PITTSBURGH — There's not much opportunity these days for Mackenzie O'Donnell to take a pre-game nap.

It was her ritual at Butler High, where she dominated in the post for the better part of her career with the Golden Tornado girls basketball team.

She could be found before most games at Butler snoozing in the bleachers or getting some shut-eye sprawled out on a seat on the bus.

Things have changed now that she is a freshman at La Roche College.

“Not as much time for that now,” O'Donnell said, laughing.

What hasn't changed is O'Donnell's dominance.

The 6-foot forward has made quite an impact for the undefeated Redhawks (7-0) this season.

She is second on the team in scoring behind former Butler teammate and La Roche senior Casie Cygan at 16.4 points per game. She also leads the team in rebounding at 8.1 per game and in field goal percentage at 58.8.

Last week, O'Donnell averaged 17.5 points in two AMCC games, earning her the conference's Women's Basketball Player of the Week award.

“It means a lot to me,” O'Donnell said. “It's exciting for me because it shows my work is paying off.”

O'Donnell said she prepared hard in the off-season to get a chance to see some playing time as a freshman.

It didn't take her long to crack the starting lineup. Now that she has, O'Donnell is showing no signs of leaving it.

“One of my goals was to push myself to make the starting lineup,” O'Donnell said. “I wasn't sure what to expect. All I knew was I had to make sure I was doing my role.”

O'Donnell said she is actually finding life on the college basketball court easier than in high school.

That's because at Butler O'Donnell was the focal point of the Golden Tornado offense. As a senior last season, she had one of the more productive — and painful — campaigns in a defensive-oriented section by with 12.4 points and 10 rebounds per game.

At La Roche, with weapons all around her, including Cygan (19 points per game) and LaShauna Brothers (13 points per game), O'Donnell has more room — and fewer elbows into the back and ribs — inside.

“It's different, that's for sure,” O'Donnell said. “I got beat up pretty good.”

O'Donnell has also showed off a mid-range jumper this season for La Roche, something she rarely had the chance to display at Butler.

“I've always had it,” O'Donnell said. “I can move all around and shoot. That's something I tried to be able to do.

“Now that I see and know I can do it, I want to keep to my standard and keep doing what I'm doing,” O'Donnell added. “I hope I play up to that and play even better. I know I need to improve on the defensive end.”

For now, O'Donnell is quite content with helping the team win.

It's helped to have Cygan there beside her.

“When we played at Butler, we knew how each other played,” O'Donnell said. “It's the same here.

“It's nice. We all get along,” O'Donnell added. “We're looking for that four-peat (four AMCC championships in a row) and to get farther in the NCAA Tournament).”