Hoops beyond their years
Hockessin program producing nationally competitive players
By BRIAN SMITH
Special to The News Journal
07/26/2004
The Hockessin Hawks aren't a typical boys basketball program, but their approach is paying off.
When basketball players are at the age of 9 or 10, they're usually learning the finer points of shooting, passing and dribbling. They're usually not running multiple defenses or learning how to beat a full-court press.
But the Hawks already are being exposed to concepts familiar to older players.
The Hawks, a 2-year-old Amateur Athletic Union program based at Sanford School, have two teams competing in national championship tournaments this summer.
The 10-under squad is in Suwanee, Ga., this week to play in the Best of the Best national championships, a program similar to AAU.
On Sunday, Parris Ridgeway-Higgs scored 16 points to lead Hockessin to the semifinals with a 40-26 win over the Washington (D.C) Stars. Timmy Massado added 10 points, Matt Morabito had eight rebounds and Chris Augustonywicz dealt six assists for the Hawks, 3-0 in the tournament. They play Rochester (N.Y.) today at 10 a.m. The final is at 2 p.m.
The 9-under team will head to Orlando, Fla., Aug. 7 for the AAU National Championships.
Both teams play on regulation 10-foot baskets, which is something of a feat for the 9-under team. Most recreational programs at that age use baskets at a lower height.
At a recent practice at Sanford, 9-under assistant coach Jeff Thompson was putting his group through inbounds plays. On an adjacent court, 10-under head coach Rod Moyer was going over the several offensive and defensive alignments his team uses and drilling them on how to apply and beat a full-court press.
"They're running full court, they are running full-court presses, they are breaking full-court presses," Thompson said. "But they do very well. They compete very well.
"They have an extreme amount of maturity for 9-year-old boys. A lot of times, we forget as parents and coaches that they are just 9 years old. They're just out of third grade."
The program was started in fall 2002 by Bob Szczecinski, who has coached basketball at St. Edmond's Academy the past seven years. He was looking to create a program that brought together kids from different social and economic backgrounds and gave them the opportunity to play basketball at a high skill level.
"Being in existence for less than two years, the success we have had has exceeded my expectations," Szczecinski said. "The number of tournaments and league titles we have won in such a short period of time is quite remarkable."
The Hawks program, which also includes an 11-under team, runs year-round. The teams play in AAU and other types of tournaments, and also participate in the Malvern Basketball League in Pennsylvania.
Both the 9-under and 10-under teams won the AAU Mid-Atlantic regional championship in their age brackets to qualify for AAU Nationals. The 10-under team elected to play in the Best of the Best nationals instead because of travel concerns. The 10-under AAU Nationals are in Springfield, Mo., this year.
The program plans to expand by adding a new 9-under team each year as the current teams move up in age. Many of the players have joined the Hawks after starting in other organized youth programs.
"A lot of kids come into the program with some amount of basic skill," Thompson said. "We try to refine that basic skill. Beyond that, it's a simple matter of encouragement, repetition and further skill development."
Jonathan Welch, 10, of Landenberg, Pa., said he has seen a marked improvement in his play since he joined the Hawks.
"I couldn't do anything with the ball," Welch said of his early practices with the team. "It's fun because there's always players that get you a lot better."
Even though the teams strive for a high level of play, the kids know they are there to have fun. But their development never ceases to amaze the adults.
"They're playing under a tremendous amount of pressure - in front of stands full of screaming fans, in front of parents, coaches and friends," Thompson said. "And they're handling this pressure as well as you would probably expect middle school or even high school kids to handle it, and they're only age 9.
"It's a lot of credit to them and to their parents for helping them mature and develop as well as they have."
Hockessin program producing nationally competitive players
By BRIAN SMITH
Special to The News Journal
07/26/2004
The Hockessin Hawks aren't a typical boys basketball program, but their approach is paying off.
When basketball players are at the age of 9 or 10, they're usually learning the finer points of shooting, passing and dribbling. They're usually not running multiple defenses or learning how to beat a full-court press.
But the Hawks already are being exposed to concepts familiar to older players.
The Hawks, a 2-year-old Amateur Athletic Union program based at Sanford School, have two teams competing in national championship tournaments this summer.
The 10-under squad is in Suwanee, Ga., this week to play in the Best of the Best national championships, a program similar to AAU.
On Sunday, Parris Ridgeway-Higgs scored 16 points to lead Hockessin to the semifinals with a 40-26 win over the Washington (D.C) Stars. Timmy Massado added 10 points, Matt Morabito had eight rebounds and Chris Augustonywicz dealt six assists for the Hawks, 3-0 in the tournament. They play Rochester (N.Y.) today at 10 a.m. The final is at 2 p.m.
The 9-under team will head to Orlando, Fla., Aug. 7 for the AAU National Championships.
Both teams play on regulation 10-foot baskets, which is something of a feat for the 9-under team. Most recreational programs at that age use baskets at a lower height.
At a recent practice at Sanford, 9-under assistant coach Jeff Thompson was putting his group through inbounds plays. On an adjacent court, 10-under head coach Rod Moyer was going over the several offensive and defensive alignments his team uses and drilling them on how to apply and beat a full-court press.
"They're running full court, they are running full-court presses, they are breaking full-court presses," Thompson said. "But they do very well. They compete very well.
"They have an extreme amount of maturity for 9-year-old boys. A lot of times, we forget as parents and coaches that they are just 9 years old. They're just out of third grade."
The program was started in fall 2002 by Bob Szczecinski, who has coached basketball at St. Edmond's Academy the past seven years. He was looking to create a program that brought together kids from different social and economic backgrounds and gave them the opportunity to play basketball at a high skill level.
"Being in existence for less than two years, the success we have had has exceeded my expectations," Szczecinski said. "The number of tournaments and league titles we have won in such a short period of time is quite remarkable."
The Hawks program, which also includes an 11-under team, runs year-round. The teams play in AAU and other types of tournaments, and also participate in the Malvern Basketball League in Pennsylvania.
Both the 9-under and 10-under teams won the AAU Mid-Atlantic regional championship in their age brackets to qualify for AAU Nationals. The 10-under team elected to play in the Best of the Best nationals instead because of travel concerns. The 10-under AAU Nationals are in Springfield, Mo., this year.
The program plans to expand by adding a new 9-under team each year as the current teams move up in age. Many of the players have joined the Hawks after starting in other organized youth programs.
"A lot of kids come into the program with some amount of basic skill," Thompson said. "We try to refine that basic skill. Beyond that, it's a simple matter of encouragement, repetition and further skill development."
Jonathan Welch, 10, of Landenberg, Pa., said he has seen a marked improvement in his play since he joined the Hawks.
"I couldn't do anything with the ball," Welch said of his early practices with the team. "It's fun because there's always players that get you a lot better."
Even though the teams strive for a high level of play, the kids know they are there to have fun. But their development never ceases to amaze the adults.
"They're playing under a tremendous amount of pressure - in front of stands full of screaming fans, in front of parents, coaches and friends," Thompson said. "And they're handling this pressure as well as you would probably expect middle school or even high school kids to handle it, and they're only age 9.
"It's a lot of credit to them and to their parents for helping them mature and develop as well as they have."