ERIE — In the preseason, Ali Goetz was lost among the trees.

A 5-foot-9 freshman on the women’s basketball team at Penn State Behrend and a former standout at Mars as a post player, Goetz found life inside much more challenging at the next level.

As well as much more vertical.

“Going into it, I didn’t expect to play much,” Goetz said. “I was put with the posts for the first month and a half and they were super tall. I just thought, ‘Wow, there’s no way I’m going to see the court.’”

Goetz was giving up three- to four-inches to her fellow teammates inside. The rest of the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference also featured imposing figures in the paint, including Butler grad Mackenzie O’Donnell.

But second-year coach and Grove City College graduate Christine Slater came to Goetz with a bold idea.

Make a switch to guard.

“Ali has a great shot and when I saw how quickly she can get rid of it and how she creates good shots for herself, I knew she would benefit from playing outside,” Slater said. “We have two very strong, 6-foot posts as well, so we created a way to play them all together.”

It took Goetz just two games to crack the starting lineup and she never left, averaging 9.7 points and 4.5 rebounds per game to earn the AMCC Newcomer of the Year Award.

Slater’s juggling of the young talent, which resulted in a 15-12 record and a berth into the ECAC Tournament, earned her the conference’s Coach of the Year award.

“I am beyond proud of this team and what they showed the AMCC this year,” Slater said. “No seniors, two juniors, three sophomores, seven freshmen and a transfer. That is a young team with little experience. But each and every girl decided from day one that we were going to get better every single day.”

Goetz took that approach as well, especially when learning a new position on the fly.

As the season progressed, she became a better shooter and ball handler and was recognized for her play with the newcomer award.

“It was definitely unexpected,” Goetz said. “I’m so grateful. It makes me just look back on all the hard work I put in and that it was worth it.”

Goetz admits there will be more hard work ahead of her.

She shot 34.2 percent from the floor — a number she hopes to raise next season. After attempting very few 3-pointers in high school, Goetz hit 34-of-103 of her shots from behind the arc this season.

Goetz scored 17 points in the first round of the ECAC tournament at Washington & Jefferson College Wednesday night as the Lions nearly upset the Presidents, losing 96-91 in overtime.

Goetz believes the more she shoots, the better she will become.

“It was definitely new to me,” she said. “I never took shots like that at Mars. Once I made the switch, that’s all I did — shoot in practice. I improved my shot as the season went on and I felt more comfortable.

“The hardest part was knowing when to shoot,” she added. “At first, I would get the ball and I just wanted to pass it away. I had to learn to know when to shoot.”

Goetz said that with an entire offseason to hone the skills key to her knew position she will enter her sophomore season as an even more dangerous weapon for the Lions.

“I definitely have things to work on,” Goetz said.

Slater said she has no doubt the reinvention of Ali Goetz will continue to reap dividends.

“I’m extremely excited about what Ali accomplished this year,” Slater said. “And I’m even more excited about the growth that will occur in the offseason since she will have specific things to focus on improving.”