LIVINGSTON MANOR, NY — It’s gotta be tough trying to rebuild a championship team after a legendary basketball coach retires, and the new crop of hoopsters don’t have a whole lot of experience on the local hardwood.

And that was the case when the Lady Blue Devils of Roscoe (0-9) paid a visit to the home team Livingston Manor Lady Wildcats (4-7) on January 24.

From the tipoff, it was evident that Manor was headed for a homestand win, as the Lady Wildcats zapped their opponents in all four frames: 7-0, 8-2, 11-0 and 13-6, walking away with a 39-8 win.

The opening bucket of the game came at the 3:28 mark in the first game, as Manor’s Jocelyn Mills slammed a three-pointer from outside the paint.

Taking a page from Sullivan West’s “Dawg Pound,” Manor has the “Wildcats’ Den,” as both sections in the bleachers are reserved for student spectators.

During the game, the home-team cheer squad put on a spirited show, “Everybody do the Wildcats rumble.”

Evan Bowers, coach of the Lady Blue Devils, is in his first year as head of Roscoe’s girls’ varsity bucketeers. He took over the reins from legendary helmswoman Becky Ahart, and noted of the transition, “It’s a little overwhelming… they are big shoes to fill. We’re trying to get the program back up to where it was.”

Roscoe’s senior players are Ashlee Ladenhauf, Kansas Miner and Alexis O’Shaughnessy, while the cadre of captains are Ladenhauf, plus three juniors—Athena Niforatos, Zaylee Cox and Sarah Gorr.

Asked for a snapshot of goals for the season, Bowers replied, “Play some team defense, score some buckets, win a game, and build some confidence for next year.”

Maggie Fitzpatrick is in her second season as coach of the Lady Wildcats, who field a team of five seniors: Alyssa Peck, Mackenzie Carlson, Nevaeha Jones, Hailey Wolcott and Jocelyn Mills. The captains are Peck, Jones and Mills.

“We hustled, played hard and came out with a win, which is always great, but we need to improve on some things to get a win over tougher schools,” she said.

What about goals for the year?

“Win the Section IX championship and get into the state tournament,” replied Fitzpatrick.