Patriot freshman Daniella Ranielli (2) passes off to teammate Ava Callahan (13). Ranielli tossed in 14 points in the game.
Tony Callaio | For Sunday Dispatch
Pittston Area thrived with the best two players in Wyoming Valley Conference Division 1 girls basketball the past two seasons.
Now, the defending champion Lady Patriots will see how they get by with just one.
Junior point guard Daniella Ranieli returns after earning all-state honors while Pittston Area was winning a District 2 Class 5A championship and a first-round Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association state tournament game.
Ranieli and Kallie Booth each earned post-season recognition as the top player in WVC Division 1 in their two seasons while running the floor together at Pittston Area. Although Ranieli and Booth could best be described as a backcourt combination, Booth was also largely responsible for the Lady Patriots often managing to outrebound opponents despite frequently being the smaller team.
Pittston Area will again go with a short lineup and will need to find a way to repeat that success on the boards if it is to come close to the results produced in recent seasons.
Ranieli brings the team a weapon in transition, as a scorer and as a point guard who keeps the low-turnover offense running efficiently. The only WVC girls player recognized by Pennsylvania sports writers in all-state selections last season, she made the third team in Class 5A after averaging a team-high 16.3 points, along with 4.9 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.5 steals.
“Daniella’s been great for us obviously since she’s arrived as a freshman,” Pittston Area coach Jeff Gregory said. “We expect her to grow, continue to improve even more and basically to lead our team.”
Ranieli shot 49 percent on 2-point attempts, 35 percent from 3-point range and 76 percent from the foul line last season.
“She has big-time experience in big games,” Gregory said. “We’re going to expect her to lead and we’re going to have to find some pieces around her.”
Maddie Karp also returns to the starting lineup while Grace Callahan and Rowan Lazevnick are back after being the first two players off the bench last season when the Lady Patriots went 13-1 while winning the division by four games.
At 5-foot-7, Callahan will, at times, be the tallest player on the court.
Sophomores Lili Hintze and Giuliana Latona, a 5-8 forward, are trying to work their way into the lineup.
Ella O’Brien, a junior who is also 5-8, also has some experience as a post player.
After going 25-3 last season with three senior starters – Booth, Ava Callahan and Taylor Baiera – the team has just three seniors on the roster, Lazevnick and sisters Kaitlin and Abigail Chernouskas.
“We’re going to try to continue to play to our strengths,” Gregory said. “ … Scrimmages will be important for us to see what pieces are going to fit, building things around Daniella.
“We’re still trying to work our way through what we have and what can be successful with the personnel we have.
“It’s going to be a little bit different without having Kallie, Ava and Taylor. They were pretty much staples over the past three years her.”
The Lady Patriots open the schedule Saturday at home with a 3:15 non-league game against Delaware Valley. The only change in the schedule this season is playing Wyoming Seminary in a non-league game instead of West Scranton.
