The Merrimack Valley Conference is always among the toughest leagues in MIAA basketball. Last year, after a slow start, Central Catholic emerged as the team to beat.
The Raiders compiled an 18-5 record but won 11 of their final 12 games before falling to Springfield Central in the Division 1 quarterfinals. Head coach Casey Grange expects her team to be right in the mix of top teams again, but after losing nearly half of the roster, she plans to practice patience in the early weeks.
"I would say leadership and defensive intensity were the biggest things we're losing," she said. "We are all gonna have to be patient at the beginning of season to try to find this new team's identity."
Central Catholic does have its top two contributors back, providing a solid foundation. Here's what to expect from the Raiders in 2024-25.
Kerri Finneran is a star of all trades
Few athletes in New England can match Finneran's cross-sport impact. The senior is currently wrapping up her last field hockey season, where she leads one of the best teams in Massachusetts and is one of just three Central Catholic players to surpass 100 career points. On the court, she returns as the Raiders' leading scorer — and she'll be playing lacrosse in college at UMass.
Grange says it typically takes some time for Finneran to settle into a rhythm changing sports, but by Christmas, she's usually back to her best. Her diverse athletic experiences also give her a unique lens to view basketball.
"I think multi-sport athletes in general — the other sports she plays translate really well to basketball," Grange said. "Timing, footwork, cutting, it all helps her, just doing other things (and) using other muscles. When basketball rolls around, she jumps right back in like she hasn't stopped playing, when in reality, she's barely played."
Finneran averaged 13.8 points, 5 rebounds and 2 steals in 2023-24 en route to Merrimack Valley Conference co-MVP honors. Grange has watched Finneran grow into a tough, physical forward, unafraid to battle inside for rebounds and defensive stops. She also processes the game at a high level on offense, another testament to her wiring as a three-sport standout.
"Offensively, she just moves off the ball really well," Grange said. "She reads the defense and what they're giving her, whether she can cut directly to the basket, or if she goes back-door. And again, I think that's a lot from lacrosse, just moving without the ball, cutting at the right time, and her catch and first step is so quick, by the time she catches it, the defender doesn't even realize that she's past her and in for a layup."
Committing to the boards
Finneran's toughness fits in with a pattern Central Catholic has developed over the years: a will to win on the glass. The Raiders typically feature prominent rebounders, such as Ashley Dinges, who was a dominant player for two years before she transferred to Nobles. Rebounds matter to Grange; they're a way for her teams to control possessions and dictate game flow.
"You finish a defensive position by securing the defensive rebound if you don't create a turnover," she said. "We do at least one rebounding drill every single day, and even if it's not a specific rebounding drill, it's still a focus in whatever other drill we're doing. Every rebound is one more possession for us that the other team could have, so it's definitely a priority for us."
Finneran helps on the glass, but senior Aniela Kwo has emerged as the Raiders' leading board-getter and second-best player. Kwo averaged 11 points and 7 rebounds last season, and Grange believes she has another level to reach.
"I told her, her goal this year is to average a double-double," Grange said. "Obviously that's not easy to do, but we're definitely going to need to rely on her more on the offensive end. Defensively, she led us in charges taken, so she's not afraid to sacrifice her body. (She's) super aggressive, and she's been working on her outside shot to improve that part of her game."
Many shoes to fill
Finneran and Kwo are the only incumbent high-usage players, and half the roster will be new following tryouts. Grange emphasized that their four returning guards — Caroline Vient, Addy Beers, Lily Phillips and McKenna Devanney — will all need to grow into larger roles.
"They're all expected to make an impact," she sad. "There's no people coming back that 'might' get minutes. These six are getting minutes, and they're gonna have to produce if we're gonna get to where we want to be."
Among those four, Vient, who committed to play in college at RPI, is a potential breakout name. The 5-foot-7 guard garnered a bunch of Division 3 interest this past AAU season with the Mass Huskies and has worked on pairing a consistent jump shot with her activity on defense.
"She's tough. She gives us a lot on the defensive end, creates a lot of turnovers, and I think she kind of knows her teammates really well and how to set them up for success, and then take advantage of her own opportunities when they're presented," Grange said. "She plays within herself, but by doing that, I think she's gonna have a breakout year, especially if all the attention is on Kerri and Kwo."
