POLAND, Ohio (WKBN) – Ten of Poland’s 13 losses were by 7 points or less, including its playoff-opening setback to Orange (45-41).
Set to begin his third season at his alma mater, Eric Fender welcomes back four seniors to an experienced group.
“I think any team wants to rely on or be led by their most experienced group of players,” Fender said. “For us, that will be our senior class. The team chemistry will be a huge strength of ours. We have a nice mix of underclassmen coming in that I think will mesh well with our seniors, which I’m excited about.”
Seniors Cole Fulton (8.8 ppg, 5.3 rpg) and Danny Nittoli (6.6 ppg, 4.5 rpg) return as starters while Andrew Todd and Paul Greco will be relied on for their contributions as well.
Other Bulldogs who could make a splash this winter are Jacob Hayes, Oliver McCully, Michael Daley, Jason Eich, Jas Stefancin, Carmine Tuckalo, Vito Komara and Joe Zuccaro.
“Our expectations are the same as any other year,” Fender said. “We want to come in every day, work hard and find ways to improve. We need to play solid defense and we want to try and push the tempo offensively. We’ll have to try and use some of our size and athleticism to our advantage this year.”
Poland will welcome Springfield for the season opener Dec. 5.
Poland Bulldogs
Fast Facts
Head Coach: Eric Fender
2022-23 Record: 10-13 (9-5), 4th place in Northeast 8 Conference
2022-23 Post-Season Finish: Lost in Sectional Semifinal to Orange
2022-23 Team Stats
Scoring Offense: 48.3
Scoring Defense: 46.5
2022-23 Individual Leaders
Scoring: JP Genova – 14.2
Rebounding: Cole Fulton – 5.3
Assists: JP Genova – 2.4
Free Throw Percentage: JP Genova – 77.6%
Three-Point Percentage: JP Genova – 45.8%
2023-24 Schedule
Dec. 5 – Springfield
Dec. 8 – Campbell Memorial
Dec. 9 – Boardman (United Way Classic)
Dec. 12 – Hubbard
Dec. 15 – at Girard
Dec. 16 – at Howland
Dec. 19 – Niles
Dec. 22 – at Lakeview
Dec. 28 – at Canfield
Jan. 5 – South Range
Jan. 12 – at Struthers
Jan. 16 – at Hubbard
Jan. 19 – Girard
Jan. 23 – at Niles
Jan. 26 – Lakeview
Jan. 30 – at South Range
Feb. 3 – at Salem
Feb. 6 – Struthers
Feb. 9 – Canfield
Feb. 13 – Badger
Feb. 16 – at Boardman
Feb. 20 – at Streetsboro
