on N Marshall
"We’ve been waiting for some time for some form of “breakout” from Christ the King junior Natalija Marshall and we got a good glimpse of one in Thursday’s second round win over Southridge. The 6-4 forward come out looking for her options and connected multiple times early to fuel not only her team but her confidence as well. Another Blue Star 30 veteran, Marshall has been on the fast track for several years but was struggling with consistency out of the gate this season. Blessed with good size and a build that college strength coaches love to work with, the tools are there to be the prototypical four player. (I refuse to use the much overworked word “stretch”) The touch and range are legitimate and can force defenders out of their comfort zones. She’ll need to add and mix more physical aspects into her attack to keep those same opponents honest and to allow her to make the most of her versatility. Marshall can put the ball on the floor to improve both shots and passes. No, she’s not a wing but the skill set serves her well in setting up both herself and teammates. There were some posting up situations in the second half Thursday and more of those may well benefit both her and CTK in the long run. The rebounding effort is sound but the perimeter looks often limit her offensive boards. Defensively Marshall has shown more and more a willingness to put a body on someone and she may well need to do that against an aggressive Windward team in Friday’s semifinal match up. "