Women’s basketball has certainly come a long way

It’s amazing!

We’re talking about the strides made in women’s sports competition down through the years.

Take girls basketball competition for instance. I can remember when the gals started playing on a competitive level. It was one of the most boring things you could imagine. There were more jump balls, turnovers and miscues than you could shake a stick at. One couldn’t wait for the buzzer to ring, mercifully signaling and end to the game.

Well, that’s all changed now. I know in some instances where the gals could very well give the boys a run for their money. The girls games today are exciting, well played and well-coached. They play defense and can shoot the ball. They know the game and they know what it takes to win. They also have good coaches and excellent players.

And you know what, the crowds are even getting larger.

Do you know what brought this all about?

Let’s use the word competition as the front-runner. Lose enough and you learn that to win you must keep up with the winners. Good coaching is No. 2 on the list for without good coaching a team is lost. And of course, there’s the fundamentals like rebounding, dribbling, ballhandling and shooting. They all figure in to make a good team even better.

Of course, the big word is desire. Without desire and the will to win, you can literally close the book.

I’m going to use former Sharpsville High School’s outstanding basketball player Kasey Gardner, as a prime example of what it takes to become successful on the hardwood.

Gardner has all the traits mentioned before plus a whole lot more. She was a standout with Jeff Hanley’s Sharpsville Blue Darlings during her high school career. Now, she’s a freshman with the Lady Raiders of Shippensburg University and she’s doing extremely well, especially for a freshman.

She has already earned a fist-full of awards including being named the PSAC West Rookie of the Week six times.

In an 88-75 victory over highly rated Indiana University of Pennsylvania earlier, Kasey and the Lady Eagles’ high scoring sensation, Lauren Beckley, combined for 47 points to lead the upset.

Kasey totaled 25 points and went 6-9 from three-point range, just two shy of tying Shippensburg’s single-game standard for three-pointers.

And in a more recent turn of events, Kasey and her Lady Eagles invaded Slippery Rock niversity where Hanley and his coaching staff, plus the Blue Darling team were going to attend to lend support for Gardner.

As things turned out, Shippensburg lost to Slippery Rock, 74-58, in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division clash.

Gardner tossed in 13 points in the losing effort while teammate

Beckley added 23.

It looks like Kasey made the move from scholastic basketball to the college ranks without skippimg a beat. I’m sure you will hear a lot more about Gardner in the future, She’s a competitor and it shows.

Two Titans named

The Presidents’ Athletic Conference named two Westminster College men’s basketball players to its 2008 All-Pac Men’s Basketball Team, voted on by the league’s coaches.

Senior guard Craig Hannon (New Castle, Pa./Union) earned second team All-PAC honors by averaging 18.6 points-per-game, ranked third in the league. Hannon, who posted 13 games with 20 or more points including three 30-point games, became Westminster’s all-time leading scorer with 1,717 career points. He also finished his career as the team’s leader with 355 three pointers.

Sophomore forward Ryne Murray (Pittsburgh, Pa./Upper St. Clair) also earned second team honors. He led the PAC with 10 rebounds per game while also averaging 17.8 points. Murray posted 12 double-doubles during the season including career highs of 21 rebounds vs. Waynesburg and 27 points vs. Penn State Behrend. He scored in double figures in all but one game, including 10 games with 20 or more points.