Delaware Valley hoop seniors ready to kick girls game up a notch

WESTFALL - They may not be the biggest or fastest girls on the court, but they are going to have the most fun playing. Winning has taken a backseat to team building, playing hard and learning. For seniors Laura Sullivan and Melissa Gilroy, that suits them just fine. “It is fun. We have never really had a completely awesome season,” Sullivan said.” But it is always fun and I think I get things accomplished.” “It is a lot of fun,” echoed Gilroy. “We all get a long real well and that makes for such good team spirit.” The girls are no strangers to the hardwood, having started at a very early age. “I played YMCA basketball since I was really little. Then I was on the middle school team and then I was on basketball all through high school,” Sullivan said. “My brothers played, so I wanted to play.” It wasn’t family pressure that got Gilroy to pick up a ball, but peer pressure. “I started in 7th grade and then played all through high school,” the senior said. “All of my friend joined, so I followed them.” “Follower!” Sullivan said. All kidding aside, both girls know this season is going to be different for them than in years past. “There is a lot more responsibility. I may be one of the people who has to lead,” Sullivan said. “I like to be the person on the side. So I have to adjust to that.” “It is kind of hard to go from following everyone to now have to take control and become a leader,” Gilroy said. When looking for leadership role models, the seniors look no further than their coaches. “Our coaches are great. They help us a lot. This year Mrs. (Leslie) Clementoni is working on our defense while Mr. (Joe) Sain is running the offense. They are fun. They make practice fun. I don’t know if I would do it if they weren’t the ones coaching me.” “Ms. Clementoni and Mr. Sain have coached us since the 9th grade, so they have been with us our whole high school career,” Gilroy said. “They just know us so well that it creates a real good teacher-coach-friend relationship.” With the winter season on the horizon, both seniors are ready to enjoy their last games representing Delaware Valley. “We are a really young team, so I am not going to set my standards that high. But my goal is to finish .500 overall,” Sullivan said. “My personal goal this year is to just do my best. I just want to end each game happy with the way I played.” Gilroy doesn’t plan on altering her approach this season either. “Team goals would be to finish strong,” the senior said. “Not to look at the record but to play the best we can and look at how we played and how hard we tried.” Russ Crespolini is the Online Editor for Straus Newspapers and can be reached at 845.782.4000 ext. 352 or at webmaster@strausnews.com.