On the wall of the Recreation and Athletic Center gymnasium, the banners tell the history of the St. Edward's women's basketball team:
 
St. Edward's has seven national tournament appearances in the NAIA and NCAA and ten conference championships combined through the Big State, Heart of Texas, and Heartland Conference marks where the Hilltoppers have been. 
 
In good times and bad, the St. Edward's women's basketball program's North Star has always been a culture carried through different generations of Hilltoppers, from head coach J.J. Riehl's time playing in the late 90s to assistant Khiani Clark and graduate assistant Shakera Barnes in 2017. 
 
"The first thing is our culture. It's about our love for our journey, each other, and the process to get there. The biggest emphasis is getting back to our vision, who we are, and what we believe in," Riehl explains. "The next thing is challenging ourselves, ensuring we're obtaining the goals for each day, and, finally, how we handle early adversity." 
 
St. Edward's faced a lot of adversity last season when the Hilltoppers lost two guards before the season and sustained more injuries later. 
 
"Last year, it felt like we were scrambling to pick up the pieces, and we didn't always do a good job early. Some things should've only set us back a day that lasted a few days," Riehl says. "We don't have that right now. We know who we are, and we have a great mix of returners who understand the grind and our expectations and newcomers who bring the youth and exuberance you don't always get with older transfers." 
 
Co-Captains RONNIE CANTU and JAYDA RUFFUS-MILNER have set the tone, working off the foundations they helped establish last year. 
 
Cantu is a senior guard who has spent her entire collegiate career at the Hilltop, stepping into the starting point guard spot when injuries struck St. Edward's backcourt and growing into the position throughout the year. The 5-foot-4 guard settled the Hilltoppers on and off the court while hitting multiple clutch shots throughout the year to help St. Edward's earn a spot in the LSC Tournament. 
 
Ruffus-Milner was a graduate transfer who emerged as a go-to scorer at the elbow, short corner, and transition while also providing shutdown defense on the wing. Both are also the most likely to be found leading workouts on the court or bringing teammates to other events on campus. 
 
"Ronnie and Jayda are a tremendous balance for each other. Jayda is a magnet with her energy, and Ronnie has been with us for four years. She understands who we are and where we come from and brings a different level of toughness that comes with being an undersized guard," Riehl says. "The two of them did a tremendous job this summer of organizing weekly zooms, making sure people were working out, and making sure that even though we were spread out all across the world this summer, there were no gaps in our relationships so when everyone returned, we were ready to go after it. They're both uniters who build bridges and are passionate about ensuring St. Edward's women's basketball continues our visibility on campus." 
 
The team graduated leading scorer MORGAN GARY and SAMMIE DUFEK, the program's all-time career leader in blocked shots, and sweet-shooting reserve MATILDA SORIC. However, the framework of the defensive identity the team established last year, pressuring opponents and swarming the ball with Cantu, Ruffus-Milner, and pickpocket LAUREN CATHERMAN, remains intact. 
 
Filling in the gaps are AINSLEY THUNELL, a 6-foot forward with a burgeoning shooting stroke and a knack for being in the right place on both ends of the court, and transfers CELISE BOBBITT and ABBEY MORTON, who both add experience, size, and versatility. 
 
"Our defense has always been our identity and how we look to win games, and I think we're a better defensive team," Riehl says. "Our bread-and-butter is always going to be man-to-man and extending it full court, but we've been working on a couple of presses and trying to get our zones where we trust them more and make other teams try to prepare more." 
 
Offensively, some of the cornerstones are in place. However, the framework is still being worked out with a few newcomers, returning players in expanded roles, or injured players expected to make their returns at some point this season. Still, the coaching staff is encouraged by a roster of well-rounded players who can play off-script. 
 
"We're more versatile this year. We have more people who can get to the rim and make an open shot. Obviously, we're going to put people in a position to be more successful at the spots on the floor that suit them, but overall, it's easier for us with the pieces we have just to play basketball and not script everything," Riehl explains. "Everything was scripted last year, and scoring was sometimes stressful. I'm sure there will be stressful times like that this year, but we have a team that can go out and find the open man, attack the open gap, and take the stress off not having to call sets every time." 
 
First-year guard JANIAH PERKINS is a shifty scorer who sees the floor well, REBEKA RENCZES is a steady playmaker working her way back from injury, and ADDIE MCCORMICK brings defensive energy and shooting. BAILEY FEATHERSTONE, a strong, physical forward with a pull-up midrange game, and returner MIKAH CHAPMAN will have opportunities to compete for time at the three spot while ISABEL LANGENBERG works her way back from a season-ending injury sustained last year. 
 
In the frontcourt, Morton and Bobbitt can space the floor or crash inside, Thunell can space and fit in the quicker defensive schemes established last year, and BELLA MUSCOREIL and DAFNE GIANESINI adding different skill sets, with Muscoreil able to work in the low post and Gianesini spacing and cutting. 
 
"The biggest thing this group gives us is depth. People are competing at every spot, and that hasn't always been the case," Riehl says. "When you have an environment where you have to compete every day whether you were all-conference or a three-year starter, that gets you ready to come in and work every day." 
 
Culture remains the North Star guiding this program along this journey, but the coaching staff believes the program is back to a place to start placing some landmarks on those RAC banners.
 
"This is the first time in a while that a successful season is about wins and losses," Riehl declares. "For this team, a successful year is having a winning season, competing at a high level in conference, and figuring out how to get to a national tournament again. Those are the expectations, and that's how the kids have come to work every day."