Shaler grad Duritza chips in for surging Marietta

Luce Duritza’s climb didn’t come by scaling the mountain all at once.

The 5-foot-11 forward for the Marietta women’s basketball team had to make gradual progress. As a senior at Shaler, Duritza had her season end when she tore her ACL in the opener.

As a college freshman, Duritza was still on the road to recovery.

“I had to do, even when I got here, rehab with trainers,” Duritza said. “Working (my) way into noncontact drills. It was working on getting my skills back and getting more confident and comfortable. Being comfortable with my knee and everything. It was more of an internal confidence.”

She has found a level of comfort for the Pioneers this season. Duritza has averaged 3.1 points and 3.7 rebounds for a Marietta team determined to defend its Ohio Athletic Conference crown.

“I try to play my game, play good defense and get people open,” Duritza said. “I try to be an all-around, do-my-job kind of player. I feel like I’ve been pretty unselfish and all-around. We stress energy and communication a lot at practice. It goes along way. I try to be a good communicator and bring energy.”

Duritza is focused on increasing her mobility.

“I tried to work on a lot of strength and my quickness laterally and forward and back,” Duritza said. “I focus on it in drills.”

The Pioneers (9-3, 4-1) celebrated the new year by upsetting No. 20 Baldwin Wallace, 64-62, on a last-second shot by Alexis Enochs.

Having a tough mindset is something developed in practice. Third-year coach Kole Vivian stresses energy and positivity.

“He emphasizes picking someone up when they go to the ground,” Duritza said. “Physically and vocally, he wants practices to be loud with clapping and cheering.”

Vivian’s enthusiasm has rubbed off onto his players. During Duritza’s freshman season, Marietta set a program record with 24 wins and won the OAC before bowing out in the first round of the NCAA Division III Tournament.

Duritza, who appeared in two games last season, looks forward to trying to help the Pioneers duplicate their success.

“We’ve been doing good this season,” Duritza said. “We have a lot of people coming back and a lot of younger players filling in bigger roles than last year. We understand our roles and what we have to do. We could go far this year.”

Josh Rizzo is a freelance writer.