For NDA’s Orlandos, mother knows best
Oftentimes, when the Orlandos arrive home after a Notre Dame Academy (Hingham) girls’ basketball game, they immediately open a laptop to break down film.
With the thrill of victory or the agony of defeat still fresh, they delve into dribble-drives and pick-and-rolls over dinner to ensure they learn from what transpired.
“We go through it a lot,” junior point guard Ava Orlando said. “Like, a lot. We really dig deep and dissect it.”
The relentless drive Ava, her sister Elle, and their mother, coach Nickie Orlando, display on a daily basis is contagious for NDA girls’ basketball.
With the Orlandos as the nucleus, and a savvy core around them, the Cougars (8-0), ranked 10th in this week’s Globe Top 20, are amid a breakout season.
Ava, averaging 19.6 points, 7 assists, and 6 steals in her fifth season on varsity, dictates the action as an ultra-aggressive ball hawk and shifty playmaker. Elle, a sophomore sharpshooter who averages 18.3 points, is always ready to fire away when Ava finds her in the perfect spot.
“We joke in the house that they’re like peanut butter and jelly,” Nickie Orlando said. “I just think they kind of go together and complement each other so well. They read each other’s minds and just innately know each other’s moves.”
The Orlando sisters haven’t had to look far for inspiration in the sport. Nickie (nee Sparks) comes from a basketball family, with her father playing at Indiana University and her brother at Valparaiso University. She grew up competing in Indiana and Ohio, started her college career at Valparaiso, then transferred to Bentley University to learn from legendary coach Barbara
Stevens.
“Basketball’s always been part of the fabric of our family,” Nickie Orlando said. “It’s always been kind of in my bloodstream and has always surrounded us. It’s just part of who I am.”
She coached at Suffolk University, Northeastern University, Newbury College, and Stonehill College, then elected to switch to high school when Ava and Elle were born. When Nickie coached at BridgewaterRaynham, they typically tagged along as babies and toddlers, riding the bus, roaming the sidelines, and soaking it all in.
Nickie stepped away from coaching briefly, but when the opportunity to lead NDA emerged in 2019, she knew right away it was a “no-brainer.” Ava joined as a seventhgrader that year, and Elle followed suit in 2020-21.
Together, they helped the Cougars secure a tournament win two years ago, as Ava averaged 20.3 points as a freshman and Elle 10.7 as an eighthgrader. Last year, they advanced to the Round of 32 again in Division 2, with Ava eclipsing 1,000 career points and Elle increasing her average to 17 points per game.
This season, the Cougars sense a tangible difference at practice and in games. They’ve ramped up their defensive intensity and are allowing just 41.4 points per game, while scoring an average of 65.9.
“They’re kind of making my job easy this year,” Nickie said.
Junior Effie Giannopoulos (9.8 ppg., 5 rpg.), and senior captains Lola Griffin (9.4 ppg., 6 rpg.), a Bryant soccer commit, Sofia Danick, and Jane Hilsabeck, who will play lacrosse at Clemson, are also catalysts.
Ava, who recently recorded 11 steals in a game, has rounded out her lethal offensive prowess by emerging as a defensive pest. Elle has improved as a floor spacer, facilitator, and weapon in transition. Nickie highlights her daughters’ versatility and basketball IQ.
As much as basketball dominates their lives, the Orlandos don’t let it define them. Ava and Elle are members of the state champion lacrosse team and also play volleyball. Regardless of the season, their work ethic and dedication to their craft shine through.
Despite their unbreakable bond, Nickie doesn’t treat Ava and Elle any differently because she is their mother. They call her “Coach,” not “Mom,” but at the same time, it’s clear Nickie is a guiding light. For Nickie, the best part is spending time in the car and at practice together and seeing their fearlessness come out in games.
Ava, with her mother as a role model, hopes to become a coach herself someday.
Watching her mother and Ava pour themselves into their craft has helped Elle adopt the same preparation-based, fullthrottle mentality.
“My mom was a really good player and coach, so she’s taught us a lot,” Elle Orlando said. “She’d always tell us to be the hardest worker. From watching Ava and all the games my mom coached, I tried to process that and carry it on to my game.”
Courtside chatter
R After opening its season with close losses to Walpole and Needham, Weymouth
(8-2) is riding an eight-game win streak and soaring up the Bay State Conference hierarchy.
The Wildcats have eight seniors led by Megan Doyle ,a6foot-1-inch forward averaging 20 points per game. Doyle’s length and natural athleticism — she is committed to Yale for lacrosse — pairs well with 6-3 post player Callie Flynn. Abby Morris, Rose Coven, and sophomore point guard Maggie Cullivan are also impact contributors.
“We use [Doyle] in a lot of different types of situations,” said Weymouth coach Doug Kirby. “I’m very fortunate that I have an athlete like Megan, as well as the other kids, because the other kids are blending in with Megan really, really nicely.”
R The MIAA released its first winter sports power rankings Friday, with an update Tuesday. Bishop Feehan, helped by a stunning, 20-point opponent rating, leads in Division 1, followed by Woburn and Springfield Central.
Medfield and Notre Dame (Hingham) are in front in D2, and Medway and Watertown are atop D3. Cathedral holds first in D4 by a wide margin and Hoosac Valley leads D5.
R Cohasset senior Sarah Chenette became the program’s all-time leading scorer on Thursday, using a 20-point effort against Scituate to hit 1,153 career points and surpass Molly Greer (1,149).