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Summer Sessions Could Pay Dividends

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By CRISTINA LEDRA, The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 21, 2007

PORT RICHEY - Ridgewood proved last season that it was a step above all other teams in Pasco County, advancing to the region semifinals before losing to eventual state champion Lake Howell.

So the Rams' offseason plan deviated from the normal runs through summer league and instead took them all over the state and across the state line in search of opponents that could expose their weaknesses before it really counted.

They returned an even scarier team than they left off, and now the application of all they learned begins.

"It made us compete at a different level because we played teams that had everything and we had to compete with them," junior guard Alvin Satram said.

Ridgewood's summer was a steady stream of games that began in April when the Rams formed an AAU team that cost the players nothing because everything was sponsored.

It continued through Pasco County in the Pasco-Hernando Community College summer league, which the Rams breezed through.

They went to the Saint Leo Shootout.

The most valuable of all the trips was the one to North Carolina for an elite tournament that the Rams had been to twice before, but never had they been to the finals until this year. They were beaten by nationally ranked Kinston 64-59.

"We learned to play together a lot more," 6-foot-6, 190-pound forward Derrick Zio said. "Now we can do a lot more than we did. I didn't even think we were all that good until we went up to North Carolina and competed with them."

When the Rams were knocked out of the playoffs last season by Lake Howell, they didn't see it as a crushing defeat because they knew if they worked hard, they had the potential to go even further this season.

"We ended on a high note last season even though it was with a loss," Anders said. "I think what we did over the summer is maintain that level in our minds as a team and then we were able to bring some individuals along and include them."

Ridgewood's new starter, 6-foot-4, 175-pound forward Bryan Jones, was one of the individuals who benefited most from the Rams' active summer.

He went from a sophomore role player to a legitimate impact player in a matter of a few months, rounding out the Rams' starting five.

Another who has seen vast improvement since last season is Satram, a 5-8, 140-pound guard.

Satram's primary role last season was on perimeter defense and to occasionally get some baskets, but he has elevated his game to the point where he is expected to take significant scoring pressure off 2006-07 Pasco Tribune Boys Basketball Player of the Year Mike Lawrence.

And one can hardly forget about 6-8, 215-pound Lukas Poderis, who despite averaging nearly a double-double last season, likely has yet to see his strongest days on the court.

The Rams may get power forward Byronell Arline to come out for basketball again this season. He was solid on defense off the bench for the Rams last season and has expressed interest in returning to the team, but may just need some time to recover from football season.

Anders is intent on keeping his players from looking too far ahead and said that his only goal is for the Rams to win the district because anything can happen after that.

And they will have to keep an eye on teams hungry for an upset.

"We've garnered a lot of attention in the last 12 months and I think last year's team deserves the credit they got, but that was then and we have to re-establish ourselves," Anders said. "I think all the things that we have done are good in they can build your confidence but they can be bad if we're just going to rest on those things."

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