North Catholic alum Alayna Rocco, Harvard player, to compete in Division I women’s basketball tournament
Harvard is all it’s been cracked up to be for Alayna Rocco.
The Crimson freshman women’s basketball player and former North Catholic hoops standout has had to adjust to life in Cambridge, both in the classroom and on the hardwood. Her team has excelled on the court, reaching the NCAA Division I women’s tournament for the first time since 2007.
“These past six months have been a lot, but they’ve been a good kind of a lot,” Rocco said.
“Your freshman year is hard a lot of times,” North Catholic coach Molly Rottmann said. “You’re figuring stuff out, let alone you have the academics of Harvard. I’m sure she’s fatigued, but she is over the moon about it. She said it made every hard moment so worth it to be there.”
Rocco’s professors have been helpful in acclimating to such an academic workload. She’s undecided on a major, but is leaning toward sociology. She said she’s had to figure out what methods of studying work best for her, especially with a demanding basketball schedule.
“I just went in with an open mind, just wanting to work hard and do whatever I can to help the team, whether that’s playing a lot or not,” Rocco said. “I’ve come up in some big moments.”
Rocco has played in all 28 of Harvard’s games, averaging 14.6 minutes, 4.4 points and 1.2 rebounds per. The Crimson earned the Ivy League’s automatic bid by downing top-seeded Columbia 74-71 in the conference’s title game last Saturday. Rocco bucketed eight points and went 2 for 3 from deep in that victory.
“I would argue that it’s the best day of my life so far,” Rocco said. “I loved playing in high school, and all those championships were amazing. But, it’s just another level. Those two games, there was so much emotion. ... It was definitely a dream of mine for so long.”
Harvard, a No. 10 seed in Region 1, will face off with No. 7 Michigan State on Saturday in Raleigh, N.C. The Spartans (21-9) enter having lost four of their last six, including a 74-61 outcome against Iowa in the second round of the Big Ten tournament.
The Crimson’s seed is their highest in program history. Their 24 wins are also a single-season record. Rocco wants more from the tournament.
“Hopefully getting some more wins and making some more history,” Rocco said.
