FanPost

Falling in love with the 1968-69 Lady Gaels

Carolyn Volpi (#22) wowed for the 1969 St. Mary's High School Gaelettes. - Karen Floriani

My first basketball love on the women’s side can be answered without debate: the St. Mary’s High School Lady Gaels.

Back in the day, they were the Gaelettes and the team played in the afternoons. During my days as a St. Mary’s student in Rutherford, N.J., I served as a basketball manager for the boys' team. During my junior year, 1968-69, a senior guard, Carolyn Volpi, was putting up some nice numbers and I had to see her play. The girls played before the boys' practices, so I made it a point to stop at nearby Ernie’s Deli for a Pepsi and get to the girls' game.

The high school girls' game was played six on six. Volpi, playing on the offensive side, could handle the ball and shoot from fifteen feet (no 3-point arc, thank you very much). Wearing a small watch on her left wrist (no jewelry check back in the day), Volpi was a 5-foot-2 dynamo who'd get her numbers plenty, but while playing unselfishly.

She sparked a strong 14-2 Lady Gael record.

A year later, Volpi graduated and I admired the play of sophomore Gail Wilhelm, whose game differed drastically from Vopi's. Volpi was a scorer. Wilhelm, on the other hand, could get into the score book with frequency and also did a little of everything, grabbing rebounds and fighting for loose balls. An all-around athlete, Wilhelm went on to enjoy a great career at St. Mary’s.

Off to college I went and during my St. Bonaventure days, I was a team manager as well. In 1971-72, the women's club officially became a varsity program. The game was five on five now, and from that standpoint, quite appealing.

Women played the early 1970s at Butler Gym -- an antiquated facility given way to beer socials. They then moved, rightfully so, to Reilly Center, where they shared the court with the men.

The program went through some name changes since its 1959 beginning. From the Squaws and the Lassies to the Bonnettes (during my days), to the Lady Bonnies and now, finally, the Bonnies.

Undergrad days with managing on the men’s side limited my attendance at the games. In graduate school, with more time available, trips to the "RC" to watch the Lady Bonnies were more frequent. Win or lose, I loved watching them play -- loved the style of play I was watching. My affection for the women’s game was growing.

After college, the beginning of my part-time journalistic career had me covering the men. There was the freedom to cover women’s games as well and Montclair State, a national power, was about 10 miles from home. Seton Hall, St. Peter’s, Rutgers and Fordham also were close, and I jumped at the chance to see programs such as Texas, South Carolina, USC and Maryland venture into the Garden State.

Games at Madison Square Garden showcased powers like Queens, Old Dominion, Louisiana Tech and Delta State.

Coverage on my part slowed during the 1980s and 1990s, yet I still followed the women. Beside writing, officiating since 1988 gave me a close-up view of the game and allowed me to stay closely involved in women’s hoops. I also officiated with a few legends in the game, namely Gail Marquis and Carol Blezejowski.

In 2007, I wrote about a few seventh grade games that I officiated for Swish Appeal’s FanPosts. I also wrote about a few college games. Then-editor Nate Parham reached out asking if I would like to cover the New York Liberty. Needless to say, I jumped at the opportunity. To think the seventh grade girls gave me a chance to get involved in the WNBA?! A chance to interview and meet the likes of Tina Charles, Diana Taurasi, Maya Moore and Lindsay Whalen -- just to name just a few.

Today, there is fair amount of college coverage. When the MAAC was in Albany and started a women’s triple-header at 9:30 a.m. ET -- no question, just set the alarm for 5 a.m. to make it for the opening tip. Simply, the girls' and women’s games are a joy to watch, analyze and behold.

On occasion these days, I venture to cover high school games. Each time the past few years, it’s back to St. Mary’s (now St. Mary). The girls now have most of their games at night, not having to work around boys’ practices. Current Gaels coach Jamie LoBue can laugh at my stories of the girls playing six on six -- not in shorts, but wearing long skirts.

An era sounding like a different century. Well, it was.

St. Mary plays in the same gym. The floor is better. The lighting, a 100% upgrade. The game, so much faster, much more technical and highly skilled, yet each trip to Rutherford for a Gael home game brings me back to the days I first witnessed Volpi's soft touch, Wilhelm's relentless hustle and a group of girls enjoying -- no, loving -- the game.

They were responsible for me loving it as well.