When she steps onto the court for the women’s basketball team at Newbury College, Catherine O’Connell is inspired by the memory of her brother, John, and the presence of her sister, Elyse, a new teammate this season.

“It’s been a tough season emotionally for me because I’m the same age, 21, and in the same year of school as my brother when he died,’’ said O’Connell, a senior captain from North Quincy. “It makes you realize that life can be short and you have to make the most of it.”