By Michael Letendre
BRISTOL – Where would the Bristol Central girls basketball squad be without the outstanding play from second year forward Nicole Riemer?
Some sophomores go through the dreaded “sophomore jinx” in terms of on the court struggles after a tremendous freshmen campaign.
Well, those issues are not bothering this warrior as she’s simply improved her play — helping the squad to a 4-2 start in 2023-24.
“She’s a great student, she’s a great kid,” said Central coach Steve Gaudet. “Everything about her exudes greatness.”
Gaudet isn’t lying and after a year where Riemer, who battered and bruised several opponents in the paint, posted 9.3 points-per-game as a freshman, she has nearly doubled that average after the completion of the Bristol Central Holiday Classic.
In six games, Riemer has scored 108 points, good for 18.0 points-per-game.
In the recent holiday tournament, Riemer averaged 24.5 ppg as she established two new career highs in both games.
If there was an MVP award for the tournament, she would have scooped it up.
She has absolutely dominated play on the court and the sophomore athlete is in tremendous shape, playing the entire game against Canton while gobbling up just about every rebound in sight.
Riemer is a throwback, never hitting a scholastic three-pointer (yet) and has scored 330 career points with over two-and-a-half seasons still to play.
Only two players have scored 1,000 points in program history at Central: Karin Przygocki (1066 points) and Lindsay Hermann (1,051).
And if Riemer can stay healthy and improve along the way, there’s every indication she could be a top-five scorer in program history when her career is said and done.
Freshmen guard are in the mix
While the program is waiting for the Brooke Watson to return from injury, a couple players are earning a little extra playing time in her absence.
And the duo of Laylani Cespedes and Olivia Louis have absolutely taken advantage of the opportunity.
Against Canton in the finals of the Bristol Central Holiday Classic, Cespedes was on fire – squaring up a career-high 19 points which included a double-figure scoring tally over a tight fourth period of play.
She’s now averaging 4.8 points-per-game and is a defensive pest on the court.
Same with Louis (3.2 ppg) as she was as feisty as anyone on the court during the two-game tournament.
That zest and determination has energized the program, fueling the team into the month of January.
“They are firecrackers,” said Riemer of the freshmen group. “They work so hard and we are a young team so I think having freshmen [contribute] is [important] to our team.”
Getting early season ‘W’s’ is the key
While this team is still putting all the pieces together, Central is finding ways to win close games.
And Gaudet knows the squad is a work in progress.
However, victories like the one over Canton on Friday shows what the Rams can become this year.
Without the injured Brooke Watson and Leilani Jackson not scoring due to foul trouble, the Rams found a way to score a huge 57-54 win over Canton.
The game could have been lost anytime in the fourth period but once Riemer cashed in two free throws off an offensive rebound, Central led 35-33 against the Tigers and the locals never let the opponents draw even in the end.
It was a huge victory that will propel the program into the New Year.
“It showed our grit, it showed our toughness,” said Gaudet of the win over Canton. “We might not have played our best but it showed our mental toughness and fortitude to fight through not one of our best performances and still get a win.”
Who scores what?
After Riemer’s 18.0 ppg, excellent guard Arianna Rivera has played in every game — posting 11.2 ppg.
Leilani Jackson is third on the program in points (7.3 ppg), Cespedes (4.8) is fourth while sharpshooter Molly McMahon (3.3) is in the top-five in terms of points.
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