Basketball

Role call

Burke defeats Sullivan West as teams wrangle with shifting personnel

By RICHARD A. ROSS

GOSHEN, NY - “All the world’s a stage. And all the men and women merely players,” wrote Shakespeare in “As You Like It.”

The Bard’s global assessment of life as theatre in which we play our given roles certainly applies to basketball. In the theatre on the hardwood, each player must understand his or her role and execute it well. Inevitably, great performances have their stars. But, it is the responsibility of the entire cast to evoke a seamless enactment that will garner the approval of the audience and critics.

Theatre and basketball patrons pay to be entertained, and expect to see performances that reflect great preparation. They may be either delighted or disappointed as performers play their parts.

The issue of role playing figured strongly in the Division IV match up between John S. Burke Catholic and visiting Sullivan West on January 22, as both casts played roles they were unaccustomed to.

With the injury to Burke senior standout forward Megan Rufer, out for the remainder of the season with a torn MCL, the Lady Eagles, in their eighth game of the season, looked inconsistent and vulnerable.

That assessment applied to their adversaries. The recent inclusion of Rachel Houghtaling has provided a big boost but, unlike a year ago when Sullivan West was anchored by Jennifer Pitz at the point, the guard positions have lacked stability, and turnover issues have plagued the Lady Bulldogs against teams that can pressure the ball.

In that regard, Burke excels.

The result would be 22 Sullivan West turnovers, seven in the crucial third quarter, which saw an 18-17 Sullivan West lead morph into a 35-22 Burke lead. Lax perimeter defense, fueled by players out of position, led to four Burke three-pointers, including two from guard Kaitlin Fitzgibbons.

Early on, mistakes by both teams produced a tight game, with Burke leading 17-16 at the half and Sullivan West giving a strong second-quarter performance and outscoring Burke 10-4.

In the second quarter, Burke had ball-control issues as it coughed up the rock eight times. By night’s end, that total would rise to 17.

“They executed well,” said Sullivan West coach Ron Bernhardt, whose team played better in the second and fourth quarter than it did in the first and the third.

But like plays, which are comprised of acts, the final assessment of a basketball game comes from its entirety.

Burke overcame rough spots to go on an 18-6 third-quarter run and emerge with the win over its most competitive rival.

Sullivan West fans can never forget the dramatic 44-38 win in the Eagles’ aerie on January 11, 2006 that gave rise to this writer’s story entitled, “The Twelfth of Never Arrives,” nor the subsequent 49-47 “Lake Quake,” win at home to end Burke’s 11-year division dominance. Last year, the teams split their games and ended up co-division champions.

But with personnel issues in the forefront, this game was atypical of those epic clashes. As Burke coach Bob Turner said, “We’ve played some ugly basketball and are inconsistent at times.” But despite moments of uncertainty and what Turner refers to as “confusion at times,” Burke sophomore Amanda Lynch, senior Fitzgibbons and junior Mary Faith Rickard did a noble job of stabilizing the tottering ship to keep Burke (4-4, 4-0 OCIAA) perfect in Division IV play.

As Turner sees it, the graduation of Emily Stallings and the injury to Rufer have drastically changed the roles of many of his players who are searching for that go-to player they are used to relying on.

Similarly, Bernhardt sees his team as still “green” and in search of the chemistry that made it virtually indomitable last summer.

Sullivan West controlled the opening tip and Katrina Graby raced to the hoop for the early lead. A quick three by Lynch gave Burke the lead, which it would not surrender again until the early moments of the third quarter. An 11-0 run was helped by its 1-3-1 defense and its relentless pressure at the point. Sullivan West had trouble finishing down low. Each team turned the ball over five times in the opening frame.

Graby scored three of her team-high 12 in the second quarter. Vicky Argueta hit three of four from the line. Lindsey Murphy had two in the quarter. She struggled as all but one of her three-point attempts missed their mark. Murphy had a disappointing five points, far below her usual output.

Graby gave the Lady Bulldogs an 18-17 lead early in the third quarter, but Sullivan West was out of position to defend Lynch’s wide-open three that put Burke back on top. The Bulldogs closed within one at 21-20 with a put back by Graby, but a wide-open three, this time by Fitzgibbons, widened the gap. Burke outscored Sullivan West 14-2 for the remainder of the quarter.

The lead widened to 17 at 40-23 with 4:39 left to play. The Lady Bulldogs closed the game with an 8-0 run. It was too little, too late.

Burke shot an unimpressive 36 percent from the line, canning only four of 11. Sullivan West hit six of 12 for 50 percent.

Bernhardt said that his team’s downfall came in the third quarter from turning the ball over seven times out of 12 possessions.

For Sullivan West (8-4, 3-2 OCIAA) getting to sectionals is the number-one priority. With league games remaining against O’Neill on the road, a home fray against Burke and a road game at Liberty, the Bulldogs will need to win one of those games to make it back to the dance.

“We’ll get right back to work. We’re not out of hope. We’ll strive to get into the tournament,” Bernhardt said. “It’s disappointing.”

Turner sees Fitzgibbons as key. “She has to change her role from being a back-up guard to a senior guard who plays aggressively. When she does that, we play better.”

Fitzgibbons had seven points on the night. Lynch led Burke with 10.

Burke’s losses have all been against big-school powerhouses, including Albertus Magnus, Maria Regina, Cornwall and Monroe-Woodbury. It lost to Maria Regina by one and to Cornwall by only two, but those games were played before Rufer went down.

“We’ve only played three games since we came back from Christmas vacation. By February, we’ll be playing every other night,” said Turner, who expects his team to gel as they understand their roles.

Bernhardt hopes for an emerging cohesion as well.

Sullivan West’s next four games are at home against non-league foes. They beat Chapel Field on January 26, Port Jervis on January 30, Cornwall on February 3 and Tuxedo on February 5.

Burke is idle until February 2 when it travels to O’Neill for a rematch with the Lady Raiders.

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