ANDERSON, S.C. -- With the top three scorers returning and the addition of four players 6-foot-1 or taller, Anderson College women's basketball head coach Kevin Pederson has high expectations for the 2003-04 season. "The talent on this team has definitely improved from last year," Pederson said. "We believe it's the best talent the four-year program at this school has ever had. We really addressed our needs. We've added size, we've added depth, and we've added another quality guard." The Lady Trojans open the 2003-04 season Friday at Coastal Carolina in Conway. The game will start at 8 p.m. This year's team will revolve around three of the best guards in the Carolinas-Virginia Athletic Conference - Leann Segers (So., 5-8, Hartwell, Ga.), Deanna Thompson (Jr., 5-5, Summerville, S.C.), and Decole Shoemate (Sr., 5-11, Beaufort, S.C.) Segers, the 2002-03 CVAC Freshman of the Year, led AC in scoring last season at 16.4 points per game. She was fifth in the nation in 3-point goals per game (2.9) and 11th in the nation in 3-point field-goal percentage (42.7). She made five or more 3-point goals in seven games and scored 20 or more points in a single game 12 times. Thompson was one of the top rebounders in the CVAC at 9.7 per game. She grabbed 10 or more rebounds in 13 games and ended the season with double-digit rebounds in the last five games. She also averaged 11.6 points, 4.6 assists, and 2.3 steals per game. Shoemate, who suffered a season-ending knee injury against Pfeiffer on Mar. 1, averaged 14.9 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 3.3 assists per game in her first season with the Lady Trojans after transferring from Florida International. "Everybody has an opinion concerning who our best player is," Pederson said. "I think the consensus is that Leann is our most talented player, and Deanna is our most valuable player. Leann is going to see the other team's best defender every game. If you don't guard her, she can really hurt you from behind the 3-point line. Deanna makes this team go. We're moving her to the wing, so she can rebound easier and not have as much pressure on her. "The guards are definitely the strength of this team until we prove otherwise. We hope to be a little more balanced between the guards and the posts this year. Last year, more than 80 percent of our scoring came from our guards. We really hope to be closer to 50-50 this year. We want the ball going inside." In addition to the dangerous trio of guards, three more experienced players return to the roster - Nicole Beasley (Jr., 5-7, Easley, S.C.), Shemika Reed (5-10, Jr., Commerce, Ga.,), and Michelle Trewartha (So., 5-10, Kingswood, Australia). Reed averaged 6.6 points and 5.5 rebounds in 22 minutes per game last season, while Trewartha averaged 6.1 points and 2.4 rebounds in 17 minutes per game. Beasley is out until January because of a fracture in her left foot. To beef up the inside game, Pederson signed four players 6-1 or taller - Kim Hausman (Fr., 6-3, Watkinsville, Ga.), Stephanie Ponds (Fr., 6-2, Bethune, S.C.), Catie Cornett (Fr., 6-2, Piedmont, S.C.), and Kimberly Williams (Fr., 6-1, Chesnee, S.C.). "We feel like we got what we wanted," Pederson said. "We got some size with some skill. Hausman can shoot the ball from the wing. Ponds is a fantastic offensive rebounder. Cornett can shoot the ball and score with her back to the basket. Williams is quick and plays great defense." Because of the increased size on the floor, Pederson expects to make an adjustment is AC's fast-paced offense, which finished 13th in the nation at 77.3 points per game. "It's going to be a little bit slower, but we still want to attack on offense," he said. "We want our guards to push the ball and go from there. The posts need to establish an inside presence. We're going to push it. We want to play like we did last year except we want to be a better defensive team. When people drive past our guards and run into a couple of 6-1s and 6-2s, it's going to make us a better defensive team and a better rebounding team." AC finished last season with a school-record 17 victories and finished fifth in the CVAC standings with a 13-7 league mark. "Our goal was to the finish in the top four last year, but we've got to move ahead," Pederson said. "We've come a long way in a year and a half. We're proud of this team and the progress they've made. With the recruiting we've done, we believe we have established a program that is going to be around for the long term to compete. The long-term goal is a conference championship. We tell the team all the time that we're nobody until we win a conference championship." The women's CVAC race should be a little more open this season with the departure of defending champion Longwood to Division I. "Longwood is gone and Pfeiffer lost a lot, including their head coach," Pederson said. "We play everybody twice this year. We really stand to benefit from that. We fall in the mix with Lees-McRae, Coker, Queens, Barton, and Belmont Abbey. We're not overlooking anybody."