Familiar name leads Prospect girls hoops
This winter, Prospect will have its fourth girls basketball coach in more than 40 years.
But new coach Ashley Sandstead Graham is quite familiar to those who follow the Mid-Suburban League.
She was a four-time Daily Herald All-Area guard for coach Tom Dineen at Buffalo Grove before going on to captain the Illinois State women’s team her junior and senior years. The past three years, Graham has been an assistant coach to the hall of famer Dineen at Stevenson High School.
At Prospect, she will follow in the coaching footsteps of hall of famer Jean Walker, Mike Nocella and Martha Kelly.
“I am so excited for the opportunity that Prospect has given me and I feel it is just a great fit,” Graham said. “I am glad to be part of a wonderful conference.
“A foundation has certainly been laid with Jean Walker, Mike Nocella and Martha Kelly and I look forward to enriching that foundation and tradition.”
Teaching and coaching have always been a passion for Graham.
“I really feel like I am living my dream,” she said. “I am very fortunate for the opportunity both Stevenson and now Prospect has given me to make my dreams a reality. I believe with Mr. Dineen’s mentoring, my experience at Stevenson, and playing experience at Buffalo Grove and Illinois State, I am ready to take the next step as a head coach and I want to embrace it.”
Graham has loved the game of basketball for as long as she can remember.
“Those that inspired me to coach were obviously Mr. Dineen and my coaching staff at Illinois State who are now all coaching at Missouri,” Graham said. “Mr. Dineen taught me when I was a player for him and when I coached with him, what it takes to be successful and how to go about achieving success.”
After graduating from Illinois State, Graham quickly found herself sitting next to Dineen as his assistant at Stevenson.
“He gave me an opportunity right out of college and for that I will always be grateful,” Graham said. “We had a great run together at Buffalo Grove and Stevenson. He is someone who has done so much for me throughout my youth and adult life. I appreciate all the support he has given me in pursuing my dreams.”
Graham will never forget her days at Illinois State as well.
“It is hard to put into words what the coaching staff there did for me,” she said. “We were very successful as a basketball program, but more importantly, they did things the right way and treated us like their daughters. We were a family and they taught us all how to embrace life and opportunities.”
Graham said the impact of her ISU coaches went well beyond the game of basketball.
“They had a passion to serve others and at the same time educating, mentoring, and challenging us to give our best and become the best basketball players and human beings we were capable of becoming,” she said. “They were just tremendous role models and we have continued our relationship as friends.”
Graham joins three other coaches in the league (Barrington’s Babbi Barreiro, Hersey’s Mary Fendley and Schaumburg’s Ashley Berggren) who also played in the MSL.
“My goal is obviously to win championships, but my true passion lies in the impact that I will have on young ladies’ lives,” Graham said. “And being able to provide them with the tools to succeed in all aspects of their life now and in the future.”
Graham is in her second year teaching physical education at Wescott Elementary School in Northbrook.
She plans to have a disciplined and well-prepared team.
“We will be running a high-tempo offense and pride ourselves on our pressure defense,” she said. “It will be a system that the players will love to play in, fans will love to watch and coaches will love to teach.”
Softball
The Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference named UW-Oshkosh designated player and freshman Julie Sweeney (St. Viator) its softball “Position Player of the Week.”
Sweeney hit .636 (7-for-11) with 2 home runs and 9 RBI as Oshkosh compiled a 5-1 record in games against Stevens Point, River Falls and Stout.
Sweeney, who also compiled a 2-1 pitching record in four appearances, went to the plate in three of the Titans’ six games. She scored 4 runs while adding a double. In Oshkosh’s 10-3 win over Stevens Point, Sweeney had a 2-run home run among her 3 hits.
In an 8-7 win over defending WIAC champion UW-River Falls, she went 2-for-5 with 2 RBI and in a 13-5 loss to Stout, Sweeney was 2-for-3 with 5 RBI, including a 3-run double and 2-run homer.
MSL softball
Mid-Suburban League softball teams will participate in “Strike Out Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma Day” on Wednesday, May 9.
Fund raisers will be held to help raise money for the cure.
Palatine will host Fremd that day.
Vikings coach Jim Weaver and Pirates coach Jeff Manz are the sons-in-law of longtime area coach Dennis Lynch, who died March 9 after a 10-year battle with non-Hodgkins lymphoma.
Lacrosse
Rensselaer junior attacker Audrey Stapleton (Barrington) has appeared in nine games and has 3 goals for 3 points. She has also scooped up five groundballs, caused one turnover, and won three draw controls.
Rensselaer is 13-1 and recently earned a playoff berth for the third straight season.
Men’s volleyball
Lewis sophomore setter BJ Boldog (Palatine) was named to the American Volleyball Coaches Association All-America second team.
Boldog helped the seventh-ranked Flyers advance to the 2012 Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association Championship.
Boldog has led the Lewis offense to a .324 hitting percentage this season.
It is the Flyers’ best season hitting percentage since coach Dan Friend took over the reigns of the Lewis program in 2005. Boldog averaged 11.36 assists in MIVA play, best in the conference. For the season he has recorded 1,049 assists (10.70 per set). Boldog was named to the All-MIVA First Team last week.
“BJ has been the catalyst of our offense, putting guys in position to continuously score points as indicated by our season hitting percentage,” Friend said. “Not only is his physical skill a huge reason for our success but his leadership as a setter on the floor has been crucial in several key matches.”
It is the first AVCA all-American award for Boldog, who has helped Lewis to a 25-6 record and a 2012 regular season MIVA championship this season.
Basketball
The Integrity Group announced pairings for next season’s “High School Hoops Showdown.”
The nationally known event, which has averaged close to 5,000 fans, returns to the Sears Centre Arena in Hoffman Estates. The tripleheader is set for Saturday, Jan 26, 2013.
In an East Suburban Catholic Conference matchup, Notre Dame (20-9 last season) will face St. Viator (25-4) in the 4:30 p.m. game
The defending ESCC champion Lions will return key players, including junior forward Ore Arogundade.
Naperville Central will face Benet at 6:30 p.m. followed by St. Joseph vs. West Aurora at 8:30 p.m.
Tickets for all three games ($12 for adults and $10 for students) will be available at the schools, the Sears Centre Arena Box Office or by calling 1-888-SEARS- TIX (732-7784).
Or you can go online at www.searscentre.com. All seats are reserved and sold on a “first-come, first-served” basis.
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