Carmel Girls Plan to Step Up Defense

CARMEL—Carmel High girls basketball coach Dan O’Hare is hoping his team learned some valuable lessons last season – especially at the end, when the Rams lost in the sectional quarterfinals, closing the winter with a 15-7 slate.

Brittany Horne SKIP PEARLMAN That’s because O’Hare welcomes back his entire starting lineup, and has a deep and talented bench to complement the starting group.

O’Hare believes it could be one of the better teams he’s had in his 13 seasons at CHS.

The only hitch in the works is that with the new re-alignment of leagues throughout the section—and the fact that Carmel had a good season last year – the Rams have a tough schedule, including some challenging crossovers.

“With the new alignment and new league -and because we had a strong finish last year—we have some killer crossovers,” O’Hare said. “But we’re looking forward to seeing how we stack up against some of the top teams. We enter the season with a fair amount of confidence.”

The Rams will be – again – looking to run the floor and play a fast style.

“We’re definitely an up-tempo, getin the-open-court team,” O’Hare said. “We have some very skilled players who can get to the rim, and hopefully we rebound and get out and go.”

The biggest headache for opponents is likely to be six-foot-plus junior forward/ center Brittany Horne, who led the team with 17 PPG last winter. She’ll be joined by the rest of last year’s starters – senior captains Kim Broccoli (G, 10.5 PPG) and Marie Mullen (G, 14 PPG), junior Emma Dooley (G/F) and senior Catie Grace (G).

Other returning players include senior Kristen Knolker (C), sophomore Nikki Oliver (F), junior Samantha Parlato (G), senior Tiffany Gonzalez (G), and senior Gabby Rodriguez (F).

Juniors Haley Calabro (C) and Jen French (F), and sophomores Sabrina Diaz (G) and Alyssa D’Apice (G) join the varsity squad this winter.

With the experienced starting lineup, and a solid bench, O’Hare believes the Rams hold their fate in their own hands.

“One of our strengths is that we’re probably deeper than any other year I’ve been here,” the coach said. “I think the new conference will be significantly more competitive than the previous one. In our league, Lakeland and Brewster are tough teams.”

But O’Hare and the Rams believe that if things fall into place the right way, they could find themselves playing in the County Center.

“I believe that we are capable – if we play to our potential – of getting to the County Center and playing for a sectional title,” O’Hare said. “I think we have a good shot with our experience. To do that, we’ll have to concentrate on the defensive end. We know we can score. We have three returning players with a collective scoring average of 41 PPG. The question is – can we turn up the defense to stop opponents. Right now, based on our scrimmages, I’m not so sure we’re up to it. But it’s still early, and our defense will improve.”

Carmel, playing in a league with Mahopac, Brewster, Panas, Yorktown and Lakeland, opens at its own Ronnie Weaver Memorial Tournament, which gets underway Friday, with Carmel facing Brewster at 7 p.m. Mahopac takes on Kennedy Catholic at 5 p.m. In the friendship tournament format, Carmel plays Kennedy at 3pm Saturday, with Mahopac and Brewster tipping off at 1pm.