Trib HSSN Girls Basketball Team of the Week for week ending Dec. 18, 2021

By: Don Rebel
Sunday, December 19, 2021 | 10:26 PM

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It has been a great start to the season for traditional girls basketball power Blackhawk.

The Cougars are 4-0, winning both of their games this past week.

The third victory of the season was special, though. Monday’s win over Rochester gave Blackhawk coach Steve Lodovico win No. 300 in his 17-year career.

“To be honest, I don’t think many coaches worry about personal accomplishments all that much,” Lodovico said. “We just really enjoy coaching the game and watching kids grow and find success. I can say the thing that made 300 special was that I was able to accomplish this at one school. Blackhawk is a special place that has been a big part of my life since my childhood.”

Lodovico won three WPIAL and PIAA championships as a player at Blackhawk and has led the Cougars girls team as coach to three district crowns and two state titles.

Another reason Monday’s win was special is it was a 28-point triumph over top-ranked and three-time defending Class A champion Rochester.

“Rochester is a very good team, and their success over the past three years is remarkable,” Lodovico said. “We always try to challenge our team with a tough nonsection schedule. The girls love playing games like these. This group is ultra-competitive, and they were ready for the challenge of playing the Rams.”

The Cougars followed up that victory Thursday with win in their Section 2-4A opener over Montour, 69-23.

“We approach each game like it’s a championship game,” Lodovico said. “The key to our victory over Montour was to make them play at our pace. We have always been a program that likes to play fast and to make the opponent uncomfortable when playing us. A lot of what we do comes from the defensive end. We like to create tempo by using multiple presses to speed up the opponent.

“Montour is a very good team with a lot of talented players. To be able to win that game the way we did was a good sign that we may have something special.“

Junior Kassie Potts led the Cougars in scoring Monday with 18 points. Junior Quinn Borroni added 13 points.

Alena Fusetti led Blackhawk on Thursday with 19 points with senior Casey Nixon scoring 10 points.

While there may not be any superstars, Lodovico loves his team’s depth.

“When you ask about top players that’s very hard with this group, and honestly I think that’s what makes us different. We have a boatload of good players that all contributed to our success so far this season. This is by far the deepest team that I’ve ever coached. Realistically we could play 12 girls without much of a drop off. The other thing that’s great about this group is they are very unselfish and do not worry about individual accolades. The only thing they care about is winning and having fun.”

This group had success a year ago, finishing 13-6 overall and reaching the WPIAL quarterfinals, but it was a tough season for Lodovico and the program when the Cougars lost two assistant coaches to cancer in a span of two months with the passing of Steve’s father and Blackhawk baseball coach Bob Amalia.

“To be honest, it’s still a very sensitive subject,” Lodovico said. “Both of them were two of the closest people in my life. There isn’t a day that goes by where I don’t think about them both. Not only was I impacted greatly by the loss of them, but so were the girls. To go out there and play a season going through that was an every-day challenge. There were a lot of tears and pain throughout the season. Both of those coaches were always on our minds.

“This year, I finally see them getting back to their normal selves and playing the game they love without the stress of all that happened last year.”

The 4-0 start is nice for Blackhawk, but Lodovico realizes there are plenty of hurdles ahead in a tough section.

“I think when you look back through the history of our section you will find that every year, it has been the toughest, most talented section in 4A. There were a lot of high-caliber players that graduated last season, so I don’t think it has as many dominant players, however there are still some very good teams.”

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