Two games in, the Pandas already notched a victory.

With a balanced scoring attack from junior Reese Power (eight points, five steals), junior Abby Rock (eight points), senior Anna Kane (seven points), sophomore Alyssa Browning (seven points), and junior Gracie Sullivan (six points), Nazareth defeated host Bonner-Prendergast, 49-17. The win on January 4 supplied the perfect New Year’s gift.

Though she (and senior teammate Carly Coleman) finished with 10 points, it was Rullo’s fifth point – a free throw following a successful drive to the hoop and subsequent whistle – that gave the home crowd something to feel good about despite a 45-32 defeat. 

“Needing only five points, it definitely allowed me to push it towards the back of mind and really focus on the game,” said Rullo, who became the 18th female Lion to reach quadruple digits. “I didn’t feel the pressure to make it. I just had the mindset of making it like I do every time I go to the line. It helped that I could get it out of the way early.”

Following outstanding freshman and sophomore seasons, Rullo knew she was close to the rare accomplishment, last achieved in 2022 by Maggie Doogan, who currently stars as a sophomore at Richmond University.

“When I was close, I could tell a little bit, but I think my mom knew and the coaches obviously,” said Rullo. “And then (head coach Chrissie Doogan) told me.”

Coach Doogan knows a thing or two about scoring points.

Before dominating at La Salle University, the 1993 O’Hara grad and current athletic director tallied 1,446 career points – the second most by any O’Hara player, but light years short of 1997 alumna Kristen Clement, the all-time PCL scoring leader with a virtually unbreakable 2,256.

“Scoring 1,000 points is a huge accomplishment at any level, but to do it in your junior year is a testament to Molly’s work ethic and the high standards she sets for herself,” said Doogan. “Molly and my assistant, Alex Leicht, are always asking when the gym is open for extra shooting. I’m happy to see the hard work paying off.”

As much as Rullo appreciates her individual honor, it pales in comparison to her ultimate objective.

“The main reason I went to O’Hara was because of the success and tradition that it had,” said Rullo. “I know by going to O’Hara, you have the chance of going to the Palestra, and that stuff was what I looked into.

In the weekend before taking on O’Hara, the Vikings endured a rare two-game losing streak against non-league opponents. In hindsight, that might have been a blessing in disguise.

“Our girls started off with three really good days of practice to prepare,” said McDonald. “We aired out the weekend losses on Monday, had a day off, and spent Wednesday working on wrinkles in our offense for their defense. Then we spent the last day working on defending their offense and personnel.

“The players were focused all week. Our captains also organized a team pasta party to bring the team together the night before, so they were clearly motivated to respond to a lackluster weekend with energy, focus and togetherness. It showed from the start to the finish of the game.”

Unless something becomes unearthed moving forward, senior Olivia Boccella’s 10 treys (on 14 attempts) in the 59-24 at Archbishop Ryan tied the previous mark of 10 trios swished by current Ryan senior All-Catholic Delaney Finn last year versus Little Flower.

“It was our first PCL game of the season, so everyone had a lot of energy and excitement right when the game started,” said Boccella, who finished with a career-high 36 points. “We came out strong and got up to a pretty early lead. My teammates did an awesome job finding me in open spots, which helped me get my first couple threes very early into the game.

“My shot felt very good that night, so I just kept shooting. As the game went on, my teammates continued to find me for open shots and went crazy whenever I made a shot. Their excitement and confidence in me was super motivating. Making 10 threes that night was awesome, but I would have never been able to do that without the support from my teammates and coaches.”

Crusaders coach Eric Gidney never saw anything quite like it.

“I fully expected for us to play well, but didn’t expect to witness a shooting performance like the one from Olivia,” said Gidney. “It was just amazing to watch. 

“What’s exciting about this team is it could be anyone’s night at any point in the schedule. We have so much balance in the lineup.” 

Senior Lily Milewski (14 points per game), senior Brooke McFadden (10), and senior Brianna McFadden (eight) lead in scoring. McFadden and Milewski average a combined 15 rebounds. Exciting freshman Brianna Jackson has dealt five assists per game. Too, senior standout Mya Aizen has returned from knee surgery and will make her season debut this week.

“We are a work in progress in terms of consistency,” said CE coach Chris Brennan. “We’re very optimistic that the best versions of ourselves are in front of us as the season unfolds.” 

“I think I am more of a small forward/shooting guard,” she said. “One of my strong suits is driving to the basket and also pushing the ball in transition because I am pretty fast. I also am working on my shooting and trying to be able to make little jumpers and threes more.

“I think in the past years before coming to Carroll, I had not been taking as much pride in my defense, but now I am realizing how important defense is and that I’m fast enough to be able to get steals and deflections.”

“This was a great team win for us with each of our girls contributing,” said Bonner-Prendergast assistant coach Sarah Monaghan. “We are looking forward to watching them grow as a team.”

Breaking past Ryan’s full-court press attempt, Donahue got fouled and canned two decisive free throws with seven seconds remaining. She shares Monaghan’s enthusiasm.

That was followed by a 54-14 victory over Little Flower in which senior Sakinah Abdus-Salaam broke out with 11 points, five assists, and three steals while Blake scored 10 and Coleman added nine.

“We still at our core are a very young team that has a ton of room for improvement,” said West Catholic coach Messiah Reames. “These girls are locked in every day and committed to getting better, so I know our future is very bright.

“I look forward to seeing how we continue to develop. Defending and rebounding is the key to our success, and we did that this week.”

Neumann-Goretti jumpstarted its campaign with a 78-33 win over West Catholic behind junior Carryn Easley (23 points, 10 assists), freshman Regina Baker (20 points, three steals), sophomore Kamora Berry (12 points), and junior Amya Scott (10 points).

“The energy on both ends of the floor was great,” said N-G coach Andrea Peterson, whose Saints then defeated St. Hubert’s, 79-41. “Easley and Scott did a really good job of leading the way and preparing our younger players for their first PCL matchup.”