If you have attended an Eastern Vikings sporting event over the past few years, there’s a decent chance you have seen a Fendrick in action.
There was Leah Fendrick, a class of 2014 graduate, who played on Eastern’s girls soccer team. Justin Fendrick, a class of 2015 graduate, was a key piece for Eastern boys basketball. Michaela Fendrick completed her senior season for Eastern girls tennis this past fall, playing second singles for most of the year.
Then there are cousins Emily and Molly Fendrick, four-year varsity players for Eastern girls basketball. The two have been captains and key cogs for the Vikings the last two seasons.
After playing on the same basketball team for more than a decade, the two are playing their final senior season together in 2015–16 and are determined to make it one to remember.
Emily and Molly followed almost identical paths to Eastern. Both have played the sport since they were about 6 years old and have played together on the same team at a variety of levels.
“Down the Shore, we played a lot,” Molly said.
“At the JCC, we played there,” Emily said. “Our dads always coached together. We played travel, we played middle school, we played high school.”
Emily and Molly are just two in a line of Fendricks to attend Eastern. Emily followed her older siblings, Jess and Justin. Molly is the younger sister of Leah and has a younger brother, Isaac, who is a freshman. Both are cousins of two other Eastern attendees with the same last name, Olivia and Michaela.
Both Emily and Molly made the Eastern varsity team as freshmen. After playing sparingly during their freshman seasons, the pair began to make a real impact during the 2013–14 season.
“It was very different,” Emily said about the adjustment to the varsity level. “We went from playing middle school to varsity in high school. They were a lot quicker, a lot stronger and a lot mentally tougher. It was a big adjustment, but after a few games, you get into the flow of things.”
It’s hard to miss Emily and Molly when they are on the court. Emily plays shooting guard and has led the Vikings in three-point shooting the past three years, while Molly plays both guard and forward and has the ability to play on the perimeter and inside. Both feel they play their best when they are on the court together.
“I know that she has basketball knowledge, and I trust her that if I give her the ball, she’ll do something with it,” Emily said. “It’s a level of trust from playing over a number of years.”
“I know what her strengths are and she knows what my strengths are,” Molly said.
There is little animosity between the two. Emily said both have an appreciation for each other and how talented their cousin is on the court. Molly said they sometimes get frustrated at each other during a game, but any hard feelings are forgotten after the final buzzer.
“Sometimes in the heat of the game, we get frustrated,” Molly said. “It’s never that we’re mad with each other after the game, it’s just that we both want to win.”
The Fendricks’ career at Eastern has been tough at times. In their first season as captains in 2014–15, the team struggled, losing its first 22 games. The Vikings did put together a three-game winning streak late in the year to finish the season 3–23.
This season, things have gone a little bit smoother. The Vikings have already matched their win total from last year and won their preliminary round game in the South Jersey Invitational Basketball Tournament, defeating Collingswood, 46–29, on Jan. 9. For the second straight year, Emily is leading the Vikings in scoring, while Molly has stepped up on offense since the New Year, leading Eastern in scoring with a team-leading 12 points against Washington Township on Jan. 5 and nine points against Cherokee on Jan. 12.
“We didn’t lose anyone from last year and we gained freshmen,” Emily said. “We have some great freshmen, but they are still freshmen. So while they helped us, I kind of expected things to be going the way that they are.”
Eastern’s young core has meant Emily and Molly’s leadership roles have been equally as important as their play on the court.
“We know that it’s our job to help them on and off the court with anything we can,” Emily said. “We have a young team, so it’s really important for the younger players to look up to us.”
For now, Emily and Molly are looking forward to enjoying the second half of their final season and making a trip back to the playoffs after missing the postseason in 2014–15. Neither plans to play basketball in college. Emily will be attending Penn State, while Molly is still considering a number of schools.
It’s not out of the question Emily and Molly will both go to the same school. Molly said Penn State is in the running as one of her potential college choices.
“It actually is up in my top three,” Molly said.
