SMU women’s basketball coach Rhonda Rompola speaks to the team during their game against Rice. KEVIN TODORA/The Daily Campus

SMU women’s basketball team will take on the Loyola Marymount Lions in their first official game of the 2009-10 season. The game will take place in Moody Coliseum Friday night at 5:30.

The Mustangs participated in an exhibition game earlier this week against Abilene Christian and won 74-47. LMU and SMU have not played in recent seasons. During the 2008-2009 season, the Lions finished with a record of 18-12 overall and a conference record of 7-7, while SMU had an overall record of 20-12 and a Conference USA record of 12-4. LMU also won their exhibition game versus The Master’s College on Nov. 6. The final score was 87-67.

Despite the potential strength of the LMU team, SMU head coach Rhonda Rompola is confident in the abilities of her team.

“We are a mature team and I expect us to play with the intensity of a mature team,” she said.

Only three freshmen were added to the team this year: Jasmine Davis, Alisha Filmore and Sarah Shelton. This year’s playing seniors and captains are: Brittney Gilliam, Jillian Samuels and Alice Severin. Delisha Wills tore her ACL and will be redshirted until next season. Brittney Gilliam was named to the women’s basketball Pre-Season All-Conference USA Team earlier this season.

According to Rompola, another leader on the team will be sophomore post Christine Elliott. Elliott was named to the C-USA All-Freshman Team during the previous season. During the Abilene Christian game, Elliott earned 13 points for the Mustangs and led several scoring runs throughout the night.

“If we can communicate, we can find success,” Rompola said when questioned about her concerns for the season. “I wish I could send out a text message during halftime. … I know they [the team] pay attention to those.”

The Mustangs’ home court kickoff will be followed by another home game against the Arkansas University Razorbacks Nov. 18 at 7 p.m.