By Matthew Rocco
The Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School girls’ basketball team has a talented group of returning players, and they’re ready to hit the floor running this season.
The Bulldogs went an impressive 22-7 during the 2015-16 season and advanced as far as the NJSIAA Central Jersey, Group II finals under head coach George Sourlis, who retired after 30 years at the helm. Rumson-Fair Haven’s new head coach, Dave Callahan, is impressed by what he saw from his team during the summer and recent scrimmages.
At the Under Armour Best of Maryland summer tournament, the Bulldogs had a one-point win over Wayne High School (Huber Heights, Ohio), which was ranked No. 17 in a preseason poll by MaxPreps.com. Rumson-Fair Haven’s preseason games included top-tier teams in New Jersey: Immaculate Heart Academy, Gill St. Bernard’s School and Rutgers Preparatory School.
After handling an onslaught of preseason competition, the Bulldogs are close to midseason form, even before the season has begun.
“We feel like we’re ready to jump in,” said Callahan, who spent six seasons as an assistant coach for the Bulldogs’ boys’ basketball program.
Rumson-Fair Haven will open the season in the Festival of the Phoenix hosted by Matawan Regional High School. The team is scheduled to play Saddle River Day School Dec. 16 at 6:30 p.m. in the Matawan-Aberdeen Middle School gym.
When the Bulldogs take the floor for the first time, there will be plenty of familiar faces despite losing standout players Nicole Morris, Stephanie Lesko and Sydney Sabino to graduation.
Seniors Hannah Scanlan, Katie Foos and Megan Volker are back in the fold. Scanlan, a Bryant University-bound forward, posted 11 points per game last season. Foos, who is headed to New York University next year, had 8.6 points per game.
Junior Tori Hyduke returns to her role as the starting point guard. Michaela McGarvey, an up-and-coming junior, will join her in the backcourt. McGarvey spent much of last season on the sidelines with an injury.
“We can do a little bit of everything,” Callahan said. “We have an excellent inside player in Scanlan. She’s tenacious and can score inside. Katie, Tori, Megan and Michaela are all deadly shooters. I think we can spread the floor and let our kids’ talent shine this year.”
Callahan likes his team’s depth, too. It starts with senior Abby Kelly, who is the sixth player on the depth chart. Juniors Pheobe Spernal, Makenna Maguire and Ana Brendel add depth to the backcourt. The Bulldogs also welcome two freshmen who could make a big impact. Lucy Adams, who stands 6 feet 1 inch tall, is very athletic and bound to be a great player, according to Callahan. Shae Sabino is another hard-working freshman with a bright future.
The talent is there to make another run at a state title, but the Bulldogs are aware of what’s ahead in the Shore Conference’s loaded Class A Central Division. Even at 22-7 overall last season, the Bulldogs finished third in their division behind St. John Vianney High School and Manasquan High School — two rival powerhouses in the state.
The way Callahan sees it, competition is the best way to prepare for tournament play, and Rumson-Fair Haven is used to playing the best teams around.
That experience will bode well for the Bulldogs in December, as the team gets right to business at the Festival of the Phoenix and the Mount St. Dominic Holiday Basketball Festival. In the holiday showcase, the Bulldogs will play multiple teams, including Piscataway Township High School and Franklin High School.
The Bulldogs also have a non-divisional game against Red Bank Catholic High School on the schedule, plus a matchup with Roselle Catholic High School as part of a boys’-girls’ doubleheader at home Jan. 22.
Callahan is focused on maintaining the program’s elite status. Under Sourlis, the Bulldogs took home 14 NJSIAA sectional championships and five group titles. The longtime coach amassed 653 career wins at Rumson-Fair Haven, which is a Shore Conference basketball record.
“If I can do what George did, I would bottle it up in a second,” Callahan said. “What I learned when I was a Naval officer as a young man is you can’t try to be somebody else. I’m so proud of the program that George built over the years.”
The Bulldogs have a motto, emphasizing the “Three Es:” enthusiasm, effort and energy. With those ingredients, the Bulldogs expect more big things to happen this winter.
