Photo courtesy Morey Hershgordon
By: Josh Silverman
Improvement of Maria Napolitano
What an improvement for the senior captain. On Senior night, she had one of her best performances of the year, shooting five-for-seven from three. “I was pretty emotional before the game. I was just trying to stay relaxed. The game was more important than senior day.” She didn’t start the year off the way she had hoped. Her low point came against Manhattan on Dec. 6 when she went two-for-13 from the field. Her defensive play has been strong all year. “In my opinion the defensive player of the year,” Tricia Fabbri said. But even she knew her offensive play needed work. Ever since playing Saint Peters on Valentine’s Day, her shooting has been tremendous. In the five game span, she’s shot 43 percent from the floor and 50 percent from the three. Her performances have helped Quinnipiac beat top teams in Marist and Fairfield, but it can’t stop there. She will need her biggest performance of the year if Quinnipiac will beat Iona Sunday afternoon for the MAAC regular season championship.
Shooting the Long Ball
With the exception of Aryn McClure, every member of this team can shoot from anywhere on the court. Forwards Paula Strautmane and Morgan Manz hold the best three-point percentage of anyone on the team, respectively. Going down the roster, players like Adily Martucci and Brittany Johnson can shoot the three as well as pull up for a jump shot. This was put on display Friday night and a big reason why Quinnipiac put up 83 points against one of the best defenses in the MAAC. Six different Bobcats made a 3-pointer and they shot 45 percent from deep as a team. It’s what makes them so deadly and gives them the ability to play so many players. They need this to carry over against Iona and into the MAAC tournament.
Crashing the Glass
The team has some great rebounders. Freshman standouts Aryn McClure and Paula Strautmane are both in the top 10 in the MAAC in terms of offensive rebounding and McClure is in the top 10 in defensive rebounds. Friday, the duo combined for 17 rebounds against Fairfield, include seven on offense. Fabbri was impressed with the energy Strautmane started the game. “Paula came out so tenacious and set the tone.” Strautmane has more offensive rebounds (79) than defensive (78) on the year, which has helped Quinnipiac score so many points. Facing potential MAAC player of the year Joy Adams, Quinnipiac will need to contain her (12.3 rebounds per game) and not let her take over the game.
