Tara Murray
New Bacchus Marsh Lions women’s coach Monique Caparello is looking forward to a new challenge.
The Lions announced that Caparello would coach the club’s women’s Country Basketball League side this year.
Caparello brings plenty of experience on the court including having played in the Women’s National Basketball League.
Locally, she played several years with the Sunbury Jets helping them win multiple Big V championships.
She took over as the club’s Big V women’s championship coach this season and has also coached and assisted with junior sides with at Sunbury and elsewhere.
Caparello said she was keen to further her coaching career.
“It was my first time [head] coaching at Sunbury,” she said. “I’ve done a little bit of self reflection and I want to get better as a coach.
“Coaching in the CBL, I will be able to expand my coaching. ”
Caparello said it was a conversation with Josiah Smith, who is the Lions director of basketball, that got the ball rolling on the coaching appointment.
Smith coached the women’s side last year.
“He was an assistant coach when I was playing at Sunbury,” Caparello said.
“We’ve had a great connection and we go back and forth and it’s a good relationship.
“He asked me to do an all girls camp up that way. He then asked if I would be interested in coaching the women’s program and that’s how it came about.”
This won’t be Caparello’s first foray into the CBL having played in the north-east division with the Wodonga Wolves.
She said she wasn’t familiar with the north-west division but she would quickly learn. There could be some familiar faces on the other side of the court this season, with the Macedon Ranges Rockies coached by Stacey Stewart, who is the youth league women’s coach at the Sunbury Jets.
Caparello said Smith had set some good foundations in place for the side to continue to build this year.
Last year they finished in sixth spot in the north-west division with four wins for the season. They were just seven points outside the top four.
“With my coaching philosophy and the group nearly all home grown and the foundations set last year, it really attracted me to the role.
“The core group there already and look like they want to come back and play. It’s pretty good signs.”
Rob Tomczyk has been reappointed the Lions men’s coach for this season.
Try out dates have been announced for both sides.
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