Saints fight to finish

Everyone in Churchville was looking forward to the 2002-03 girl's basketball season in October. The 2002 Most Valuable Player, Joanna Patalano, and two other members of the 2002 all-star team (Kelly Monahan and Katie Sullivan) returned from last season's sectional championship team. Add in Coach of the Year Ryan Raftery and expectations were high.

First Patalano went down with a season-ending knee injury. Then Kelly Monahan missed eleven games with mononucleosis and suddenly, the team was running with only two wheels. In spite of all the roadblocks put in their way, the Saints battled to an 11-9 regular season record and were seeded fifth for the playoffs. After a first round bye, the Saints beat fourth-seeded East High 48-45 to set up a battle with top-seeded Fairport.

The Red Raiders led by eleven points after the first quarter and held on to defeat Churchville-Chili 66-57 in the sectional semi-finals at Webster-Schroeder.

"We took some bad shots and they transitioned very well in the first quarter, but I'm proud of the way these players fought back today and this season," said head coach Ryan Raftery.

After spotting Fairport the lead, the Saints took over the next two quarters. Sullivan made a three-pointer from the right corner and Monahan hit two lay-ups to bring C-C within six points early in the second quarter before allowing the Red Raiders to take a nine point lead at half-time. Fairport ran their lead to 14 halfway through the third quarter before the Saints stormed back. Monahan scored twelve of her sixteen points to combine with baskets from Katie Voorheis and Angela Mancini to trail by seven at the end of three.

Early in the fourth, Trish Steiner drilled a three-pointer and Colleen Montgomery followed with an offensive rebound putback to cut the lead to four, but that was as close as the Saints would get. Sullivan kept the game close with the 70th three-pointer of her career while Sara Begley and Voorheis made clutch free throws. Senior guard Julie Vislay closed out the scoring with a lay-up with seven seconds left.

Monahan closed out her career with a team leading 16 points and dished out five assists. Voorheis scored 12 points to go with 18 rebounds. Sullivan scored nine points and is now just two three-pointers behind the Saints all-time career record and passed the 500 point mark to enter the top ten with two years to play. Mancini also chipped in nine points. Sabrina Boykins led Fairport with 16 points.