It would have been easy for the Nutley girls basketball team to chalk this season up as a lost year when its leading scorer, Isabel Riccardi, suffered a season-ending knee injury a month ago.
And while this underclassmen-heavy lineup has had its fair share of growing pains since, the Maroon Raiders have remained largely competitive, while showing more than a few glimpses of a much brighter future.
This past week’s Essex County Tournament run was just the latest example of that. On Thursday, Nutley, seeded 14th, outlasted 19th-seeded Science Park in a double-overtime thriller, 57-52. And while the Raiders’s ECT run ended two days later with a 57-34 loss at a Glen Ridge team currently ranked No. 18 in the state by NJ.com, head coach Tara McNish-Natoli was happy with her team’s performance against one of the state’s best.
“They’re getting a lot of really good experience,” McNish-Natoli said of a starting lineup that now features two freshmen and a sophomore. “Getting that win in double-overtime was a big morale boost and it turned the page on a really bad performance on Tuesday against Caldwelll.
“Then, we actually played really well against Glen Ridge, it’s encouraging, especially with having such a young roster. It helps us moving forward.”
One underclassmen who has particularly blossomed in recent weeks is sophomore forward Kaitlyn Nellegar. Despite standing only 5-foot-8, Nellegar has emerged as one of Essex County’s better young bigs, posting five-straight double-doubles in January.
For the season, Nellegar is averaging 10.4 points and 13.9 rebounds per game, both team highs. Nellegar’s recent play has led to her receiving some double-teams from opposing defenses.
“She’s stepped it up so much and while she’s only about 5-foot-8, she plays like she’s 6-foot-3,” said McNish-Natoli, herself a former college forward at Mount Saint Vincent. “The way rebounds and goes after every ball, it’s all you can ask for as a coach. You can’t teach that kind of grit.”
The other player most impacted by Riccardi’s injury was freshman Gianna Albanese, who has moved into the starting lineup.
Albanese, also 5-foot-8, has the versatility to play on the perimeter, but has found a home in the post. She is now averaging 6.3 points and 10.1 rebounds per game.
Despite being underclassmen, both Nellegar and Albanese have a clear chemistry together and have turned the paint into the strength for the Raiders. The duo combined for 39 points, 30 rebounds and 10 assists in the win over Science Park and 20 points with 15 rebounds against Glen Ridge.
“You would think they’ve played together for a while because they play very well together,” McNish-Natoli said. “They see each other really well and they both have a very high basketball iq.
“They’ve been our offensive spark, which is new for me and Nutley. We’ve always had guards only.”
Senior shooting guard Grace Christie has been a four-year rotation player in the backcourt and is averaging 7.7 points per game while leading the team in 3-pointers (34) and assists (57).
At point guard is Cassey Arroyo, who provided a much needed boost to the backcourt after missing last season.
Freshman Jiana Maldonado is the third guard and has, at times, flashed immense offensive potential, averaging 7.7 points per game with 13 3-pointers made.
Nutley’s youth goes beyond the starting lineup as freshmen guards Ellie Oldak and Madison Heal are the first two off the bench and have both shown to be among the team’s top defensive players right away.
All four freshmen played together on the court for stretches against Glen Ridge and held their own.
Junior Makayla Albert is Nutley’s top reserve at forward. Freshman Sophia DeLanzo and junior Mariah Franqui have also been a source of key minutes off the bench.
Despite being just 8-10, the goal of a home state playoff game is still within reach for this young group as it currently sits ninth in the power point standings for North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3.
That goal starts with a game against Passaic Tech that is scheduled for Feb. 3, followed by a home matchup with Payne Tech on Thursday. After that are a trio of road games with Indian Hills, West Essex and Newark Central.
Learn more about the writer ...
Jason Bernstein | Observer Sports Writer
Jason Bernstein joined The Observer as its sports writer in March 2022, following the retirement of Jim Hague. He has a wealth of sports-writing experience, including for NJ Advance Media (nj.com, The Jersey Journal, The Star-Ledger.)