Murry Bergtraum coach Ed Grezinsky was in rare form Sunday afternoon, grabbing the microphone at the postgame press conference and tearing into all of his team’s critics. He paid special attention to MSG Varsity’s Mike Quick, the emcee of Friday’s Garden press conference, who picked South Shore to beat the Lady Blazers.
“All you haters out there, just keep hating on us,” Grezinsky said.
OK, so I have a confession to make. I was once one of those haters.
No, not this year. It didn’t take long for Bergtraum to win me over during the season. But last year, around this time, I was skeptical. I’ll admit it.
I just didn’t think it was possible for the Lady Blazers to win a 13th straight PSAL Class AA city title, which of course they did Sunday with a 56-48 win over South Shore. I knew what South Shore was bringing back. I knew what John F. Kennedy was bringing back. Bergtraum just wasn’t going to have the experience – or talent – to continue the streak.
Though I wasn’t the only one to feel that way, I couldn’t have been more wrong.
I knew what Cori Coleman could do – we put her on the Post All-City team last year for a reason. But losing Shukurah Washington, CeCe Dixon and Doris Ortega? How were Monae Abrams, Ashley Gomez and Shequana Harris going to fill their shoes?
My view started changing gradually. I saw Gomez and Harris at the Rose Classic and over the summer with New Heights and I saw how much they got better. Gomez ended up committing to Canisius early in the fall and when I wrote a story about that I told her how impressed I was with her improvement.
Not long after that, I learned former Thomas Jefferson and Oak Hill Academy (Va.) guard Shaniqua Reese would be transferring into the Lower Manhattan school and that struck a cord. I’ve always been a fan of Reese, going back to when she singlehandedly led Jefferson over Midwood in the quarterfinals as a sophomore – when she was on the same team as Alicia Cropper and Danielle Pearson.
I just wasn’t sure how she fit with the other guards already at Bergtraum. Then I watched the Lady Blazers play in the beginning of the year. Grezinsky brilliantly moved Reese into the post, utilizing her freakish leaping ability and long arms perfectly. She became a rebounding machine — Shuky Lite — alongside Abrams, who is still underrated yet Bergtraum wouldn’t have won without her and her 13 rebounds Sunday.
I was sold on Bergtraum early, when it beat John F. Kennedy after being down 11 points in the second quarter and came back to absolutely stun St. Peter’s in overtime after Coleman’s game-tying 3-pointer. But doubts popped up in my mind when the LBs lost twice in a row – at home, no less – over the holidays. Sure, they were both very good opponents, but Bergtraum doesn’t lose at home, ever.
While everyone was jumping on the Kennedy and South Shore bandwagon at the start of the playoffs, I was sticking with Bergtraum. The Lady Blazers became my favorite team to cover. They were never in a boring game. Grezinsky became a quote machine. Gomez was always insightful. Coleman shot down their doubters – verbally and physically – and Reese had a knack for making me laugh.
Bergtraum gutted through playoff wins over archrivals Manhattan Center and Kennedy in instant classics and again everyone around me thought South Shore was the team to beat at the Garden. Not me. I was going with the LBs, because no team I’ve covered in the last five years has had as much heart and character as this one.
Now they’ll go upstate and perhaps meet nationally ranked Nazareth in the NYS Federation Class AA final. Everyone will think the Lady Kingsmen will walk all over them. Not me. Not anymore.
Next year, they’ll lose Coleman, Gomez, Abrams and Reese to graduation. Everyone will again say Bergtraum’s run is over. You’ll hear me saying how Harris, Chicken Murphy and Dionne Coe will lead the Lady Blazers to No. 14.
My hating days are over.