Sports
2011 Preview: Sachem North Girls Basketball
With a post-season win last year and a new drive for consecutive playoff appearances, Sachem will look to run as they move up to League I.
Head Coach: James Mellor (5th year)
2011 Record: 7-7 League II, 9-8 overall, 1-1 Postseason
Top Players
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- Erin McNulty, Senior Forward: “She plays bigger than her [5-9] body,” coach James Mellor said of his top player. “Erin plays like she’s a 6-footer. She’s very physical, she’s all over the floor. And she finds a way to score.”
- Danielle Levine, Junior Guard: “She’ll play everywhere,” Mellor said of his third-year varsity swing player, who can be an offensive threat from the outside game as well as a force underneath.
- Brooke Foltmann, Junior Guard: Point-guard responsibilities have been put in Foltmann’s hands. The junior saw some playing time last year, starting the season in junior varsity. “She’s your very typical point guard,” Mellor said. “We’ll look to her to run the offense, find open players when she’s pressed.”
Key Losses
- Colleen McNeece, Forward: “Colleen was a great offensive threat,” Mellor said. “You could always count on her to make a big shot.”
- Andrea Licostie, Guard: “She was a tenatious defender,” Mellor said.
Breakdown
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Sachem will look to run, as much because of the lack of size upfront as anything else. “We’re going to push the ball up the floor, looking for quick, easy baskets,” Mellor said. “If we are forced to play half-court basketball, we’ll become easier to stop. “Because of McNulty’s size, she’s usually quicker than whoever is guarding her, and that will give us scoring chances.”
Foltmann will be key in Mellor’s three-guard offense, as the junior will need to get the running game going, finding teammates on the wing for outside jumpers, or open players down low for layups. “I’m looking to start the running up court, passing the ball to whoever is open,” Foltmann said.
Rounding out the starting five is senior Ashlee Thompson—who will join Levine and Foltmann in the starting backcourt—and sophomore Shayla Cosgrove, who will provide a physical presence down low under both baskets, generating chances on the offesnsive boards and freeing up McNulty to rotate away from the basket for quick shots.
“Obviously, as a senior, I want to have a big roll,” said McNulty, in her fourth varsity season. “We have a lot of new girls this year. I’m a vocal person, but I lead by example.”
Expectations
After finishing 1–18 in his first year five seasons ago, Mellor seems to have righted the ship, making the playoffs two of the past three years. (In the 2009-2010 season, Sachem missed the playoffs on the last day of the season.) Last year, they won their out-bracket game against Eastport-South Manor, before losing to perennial powerhouse North Babylon.
This year, Sachem moves up to League I. “We just don’t know the teams and the talent nearly as well as we knew the teams we’ve been facing in League II,” Mellor said. “Sachem East will be favorites, and Commack is usually good.”
“We’re going to go into every game, work hard and hope for the best,” Levine said. Added Foltmann, “If we work real hard, we can get back to the playoffs. “It’s a tough goal, but we can do it.”
Key Games
- Dec. 20, opening league game @ Brentwood, 5:45 p.m.
- Dec. 22, first home game, vs. Commack, 4:15 p.m.
- Jan. 7, home vs. Sachem East, 5 p.m.
