Familiarity is expected to play a big part in the Riverside Brookfield girls basketball team’s success this season. A trio of tight knit, three-sport stars returns for the Bulldogs in seniors Rachel Buccieri, Fallon Ryan and Regan Riley.
“We play three sports together and have really good chemistry,” said Buccieri, the reigning basketball Most Valuable Player of the Metro Suburban Conference. “I think we have a good connection because we’re with each other every day all year long.”
Ryan, a 6-foot-1-inch center, averaged 12.8 points and eight rebounds per game last season for RB, while the playmaking Buccieri posted nine points and four assists per contest. Riley is an athletic forward who offers a solid floor game. All three returning starters earned all-conference recognition in 2007.
Juniors Jessie Hutchens and Aneysha Klingler round out coach Larry Rocco’s starting five.
“We’re going to run and push the basketball like we always have,” Rocco said. “Depending on who are opponent is we will either play zone or man-to-man defense. I think our players have improved greatly from where they were a year ago, so we’ll go from there.”
Juniors Emily Chapman and Shaquita Slater, valuable reserves last season, return to headline a deep bench that also includes forward/center Kiera Mallett and versatile guards Anna Tess, Kristy Frampton, Kristin Kleinmeyer and Ashley Lozano. Even promising sophomore center Kelsey Egger accentuated RB’s bench with a couple of excellent defensive plays against Ryan during the Bulldogs’ recent Blue-White scrimmage.
“I have a lot of faith in our team this year,” Chapman said. “I see us being better this season. We hustle, we work hard, and we’re aggressive.”
Along with their up-tempo style, RB can pound the ball inside to the talented tandem of Ryan and Slater.
“We feel we have two excellent post players in Fallon and Shaquita,” Rocco said. “We know they are going to be a presence inside and play hard.”
The only setback for the expectation-filled Bulldogs is an untimely injury to senior Molly McCloskey. The sharp-shooting guard is scheduled to have knee surgery on Nov. 24. McCloskey’s anticipated return ranges from 2-10 weeks.
“Molly is a big loss for us,” Rocco said. “At the end of the summer, she was playing great basketball for us. It’s a tough loss for our team because every aspect of her game is solid.”
Bolstered by their strong 18-10 campaign last season, the Bulldogs are the prohibitive favorite in the Metro Suburban Conference. Elmwood Park may provide RB its stiffest competition and Ridgewood features outstanding scoring guard Melissa Vitale.
“I think Elmwood Park won the freshman and sophomore levels [last year] so they’ll be competitive,” Rocco added. “Fenton has several of their key players back and Ridgewood has a great player (Vitale).”
Riverside Brookfield opens the season at home Thursday against Addison Trail.