photo courtesy of gobonnies.sbu.edu
By Jeff Uveino
Emily Calabrese is no stranger to Atlantic 10 basketball.
Over her first two seasons with the St. Bonaventure women’s basketball team, Calabrese appeared in 60 games and made 49 starts.
Entering her junior season, the 6’ forward from Wyckoff, New Jersey is looking to take the next step forward in her career.
“I’m going to be playing at a higher level this year,” Calabrese said. “I’ve taken all of the experience I’ve gained over the last two years and worked to build on it this season.”
Calabrese averaged 6.6 points per game last season, up from 6.0 ppg her freshman year. She shot 44.5 percent from the field last year, an improvement from 41 percent two seasons ago.
She said that defense has been the priority of her work this offseason, as well as rebounding.
“I’ve worked to get quicker and stronger, and also develop my game around the basket,” Calabrese said. “I want to rebound well, especially offensively. You don’t need skill for that, it’s more energy and working really hard.”
Calabrese also said that getting as many offensive rebounds as possible is a goal of hers this season.
She averaged 5.1 rebounds per game in her sophomore season, and 5.6 rpg in her freshman year.
In her third year with the program, Calabrese is the longest-tenured Bonnie on this year’s roster.
“It’s like a whole new team this year,” Calabrese said. “There’s a lot of different pieces that we haven’t had in previous seasons, and it’s pretty cool to have all these new teammates.”
The 2019-20 Bonnies feature seven new players, including four freshmen and three transfers.
“Being one of the most experienced players on our team, I want to become a leader this year,” Calabrese said. “I’m looking forward to all of our games, especially our Christmas tournament in Florida.”
St. Bonaventure opens its regular season on Nov. 5 when it hosts St. John’s University, following an Oct. 30 exhibition against SUNY Cortland at the Reilly Center.
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