By Fred Stabbert III
LAKE HUNTINGTON — February 17, 2004 – The Sullivan West Lady Bulldogs continued to make good things happen on the hardwood, downing the Monticello Lady Panthers Thursday night in a non-league contest, 55-37.
Before the game, players from both the Sullivan West jayvees and varsity teams gave their parents a flower in recognition of all their effort during the season.
Sullivan West Coach Ron Bernhardt then started five of his six senior ladies to highlight their dedication to the team.
Rachel Peloquin, Vanessa Kline, Jessica Lederman, Madeline Argueta and Katie Cappiello all got the nod to start and senior center Nadine McCarthy was substituted in halfway through the first quarter.
“We started out with an 8-2 run against Monticello, which is a real feather in your cap,” Bernhardt said. “We led 33-14 at the half, and 46-23 after three.”
For the first time this season, four Lady Bulldogs hit for double figures, led by sophomore super-sub Kate Fanning, who poured in 13. Kline and Lederman both added 11 and McCarthy chipped in with 10.
“We’re getting more balance on offense and that comes from more patience and better passing,” Bernhardt said.
Monticello, which dropped to 3-12, was led by Nicole Christopher, who netted 11.
Tough Week Ahead
At 12-4 on the year, the Lady Bulldogs have already reached a lot of their objectives, Bernhardt noted.
Tomorrow night, Sullivan West will travel to Highland Falls to take on OCIAA Division IV rival James I. O’Neill.
To insure that he has enough bench strength, Bernhardt is pulling sophomore center April Ackermann up to the varsity for the game.
“She will be our emergency back-up,” he said.
“If we win that game and then take Burke on Friday, we win the league outright,” Bernhardt said. “If we lose to O’Neill then beat Burke, it will be a three-way tie for the league title.”
John S. Burke Catholic of Goshen is no stranger to good basketball. They have nine straight league titles to their credit and have won sectional titles five years in a row.
“That program has a lot of tradition,” Bernhardt said.