Rivera is a wizard with the basketball, and watching her at a tournament in Appleton gave me a firsthand look at her ability to run an offense. Her passing stood out, especially the way she found teammates and kept everyone involved. She plays with the approach of a true point guard, understanding when to create and when to distribute. I’m interested to see how her play at the guard spot helps shape Pius this season.

The Pius guard is a hard-nosed kid who doesn’t mind playing through contact. Rivera is also an excellent athlete who can beat her initial defender off the dribble and create numerical advantages for her team. Rivera can also score from all three levels, forcing defenders to pick her up when she crosses halfcourt. She is also a skilled passer who reads defenses and gets her talented teammates the ball in position to score. She’s a sneaky creative kid in a talented backcourt.

The Pius XI guard is a kid who has made a name for herself as a competitive guard who doesn’t shy away from any matchup defensively. Rivera has always been comfortable defending against the best players on the opposing team and relishes the challenge. She has also steadily improved on the offensive end of the floor over the past few seasons and has become a more consistent creator offensively.