CAMBRIDGE, MA -- After leading the Lynx to a New England Collegiate Conference title in her first season at the helm, head coach Lucia Robinson's 2010-11 schedule features an aggressive non-conference agenda, setting the Lynx up for a competitive, 16-game NECC slate.

"Our strength of schedule is definitely tough," said Robinson, "but if we can gel and take care of the little things, I think we'll definitely be able to steal some games early on to get us ready for conference play and surprise some people."

Her first chance to surprise comes in contest No. 1, when the Lynx play host to reigning Great Northeast Athletic Conference champion Emmanuel College. The Saints will enter the Nicholas Athletic Center at Buckingham, Browne & Nichols in the wake of a fourth straight 20-win season and NCAA Tournament appearance, coming to Cambridge for the Lynx season opener on November 16 at 8 p.m.

From there, Robinson's schedule gets little easier, as Lesley travels to Little East Conference foe Salem State on November 19. In the Salem State Tip-Off Tournament, the Lynx will take on the host Vikings (18-8 in 2009-10) on Friday before Saturday playing either Manhattanville or Bowdoin, which finished 22-7 and advanced to the Regional Semifinals of the NCAA Tournament a season ago.

Robinson's Lynx hit the road again following their two-game hiatus to the North Shore, this time for a string of seven straight true road games, three of them in NECC play. Lesley travels to back-to-back Commonwealth Coast Conference teams, at Colby-Sawyer on November 23 and Eastern Nazarine November 30.

The Lynx open December in league play, traveling to play Newbury on the seventh. A second trip to a Little East gym awaits on Thursday, December 7, as the Lynx venture to UMass-Boston before wrapping up 2010 in a rematch of last season's championship against Elms on December 11. In the 2009-10 NECC Championship on February 27, Lesley knocked off the Blazers in grand fashion, taking the title 76-46 at BB&N's Nicholas Athletic Center.

The Lynx commence 2011 at GNAC opponent Simmons on January 6 and then return to league action on January 13 at Bay Path.

"After winning the conference, we have a huge target on our backs with regards to the NECC," Robinson said.

Finally, after nine consecutive games spanning 59 days, Lesley returns to Cambridge, playing host to the Mountaineers of Southern Vermont College. The game starts a stretch in which 14 of 16 games to close the regular season are conference contests. Robinson's club breaks from NECC play on January 27 to visit Rivier (15-10 in 2009-10) of the GNAC and host the Little East Conference's Plymouth State (17-10 in 2009-10).

"We're ready to start working to defend that title and earn an NCAA bid come October 15th," she added.

Lesley returns two starters from its back-to-back NECC Champion teams, but two sizable pieces, at that. Six-foot-one center Brianne Caira (Pelham, NH/Pelham), who averaged 10.5 points (18th in NECC) on 48 percent shooting (2nd) to go with 8.8 rebounds (6th) and a league-leading 2.5 blocks per game. Helping shoulder the load is fellow senior Kaitlyn Wechsler (Mernick, NY/Our Lady Mercy), who finished fourth in the conference at 14 points per game on 45.6 percent shooting (6th) and 72.3 percent shooting from the free-throw stripe (7th).

Robinson's club opens practice Friday, October 15.