THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – Friday, March 13, 2020 Page 13 Saugus senior girls look back on four-year careers By Greg Phipps H aving played basketball at the varsity level since their freshman years, Saugus senior captains Taylor Bogdanski, Kiley Ronan and Molly Granara admitted to a sense of sadness to see their careers come to end this season in the quarterfinal round of the Div. 2 North tournament. The Lady Sachems produced an average of nearly 15 victories a season – 59 in all – and made the postseason every year during the trio’s four seasons on the varsity squad. “It’s definitely sad to see it end. We’re like family, we’re like sisters,” said Bogdanski of her senior teammates, which include captains Shaylin Groark, Jessica Nazzaro and Jill Ricupero, who had played varsity since their sophomore years. “We were all so close. I’m definitely going to miss them.” Saugus finished with a 16-5 record in 2019-20. The Lady Sachems received a bye in the opening round of the tournament before facing off against Newburyport in the quarterfinals, where they battled back from a double-digit deficit after three quarters but fell short, 40-32. Despite the disappointing loss, Ronan feels good about the season as a whole. “I was happy with this season. We lost a few seniors from last year, but we had some [underclassmen] and freshmen players come in and contribute right away,” Ronan observed. “We were able to click.” Bogdanski felt no regrets about the team’s effort right to the end. “I couldn’t have asked for any more from the team,” she said. “We played as hard as Departing senior girls’ basketball team players Taylor Bogdanski, Kiley Ronan and Molly Granara helped the program earn 59 wins over the past four years. we could in that last game. It just didn’t go our way.” Granara agreed it is a sad feeling that the seniors won’t be playing together anymore. She said she benefited from playing against older players when she first came in as a freshman, and that the emphasis on practice and hard work over the years helped her improve her game. “Having to go up against bigger seniors when I was younger helped me get to where I am now,” she said. “It made me better to play against the bigger girls. I worked on my shooting, too, especially from the outside, and I practiced my post-up game and improved there.” For Bogdanski, off-season competition playing Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) basketball helped hone her skills. “I put in a lot of work in the past four years playing AAU year round, and I think it showed on the court in so many ways,” she said. Bogdanski finished as the team’s top scorer in a number of games this season. Defense was Ronan’s specialty but she admitted she was overzealous at first and had to learn over time to defend “the right way.” Her shooting was also a weak spot early in her career. “Every practice I had coaches pulling me aside to work on it, and I think it’s where I improved the most,” Ronan observed. “My freshman year I definitely struggled; I wasn’t one of the better players on the team.. But being able to practice and play with the varsity made me a better player.” Looking back at the past four seasons, Bogdanski cited the two Northeastern Conference titles in 2016-17 and 2018-19, making the playoffs after moving into Division 2 in 2017-18 and winning a convincing firstround playoff against Marblehead last year. “I had so much fun,” she recalled. “The experience is something I’ll never forget, and I can’t wait to come back and watch [the team] next year.” “I was lucky to have a great group of girls with me over these four years,” said Ronan. “It’s bittersweet for me. I’m definitely going to miss playing for this team.” Asked about head coach Mark Schruender, who has guided the Lady Sachems during this four-year stretch, Granara said she and the others “knew him way before basketball started for us” and that he’s a great coach to play for. Ronan added that the relationship with Schruender goes back to middle school. “He was my sixth grade teacher and I had him for home room. I think he’s a great person, a great teacher and a great coach,” she said.
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