The Saturday Links  Dec. 22
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- December
- 22
I open up the paper and look at the website this morning and I marvel: There are days in late February and early March  days I have a sore throat and spend eating Nathan’s french fries  were we don’t have this much girls hoops to offer.
Hey, considering it’s only the first day of notebooks, you should consider yourselves lucky.
Saturday notebooks  Here are several stories for your reading pleasure…
In Putnam/Northern Westchester, “we have Tori Jarosz’ thoughts on helping turn Lakeland around.”:http://www.thejournalnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071222/SPORTS02/712220319/1049 We also have word of a big opportunity for Briarcliff. A lovable sportswriter has the story.
In Central Westchester, “we have a surprisingly strong start to tell you about in Rye Brook.”:http://www.thejournalnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071222/SPORTS02/712220324/1049 Manny Martinez and Blind Brook have started strong despite losing its top two players. That same lovable guy has the word, along with injury news on Hamilton’s Shereen Lightbourne.
In Southern Westchester, “we say hello to 6-foot-4 Lubridia Gordon,”:http://www.thejournalnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071222/SPORTS02/712220339/1049 who is truly blessed by the basketball gods…although not so much right now. (A hint: She’s just 13!…but has a broken collarbone.) Remarkably, that same lovable and hard-working guy sat down with Gordon…and felt quite small after the interview was finished.
In Rockland, “Jake tells us why North Rockland’s Mary Abrams chose LIU.”:http://www.thejournalnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071222/SPORTS02/712220334/1049 In his rankings, he tabs Pearl River over Magnus for the top spot.
Athletes of the week  Now this is mere coincidence, but a hoopster won the athlete of the week on both sides of the river.
In Westchester and Putnam, my co-de Justin Jones, who lit it up at Nyack as a senior in ‘03, “has the story of Angelei Aguirre switching positions for the good of the team.”:http://www.thejournalnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071222/SPORTS02/712220341/1049 Aguirre was the Con-Ed Athlete of the Week.
In Rockland, “the Scholar-Athlete of the Week went to Ashley Huber of Albertus Magnus.”:http://www.thejournalnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071222/SPORTS02/712220345/1049 The senior has no qualms offering a helping hand on or off the court, as Kristin Noonan writes.
And finally, what we call a gamer…
In case you haven’t had time to scroll down for half a second, “Mount Vernon beat Peekskill 71-40 last night.”:http://www.thejournalnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071222/SPORTS02/712220387/1049 I thought the idea of the teams meeting was intriguing, but the absence of Roberta Sleigh from the Red Devils’ lineup took a little something out of the proceedings. MV rolled…
Two games I saw of note last night…rebuilding Dobbs Ferry had a nice win over Hastings, 51-40, and Briarcliff overcame its nemesis of ‘07, Putnam Valley, 68-30 at home.
Hopefully  and I mean this to every over-zealous parent out there  the game went off without incident.
This entry was posted
on Saturday, December 22nd, 2007 at 5:41 am by Josh Thomson. 
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Josh Thomson has done some of everything since joining The Journal News in March 2003. He began working for the Gannett weeklies during the winter of 2002 as a freelance writer. He joined the daily staff soon after and has since covered various high school and pro sports. Away from sportswriting, Josh lives in Westchester and spends his free time either with his wife, Sarah, or expertly managing his various championship-winning fantasy sports teams. He's visited 21 major-league baseball stadiums and insists that Fenway Park and Wrigley Field are the best by far. Josh graduated from Carmel High School in 1998, then went to Boston University, where, in 2002, he received a degree in communications with a minor in history.
Briarcliff-Put Valley game was played in a very sportsmanlike fashion. Bcliff could have run it up but played the starters for only one half. No issues in the stands only fans, including parents cheering for their teams. Bcliff again spreading the ball to all of their weapons and the non-starters showing real development as they gain valuable experience.
mikehoops…That’s good to hear.
Couple of ‘self’-proclaimed ‘experts’ here, the p-p banbdit and ‘self’ (just in case my ironical mention was missed in the hyphenated reference to this same person) slammed someone called Dave, then ME…with snarky b.s.
Now for the redemption:
1. I called it and was right. The Tapio kid went into Greeley and threw down 20 points, gaining a mention in this here paper:
“Exhibit D: Greeley 48, Brewster 46  The 2-5 Bears continue to be plucky. They gave the Quakers everything they had, and forced a comeback led by the 23 points of Taylor Jackson. Brewster freshman Emily Tapio played well in defeat from what I hear; she scored a team-best 20 points, helping the Bears head into the fourth quarter tied.”
1b. She also had a mention for her double-double in the Brewster win over Yorktown this week. Not bad for an ‘unknown frosh. And so much for “out of the blue”...ding-dongs…that there is called ‘scouting’ and thank you Dave.
2. To those that never heard of Kristin Pappalardo, noting some sarcastic mentions of this apparently invisible player, here’s a truly idiotic post by the p-p bandit:
“The Bandit sees a lot and hears a lot and Pappalardo is not on my radar. Doesn’t mean she might not one day be good but right now she is not a difference maker as far as I can see. Then again I have never heard of her so maybe she is the cats whiskers?”
And from today’s Tory Jarosz interview in this paper:
“”Lakeland (0-5) should add help in time for next week’s holiday tournament at Yorktown. Jarosz’ best friend, starting point guard Kristin Pappalardo, was cleared to return from a finger injury on Wednesday.
“Hopefully when she comes back it will take some pressure off other players,” Jarosz said. “She can help us make plays.””
Kristin was on the Lakeland team last year, and played on the Lakeland Storm AAU team with Tory J. going back at least two years. Again, that’s called scouting. Your ‘radar’ must be broken. Maybe it’s a sonar set you are using, since you seem to be ‘all wet’ right now?
3. When I mention an up and comer, perhaps a little more respect in the future, a little less sarcasm, and a little more recognition of your aforementioned ‘broken radar’. That said, I suggest you pay some attention to a couple more freshman. Take a peek at Aly Tuman (Croton Harmon), and don’t let her team’s record fool you. She is a talented player, nailing threes, and bringing up the ball…and just threw in 20 points against Haldane. A look at Veronica Roman is also suggested. The freshman guard for Rye Country Day may not be enjoying the chance to pass the ball to Isaiah Thomas’ kid (out with knee surgery) at the moment, but she has nice moves and tons of athleticism. I don’t have to mention Brit Horne, out with an injury (but horsing around on the sidelines and appearing quite healthy…surely a sign of good recovery) as she has received enough coverage in this paper.
4. I’d like to see a feature on FRESHMAN players making their mark on the local high school scene. Perhaps some that are also outstanding STUDENTS (scholar athletes) and ROLE MODELS, not just jocks?? I’ve tossed out a few, and there are others. I assume Josh here has his ears to the tracks.
Big Al I humbly ask you to accept my sincere apologies for throwing cold water all over Pappalardo. I hope you can somehow find a way to forgive me for my sin of omission. The fact that her best friend thinks her return will help the team and she, like 10,000 other girls, played AAU should have been a clear sign of her impending stardom. Not to mention the fact that she lit it up for 1.0 points a game last year.
And I am so ashamed to admit that I missed the boat on Tapio. She had a great game against Greeley and I don’t know how I didn’t see that coming? Because getting 20 points in a game once is a feat that should lead everyone to recognize future All-State players. That’s got to be some kind of Section I record I imagine? Something tells me the Bandit should have asked for a new radar from Mrs. Bandit for Christmas!
Big Al what other future WNBA players comprise your diaper dandy starting 5?
Big Al…....Nobody really cares what YOU think about certain players…..the fact that you are so knowledgable about these players, leads one to believe that you are their AAU coach and have a biased perspective on how good they really are. They may be very good players now or they may become really good down the road. Their performances throughout their careers will be well documented by this newspaper, we don’t need you telling us what to look for. Next time, why don’t you mention all your players in all the other age groups, that way the IRS can see how much money you are making off these girls and make you pay taxes on earned income for once. Poo Poo Bandit…..I’m with you on this one.
You were lucky Roberta Sligh was sitting out the game against MV, or you would have been subjected to a torrent of abuse from her mother in the stands, if a call doesn’t go her way. What a great role model, curses the refs, and fans in the stands. She should be banned from attending games, like a certain Hen Hud father a few years ago.
I agree with you Josh, whether it is CYO, straight up through high school there is a serious problem with fan behavior. My experience is that most kid fans at the games are harmless and may make some noise, but not say hurtful things towards players, but parents and other adults can not seem to keep their mouths shut and hurtful comments to themselves, whether the comment be about players, refs, or coaches. As a society we need to be more accountable for our actions. I reffed a CYO game last night and almost kicked a grandfather out of the gym as he constantly berated a player. Finally I walked up to him, and said this is CYO and you are embarrassing yourself, and should look at the pledge the students say and follow it. TO everyone out there in Sixth Man land enjoy whatever holiday it is that you celebrate and best in the New Year
Glad to hear dobbs overcame their neighboring town rival. They are a hard working team with lots of potential.
Josh…what is a “co-de”