"We got a lot of good kids back.  But we lost a lot of really good kids," said the 18-year coach who added a fourth title to his already sterling resume last March when his Lady Hawks beat top-ranked Africentric 44-37 in the Division IV state championship.

Hiland will certainly miss Jena Stutzman (now at Kent State), who became the program's most prolific player a year ago, scoring 451 points in her final season and eclipsing Lindsay Stuckey on the all-time career scoring list with 1,645 points (Stuckey had 1,627).  Stutzman scored 10 points as the Lady Hawks, ranked No. 2 in the final Associated Press poll, went on a 24-0 run bridging the second and third quarters to dispatch the Nubians and win their third title in four years and fourth in eight.

Aside from Stutzman, Hiland also lost Kristi Yoder (Walsh), Gabby Fowler (Mount Vernon Nazerene), Layla Miller and Rebekah Thomas.  The group accounted for 53.8 percent of the Lady Hawks' offense.

"We found out this summer that we will really miss those seniors," Schlabach said.  "We have a good core back, but we'll really miss that group."

Senior Karli Mast will head up that core group.  Mast scored 9.9 ppg a year ago while hitting 50 percent (109 of 217) of her shots from the floor and a team-best 42 percent (42 of 101) of her shots from 3-point range.

"The great thing about Karli - for our kids - is that she's not blessed with great athleticism:  she's not tall; she can't jump; she's a little slow.  But she's a great basketball player because she's worked so hard at her game," Schlabach said.  "When one of your best players is one of your hardest workers, it makes it really easy as a coach."

Mast will be complemented by junior West Holmes transfer Noelle Yoder, nationally ranked as a sophomore by Collegiate Girls Basketball Report.

Noelle scored 19 points in a 49-46 overtime loss against the Hawks last December, then led the Knights to the Division II regional championship.

"She's a very good player.  She's athletic.  She creates a lot of things.  She can handle the ball.  She can shoot," said Schlabach, rattling off Noelle Yoder's attributes.

Schlabach said Noelle Yoder is blending in nicely with the other Hawks.

"It's been a really good preseason.  She's just as competitive as our other kids.  I don't even think about it, she's just another player on our team," Schlabach said.  "... Just like our freshmen, there is a lot to learn with our Princeton offense and the things that we demand.  And because of that, they will all get better over the course of 20 games as they get more comfortable."

A strong core will surround Mast and Yoder in Hilary Weaver (Jr., 5'7, G, 8.1 ppg, 5 apg): Katelyn Stuckey (Jr., 5'11, G/F, 6.9 ppg, 4 rpg): Mykeila Mast (Jr., 5'7, G, 5.7 ppg, 4.4 rpg): Jessica Stutzman (Jr., 5'7, G): Arrianna Schrock (So., 5'8, F).

The Lady Hawks have a knockout class of rookies in: McKenzie Miller (Fr., 5'8, G): Meagan Hall (Fr., 5'9, G): Melissa Mast (Fr., 5'10, F): Hannah Stoneman (Fr., 6'2, F).

Of the bunch, Miller and Hall are expected to be impact players - right away, Schlabach said.

"They've developed enough skill at this point in time to be able to play at our level," he said.  "They'll step in and play right away."

The Lady Hawks starting five is pretty much up for grabs, Schlabach said, adding "I don't anticipate starting five upperclassmen."

"We would like to mesh in freshmen and sophomores into our starting lineup, so that when we rotate we always have a core on the floor," the 18-year coaching vet continued.  "And we'll play 10 kids a quarter like we always do.  We believe in that philosophy.  We're not ready to do it, but we're going to do it anyway."

And when he says "mesh," he means it; even to the extent of bringing Karli Mast and Hilary Weaver off the bench on certain occasions.

"What we learned this summer is when we started our five upperclassmen, and then rotated in four freshmen, it didn't work very well," Schlabach said.  "So we need to have a mesh... We need to play with different lineups.  We told our kids.  'Don't be surprised opening night.'  We are going to have a little different look than what would be anticipated."

As a whole.  Schlabach said this is a group of "competitors."

"These are kids that have been through the wars.  Most of all, this group is competitive.  They have a tremendous work ethic.  And that's what I appreciate about the group." the Hiland coach said.  "They will be good leaders."