Molloy primed to rebound

A season after injuries claimed three players before the first game, Molloy women’s basketball coach Tim O’Hagan wants the Lady Lions to crank up the dial on defense and challenge for the East Coast Conference title.

“We’re a lot more healthy than we were last season and we’ve been in every game,” O’Hagan said prior to Molloy’s 70-55 victory over Mercy in the ECC opener Dec. 7. “We’ve got some firepower, but our defense needs to get a thousand times better,” he added. “We’ve played a physical brand of defense over the years and need to get back to doing more of the same.”

The offense got a jolt from the addition of guard Amanda Bartlett, a graduate student and transfer from Queens College. The three-time All-ECC First-Team honoree is off to a fast start with the Lady Lions (5-4) with 155 points (17.2 avg.) in nine games. She’s hit 50 of 58 free throws for an 86.2-percent clip. “She’s not only a great all-around player, but also a real competitor who hates to lose,” O’Hagan said.

Junior guard Laura Rivera, who missed last season with a knee injury that required surgery, is running the offense from the point and leading the defense with her tenacity. “She’s the glue that keeps us together,” O’Hagan said. Juniors Ashley Addison and Julia Finlay, and freshman Nicole Arnone have all started at least three games and provide O’Hagan with a good deal of depth in the backcourt.

Sophomore center Jessica DeNicola (11.4 ppg) is coming on strong after being sidetracked by foul trouble in some games, and junior forward Molly Dreyer (22 of 48 shooting, team-high 51 rebounds) is making steady contributions after missing last season with a shoulder injury.

Talented backcourt leads promising Lions 

In search of its first winning record against ECC rivals since the 2005-06 campaign, Molloy’s men’s basketball team will rely heavily on its three-guard backcourt of Jimmy Nolan, John Petrucelli and Matt McLeod to lead the way this season and next.

Nolan, a junior, is averaging 19.5 points through eight games, Petrucelli, a sophomore, has scored at a 15.9-point clip, and McLeod, a freshman, has chipped in 10.0 points, giving coach Charles Marquardt reason for excitement.

“We’ve got a real nice group of guards, and our bigs are starting to play well,” Marquardt said. “We have good chemistry and a good foundation. I don’t know how strong everyone else is going to be, but I’m just concerned with what we do.”

The Lions (3-5 overall) were ranked fifth in the ECC preseason poll, and Marquardt has goals of finishing .500 in conference play as well as overall. “We’re a young team, but we play a smart brand of basketball,” he said. “Our focus is on improved rebounding and assist-to-turnover ratio.”

Beating Mercy, 62-59, in the home opener Dec. 7 behind 19 points from Petrucelli, should bode well for Molloy in the confidence department. “It’s important to get a conference win and also to create an identity of how we’re going to play in our gym,” Marquardt said.

Nolan and Petrucelli, both of whom run the point, are the keys to the Lions’ controlling the tempo. Both are shooting the ball well, and Petrucelli and McLeod are doing a nice job on the boards along with senior forward Dariel Concha.

The 6-foot-7 Concha (7.8 ppg, 5.3 rpg) and 7-foot sophomore center Tyler Hammett start in the post positions, with freshman forward Richard Zoller serving as a top reserve along with junior guard Chris Lyons.