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 Feb.6, 2013)
Sarah Daley might not stand out in a crowd, but the Springfield senior is the type of player coaches can’t live without if they hope to be successful. “From a coach’s point of view, she’s the type of student-athlete I’d probably want to clone,” Springfield lacrosse coach Ken Rodoff said. “She comes to practice every day ready to work her hardest, she doesn’t’ take a drill off or a play off, and she’s able to recover from adversity real well.” Daley’s basketball coach echoed similar sentiments. “She does whatever you ask her to do,” coach Bill Krewson said. “She’s a tough kid that hangs in and always looks to finish or complete what she started. She never deviates, never does her own thing. She’s a total team girl.”
Daley, a captain, has been a positive influence on a Spartan basketball squad that has won just once in 13 league games. “She leads by example, and she has a strong work ethic,” Krewson said. “She’s one of my level-headed kids. Even though we’ve been struggling all year, every game she’s up again. She doesn’t stay down. She’s up and ready to win every time we play.”
Daley is varsity starter in three sports – field hockey, basketball and lacrosse, and it is on the lacrosse field she has experienced her greatest success. “She’s not the player who’s going to light up the stat sheet, but what she does is invaluable,” Rodoff said. “There’s won’t be a mistake once Sarah gets the ball in her lacrosse stick.” It’s a similar story on the basketball court where Daley quietly contributes. “It’s funny how people locate the star players as the scorers and all that stuff,” Krewson said. “Sarah’s a star player because she’s always on the boards. Offensively and defensively, she’s always rebounding, and she’s setting up the other girls.”
An excellent student, Daley boasts a 3.967 GPA and is a member of the National Honor Society. She’s also a member of the Spartan Media Club and is on the Morning News Team, helping to produce the school’s morning news television show and occasionally starring in it. Next fall, Daley plans to major in communications and digital media at either the University of Pittsburgh or West Chester. Daley is a member of the French Club. She spends her summers working at the township-sponsored Kidz Klubhouse where she is a counselor for four- and five-year-olds. She teaches Sunday School to third graders at St. Thomas Church.
To read Daley’s complete profile, please click on the following link: http://www.suburbanonesports.com/featured-athletes/female/sarah-daley-0032125
Univest’s SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Male Athlete (Week of Feb.6, 2013)
Merdic Green and his coach didn’t always see eye-to-eye when the Harry S. Truman senior was a freshman. That has changed. “Over the years, we’ve communicated our feelings and talked,” Green said. “Now we don’t even have to talk at all to communicate. It’s just unspoken. We’re really close, and he’s really helped me. He’s been great.” The feeling is mutual. “Merdic is a very good kid,” coach Alan Munford said. “He’s good on the basketball court, good in the classroom, good with the younger kids in the program. He’s the type of kid that every coach wants. He listens. He does everything you ask of him. He has fought through adversity and succeeded. He has a bright future ahead.”
Some of that adversity has involved academics. But Green has dedicated himself to doing well – not just in the sports arena, but otherwise. “He has a tremendous work ethic off the court,” Munford said. “He has overcome challenges and economics. He’s just a phenomenal kid. He’s always working on his game. It’s been wonderful to coach him.” Truman has not had a tradition of success. Green has changed that this year. The Tigers have won 11 games and are in the thick of the playoff hunt. “I never thought we’d be in this situation,” Munford said. “Merdic is different than what the media is used to seeing out of Truman. Sometimes what you see are good athletes who aren’t necessarily good people, but he’s both. He’s a diamond in the rough. He’s the ideal student-athlete. He’s just a great person and a wonderful man to be around. It’s been amazing to watch him grow. He has put our team on his back and carried us.”
Green, who hit the 1,000-point plateau, has caught the attention of several Division 2 and 3 colleges. He has been Truman’s leading scorer the last two years and this year is averaging 23 points a game. He’s also among the team leaders in rebounds, assists and steals. Plus he has worked to make his game more versatile. “Every single year that I’ve given him any direction, he has always come back improved,” Munford said. “Now he’s unstoppable. If every kid on the team was like him, we’d be the state champion.”
Green plans to attend college next year although he has not decided on a school.
To view Green’s complete profile, please click on the following link: http://www.suburbanonesports.com/featured-athletes/male/merdic-green-0032128
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