Venom's Rotunno sinking teeth into extra opportunity

The WNBL26 season is three rounds old and Geelong guard Lilly Rotunno is making the most of her extra opportunities.

Through the Venom's first four games, the Queensland product, who was a development player with Sydney during the 2022-23 season, has been a pivotal part of the club's rotation.

This is due to Australian Opal Shyla Heal's knee injury, which she sustained during the NBL1 East season with Bankstown.

“I knew that, as soon as I heard about the injury, that I would have to step up and come into my role in this team very confident, and trust my abilities and the work that I have been putting in,” Rotunno said to CODE Sports.

“No matter if I was starting or coming off the bench, I’m playing the same kind of way."

That mindset has seen Rotunno average 4.3 points, four assists and 1.3 steals during Geelong's 1-3 start to the season.

“I knew what I brought to the team and I know what Chris knows about my game and defensively, I feel like that’s one of my strong suits. Being a point guard facilitator, we have such amazing scorers in this team, so it’s definitely been a big jump for me and it’s honestly been one of the best things for me,” Rotunno said.

The Venom host Townsville on Friday night from 5.30pm AEDT, live on ESPN2 and 9Now.

Tickets to the Round 4 clash are still available here.

Read the full story here >> Geelong Venom rookie Lilly Rotunno steps into starting role for injured star Shyla Heal