The players of the Cathedral Catholic basketball team have muscled their way through the season and nothing has been able to stop or slow the fearsome Dons as they continue to gain momentum with every passing game. The Dons have dominated their last two games against La Jolla and Scripps Ranch but fell just 11 points short of beating University City on Thursday, putting them at an impressive overall record of 15-9.
“Right now we’re working hard and making steady progress,” said head coach Will Cunningham. “We’re focusing on our defense, our rebounding, and consistent offensive play.” Coach Cunningham’s instruction has had an obvious affect on the team’s game, as the average rebounds per game have increased from the low 20’s at the middle of the season to the 30’s currently. The Dons have accumulated wins from schools such as Scripps Ranch, La Jolla, Carlsbad, Escondido, Madison, and Saint Augustine, most of which were won here at Cathedral.
Senior center Juan Martinez and senior shooting-guard Marco Kengott have both had outstanding seasons with Martinez leading the team in points, rebounds, and blocks per game while Kengott leads in assists per game.
Many people don’t understand the surge of excitement players get every time they’re called off the bench out onto the court. “You’re chilling on the bench and then you hear coach call you and your blood freezes,” said Kengott. “He tells you to be ready when your name is called, and your heart starts pumping, and you just have to be ready to do work.”
Martinez, as well as senior point-guard Corey Garcia and sophomore shooting-guard Nick Prunty agree to Kengott’s description of the surreal feelings experienced as they are called off the bench to help tear another win from the opposing team.
According to Prunty, it’s essential that every player know exactly what their role is.
“The only way for the whole team to succeed is for every player to know what they’re doing,” said Prunty. “It’s what makes us a team instead of just five guys running around on a court.”
Aside from team practices, every athlete knows that the only way to constantly hone and refine their skills is to practice at home, at friends’ houses, or anywhere you can fit it in.
Garcia said, “I shoot free throws outside at home. It helps a lot to keep working at something if you want to get better at it.”
Prunty agrees, “You’ve got to work outside to get better, there’s no other way to do it.”
For many players, just practicing isn’t enough to get the edge they need to dominate the court; players need to eat healthy and work out to ensure they are at their peak physical fitness. According to Kengott, it’s not enough to just practice, as he says, “I get my lift on.”
Every team has their pre-game rituals to get pumped up.
“First, coach Cunningham gets us together and reads a Bible passage that relates to the game,” said Kengott, “It helps motivate us and remind us to take God wherever we go.”
Garcia added, “We get a team circle going to get that adrenaline pumping just before we get onto the court.”
The team agrees that little things – the day the game falls on, the amount of people, and even the music played during warm-ups – all affect the atmosphere of the game.
“You’ve got to be focused,” said Garcia. “You get more nervous when there’s more people, and you’ve got to have good music – it’s a necessity.”
Not only does the amount of people affect the feel of the game, but the day influences it as well. “It’s definitely different for every game,” said Kengott. “Tuesday games are pretty lax because it’s a school night, and not as many people show up. Friday games are a different story, though; you’re jacked up for the weekend, and there’s a lot of people yelling and cheering, and you feel like a pro.”
As for the championship, coach Cunningham said, “That’s always the goal for everybody, but certain things have to go your way to go down that road. For our next game against Mission Bay we’re just going to focus on us and do our things well for a favorable outcome.”
There’s always the legendary rivalry between Cathedral Catholic and Saint Augustine to take into consideration. The Dons lost their first game against the Saints but then won it back later in the season to amp up the Don pride.
“Beating Saint Augustine was a good victory for us because of their higher ranking and better overall record, but they still pose a serious threat and are probably one of the best teams in Division 3 right now. We’re looking forward to the challenge of playing them again next Friday.”
Despite the many challenges facing the Dons as the season continues, they are expected to rise above them and bring home many more wins for a strong record. With the future in mind, the Dons basketball team is looking good and thinking positively. “The only way to get better is to play better teams,” said Martinez. “You can only sharpen iron with iron.”