Here we go folks, it’s time for us to continue our favorite Friday tradition.

As many of you probably know, The Sixth Man was the site where you could find a list of one not-so-humble man’s top 10 girls basketball teams in the Lower Hudson Valley. Well, I think this is the time for list No. 1.

To tell the truth, I’m still reeling a little bit from ingesting and digesting the bits and pieces of my Thanksgiving feast — chicken soup, turkey, Irish ham, mashed potatoes, green beans, stuffing, sweet potatoes, bread…followed by a sampling of chocolate cream pie and apple pie, not to mention a brownie — but I hope to do my best. (Question: Is there another day in the year you can wake up full despite eating dinner at 3 p.m. quite like the day after Thanksgiving?)

So you know, I’m heading to Syracuse this weekend to cover Rye and Dobbs Ferry as they try to add to their collection of state football championships. I hope the next few days give you time to develop your own top 10s. I sure hope you do…and I sure hope you share them with us.

Now, without further ado…

(Note: all records from 2006-07)

10. HORACE GREELEY (12-10, lost to Lourdes in round of 16) —
Who’s back: The Jacksons, Taylor and Erin; the Millers, Courtney and Jaclyn; Kristin Graves
Who’s gone: Sara Mirable, the starting PG
What’s there to like: Six seniors and a lot of athleticism. The Quakers showed flashes of brilliance last season (vs. Ursuline and Lourdes) but they aren’t all year-round basketball players. Sometimes they lose games they shouldn’t.
What’s their ceiling: 15 wins and a spot in the Class AA final four

9. LAKELAND (27-1, won Class A state championship) —
Who’s back: 6-foot-2 Tori Jarosz and 6-foot Kerry Johnson…and…coach of the year Steve Fallo
Who’s gone: Five senior starters…Amy Voelkel, Sarah Benischek, Kelly Schneider, Rosemarie Fazio, Rebecca DiSisto
What’s there to like: Jarosz and Johnson should control the boards and make it difficult for opponents to score inside. The question is: Who will emerge to fill a huge leadership void?
Ceiling: 18 wins and a Class A title, thanks to a dominant frontcourt

8. BRIARCLIFF (19-3, lost to Put Valley in Class B semis) —
Who’s back: Shelby Coon, Maggie Blair, Jaime Heyda and Taylor Pescetti, all of whom were starters
Who’s gone: Angela Pescetti, starting PG
What’s there to like: Four starters back, including an inside presence in Coon, a good shooter in Pescetti and ther very versatile Blair
Ceiling: 19-25 wins and Section 1 and state championships in Class B

7. BEACON (17-5, lost to Pearl River in Class A semis) —
Who’s back: Kara Tancredi, Allyson Biordi…two of the top six scorers from a year ago
Who’s gone: Only two seniors
What’s there to like: Experience that is much greater than any of their competitors for the gold ball (Beacon gave Pearl River an excellent game in the Class A semis)
Ceiling: 21 wins and the Class A gold ball

6. NORTH ROCKLAND (18-4, lost to Mount Vernon in the Class AA quarters) —
Who’s back: Mary Abrams, Shanekwa Kellman, and good depth and size, some of which was overshadowed last season
Who’s gone: Brianna Peterson and Alaina Walker
What’s there to like: If you’ve seen her play, you know Abrams is a sleeping giant. She is so talented inside and on the perimeter. Kellman is an excellent athlete, and in 5-11 Jamie Piperato and 5-10 Katie Kellner the Red Raiders will be one of the bigger teams in the section.
Ceiling: 17 wins and an appearance in the Class AA final

5. ALBERTUS MAGNUS (20-5, Class B championship; lost to Wyandanch in regional final) —
Who’s back: Starters Ashley Huber and Lauren Capul, plus 6-foot-3 JV callup Theresa Miller
Who’s gone: A trio that helped win two championships in three years…Jen Canale, Desheha Waring and Emily Brauer
What’s there to like: Two excellent role players who are ready to assume a bigger role, plus the addition of North Rockland transfer Alaina Walker, who is one of the best players in Section 1
Ceiling: 18-22 wins, plus Section 1 and state Class B championships

4. OUR LADY OF LOURDES (14-8, lost to Ursuline in Class AA quarters) —
Who’s back: Kim Dweck and a group of young players who rotated off the bench last season
Who’s gone: Jacinda Williams, Jasmine Schinella and Rebecca Bucci, who were probably the Warriors’ three best players last season
What’s there to like: The tradition of adding and developing young talent. You don’t have to know the names, you can trust Lourdes will field a highly competitive team every year. Case in point: the young PG from Poughkeepsie was rumored to have transferred to Lourdes
Ceiling: 20 wins and the start of a new streak of gold balls

3. OSSINING (14-8, lost to Scarsdale in Class AA quarters) —
Who’s back: Brittany Garrett, Kelsey Vallach, Kiki Shelton, Hayley Awerdick, and Alex Venuto, all of which started at one point last season
Who’s gone: Maureen Jones and Rebekah Rupp
What’s there to like: Chemistry and experience. This team has grown and should have enough experience under its belt to take that next step and compete for a championship. Plus, they have the classic pieces for a Dan Ricci-run offense…a pick-and-roll PG who can shoot (Vallach) and a post player who can finish (Garrett). They may not be Awerdick-to-McDonald, but this team may have better depth and balance overall.
Ceiling: 18 wins and an upset-win in the Class AA championship

2. URUSLINE (15-8, lost to Mount Vernon in Class AA semis) —
Who’s back: Rosie Crean, Shannon Ray, Shelby Sferra, Tricia Liller
Who’s gone: Molly McGlynn, Taylor Palmer (to Mount Vernon), Lauren Thomas (to Rye Country Day)
What’s there to like: Crean is good enough to be the leading lady, while Ray, who had a great summer and is a true PG, should be one of the better points in the section, teaming with returning starter and defensive stopper, Trish Liller. Also, the 6-foot Sferra leads another deep frontline. To wit: freshmen Caroline Spillane and Stephanie Gaspari are both 5-foot-11 and junior Elissa Goldner (a transfer from Somers) is 6-foot-1
Ceiling: 22 wins, a Class AA gold ball and a state final four appearance

1. MOUNT VERNON (16-8, lost to White Plains in the Class AA final) —
Who’s back: Nadia Duncan and Kwinnyata Mercer, plus the energetic Carece Moore
Who’s gone: Starting PG Lynasia Frazier, defensive specialist Candiese Williams, and rebounders Shante White and Shanice Wilcox
What’s there to like: A lot, but I told you all that Wednesday. Mostly it’s based on what is probably the section’s best duo, the addition of Taylor Palmer and 6-foot-1 Shaunyce Stewart, and improved depth
Ceiling: 23 or 24 wins, a Class AA gold ball and a serious run at the state championship

My final word… It’s tough to have this top 10 without White Plains and Pearl River included. I know I said this back in the spring, but it’s tough to knock them too far down the rankings. If you asked me to bet a soda on it, I’d say it’s more likely than not that both are in the top 10 by season’s end. However, I don’t have much to base it on right now, so they are left out. Same goes for Scarsdale, too.

If you look at the list above, you realize two things:
1. There will be an insane amount of parity this season.
2. I am long-winded.

Enjoy the weekend.