SuburbanOneSports.com recognizes a male and female featured athlete each week. The awards, sponsored by Univest, are given to seniors of good character who are students in good standing that have made significant contributions to their teams. Selections are based on nominations received from coaches, athletic directors and administrators.
Univest’s SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Female Athlete (Week of March 9, 2017)
Molly Dugan’s basketball season was following the perfect script. The Springfield senior surpassed the 1,000-point plateau – the first female to reach that milestone since 2011, and her Spartan squad appeared destined to earn a postseason berth. Not a bad way for the senior standout, who will not play collegiate basketball, to close out a memorable chapter of her high school experience. “If someone would have told me this was going to be my senior year, I would have laughed at them,” Dugan said. “It was awesome scoring the thousand points. I think I had more fun once it was over, and I stopped worrying about it. Afterwards, I kept thinking, ‘Oh no, this is the end of my season, this is my last time playing basketball.”
The last time playing basketball came seven games sooner than anyone expected when Dugan went down in the opening minutes of the Spartans’ game at Cheltenham. The prognosis: a partially torn MCL and some ligament damage. “My whole basketball career I have never had anything like this,” Dugan said. “I’m not going to lie – I could not watch the games at first. I was pretty upset and moody about it. Toward the end, I tried to pull it together and be a leader for the team and support everyone as much as I could.” Although it was painful for Dugan to watch from the sidelines, she never missed a practice or game. “That tells you what a great kid she is,” coach Bill Krewson said. “She was there supporting, coaching, running the clock, doing whatever she could to help out. It was a heartbreaker. She’s one of the greatest team players I’ve ever coached.”
And that, according to Krewson, will be Dugan’s legacy. “To me, she was the smartest basketball player I have coached since I was working with the girls,” said Krewson. “By her senior year, she was not only playing the game, she was reading the game, reading the other team and helping other players along as far as what was going on.” While the 5-5 guard was a prolific scorer, that’s not what set her apart. “You play a trap defense, she’s kind of the quarterback,” Krewson said. “In the beginning, she was a shooter and that’s all she did. Her second year she started going to the basket and getting to the foul line, and she was just incredible from the foul line. She was 18-for-19, 19-for-21 and 17-for-19 from the foul line during a four-game span.”
Dugan – a rare three-sport athlete - was a captain of the soccer team last fall, and although she will be not be playing lacrosse this spring, she will be a manager. An honor roll student, Dugan has been a member of Student Council all four years of high school. This fall she will attend Temple University. She is undecided on a major.
To read Dugan’s complete profile, please click on the following link: http://www.suburbanonesports.com/featured-athletes/female/molly-dugan-0068491
Univest’s SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Male Athlete (Week of March 9, 2017)
Upper Dublin basketball coach Josh Adelman might not be accused of seeing visions, but he was a bit of a visionary when he first laid eyes on Michael Cottom. “I met Michael when he was in sixth grade – he was in my health class,” Adelman said. “I didn’t realize how talented athletically he was until I saw him in Physical Education class. Michael displayed this blinding speed in all the different sports units we covered in PE class. It was a sight to behold. Some kids are fast, but Michael was by far the fastest kid I have ever had the pleasure of coaching. As a basketball coach, I immediately thought I had my future point guard developing before my eyes.”
There was a perilous moment in time when the vision Adelman had of his future point guard appeared to be in jeopardy, or at least was derailed. Cottom suffered a serious ankle sprain prior to his junior football season, which carried over into basketball, and he only played in a few late-season games. The lost time could not be recovered, but Cottom was ready to make up for lost time. He made it through a 12-2 football season relatively healthy as running back/receiver/returner and then worked to get into basketball shape. “He came into his senior season knowing this was his team an obviously his last chance to display his talent on the basketball court,” Adelman said. “He didn’t disappoint. Out of a 32-minute varsity game, Michael had to play approximately 31 minutes. Michael’s motor never stops. He led by example and was always ready to take on any competition, even though our team had a rebuilding year.” Cottom led the Cardinals in assists and steals and was team MVP.
After being hurt and sidelined much of the previous fall, Cottom felt a sense of redemption as a senior as the Cardinals reached the playoffs and earned a share of the SOL American Conference title with Plymouth Whitemarsh. Accoring to coach Bret Stover, Cottom’s role was to be more of a Swiss Army Knife than to have one set mission. That meant returning kicks, lining up in the slot or as a tailback. It meant going deep for passes or running sweeps. “He was the guy who blew the top off coverages for us,” Stover said. “He opened things up for other people, but he also had some big plays for us.”
Cottom – who has joined the track this spring - will continue his football career at Lock Haven University. “He’s going to be a steal,” Stover said. “His best football is still in front of him.”
To read Cottom’s complete profile, please click on the following link: http://www.suburbanonesports.com/featured-athletes/male/michael-cottom-0068490
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