily Craig averaged 16.4 points, 5.2 rebounds and 4.1 steals per game last season.

Derry: The Trojans' top three scorers from last season were underclassmen -- senior guard Tiffanni Downey (12 ppg), junior guard Maria Slezak (11 ppg) and junior forward Kelley McBroom (6 ppg).

Southmoreland: The Scotties went 1-11 in the section last season; 8-2 outside of it.

Chartiers Valley: Seniors Paige Aleski, a 5-5 guard, and Erica Restich, a 5-10 guard/forward, figure to be a dynamic enough duo to make the Colts a force again. Chartiers Valley has made the playoffs eight consecutive seasons.

West Mifflin: First-year coach Mindy McClelland takes over a team that was a WPIAL finalist last season and has similar aspirations this year. Senior forward Jessica Pitts was an all-section pick last season when she averaged 14 points and 11 rebounds.

Montour: The Spartans' top two players last season were sophomores, guards Meghan Mastroianni (14.9 ppg) and Marina Scarantino (11 ppg).

West Allegheny: The Indians must replace the 17.1 points per game that All-Class AAA selection Michelle Walker provided. Seniors Brianna Bayly and Hilary Liwosz will do their part trying.

South Park: Senior Laurel Lindsay was named to the all-section team last season after averaging 15 points, 6.4 rebounds and 4 assists per game.

Keystone Oaks: The Golden Eagles haven't had a winning season since 2001-02 and lost nine of their final 11 games last season.

Steel Valley: The Ironmen went winless in section play last season and closed out the campaign on an 11-game losing streak.

Thomas Jefferson: The Jaguars might be the best of a mediocre section. They went 9-1 in section play last season but 3-10 outside of it. Senior guard Skylar Williams is coming off a season in which she averaged about 8 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists.

Belle Vernon: Coach Tim Keefer already led the Oliver football team to the City League championship game and now has four senior returning starters to aid in his quest to take the Leopards to great heights as well.

McGuffey: The Highlanders had their first non-losing season (12-12) and playoff victory (39-37 against Kittanning in the preliminary round) of the decade last season and figure to return senior guard Marissa Pattison (13.3 ppg last season) to continue that momentum.

Elizabeth Forward: The Warriors were co-section champions last season and have made the postseason four years in a row but must replace virtually their entire offense.

Yough: The Cougars made the playoffs and won a postseason game last season to bounce back from a three-year stretch in which they went 13-58.

Waynesburg: The Raiders have not won a section game since 2006 and haven't qualified for the playoffs since 2003-04.

Paige Aleski, Chartiers Valley, 5-5, Sr., Guard

Paige Alviani, Hopewell, 5-8, Sr., Guard

LaShauna Brothers, New Castle, 5-9, Jr., Forward

Elise Farris, Hopewell, 5-7, Sr., Guard

Alexa Hayward, Blackhawk, 5-8, Jr., Guard

Laurel Lindsay, South Park, 5-11, Sr., Guard/Forward

Precious McCracken, Ambridge, 5-10, Jr., Guard/Forward

Jessica Pitts, West Mifflin, 5-8, Sr., Forward

Erica Restich, Chartiers Valley, 5-10, Sr., Guard/Forward

Tiara Stossel, Indiana, 5-7, Sr., Guard

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