Whalers rack up satisfying season
BY STEVE SHEPPARD INDEPENDENT SPORTS EDITOR
Last year was 16-6, this year was 15-7, but what's important is that both Whaler editions made it to the quarterfinal round of the state tournament, the deepest any boys' basketball team from Nantucket has ever gone.

MICHAEL GALVIN/The Independent Evan Hourihan, right, is one of seven seniors hanging up his sneakers this season.

Getting there two years in a row was no accident, but with seven seniors graduating it would seem that even thinking about a third straight venture to the quarterfinals may be wishful thinking for head coach Beau Almodobar.

But the Whalers return a strong core of juniors in Butler, Delroy Lawrence, Eric Lowell, Chris Welch and Troy Sullivan, along with sophomore Rasheed Smith. The fans in the stands at Avon, who know a thing or two about basketball, were impressed with the play of Butler and Lawrence and, perhaps, a bit nervous about seeing them again.

There is no doubt Nantucket will miss its core group of seniors: Jordan Ferreira, Evan Hourihan, Adam Spencer, Tomas Smaliorius, Carl Stevens, Ed Coffin and Mike Aucoin. Most of this group have been playing together since their days at the Boys and Girls Club; by the time this season rolled around they knew each other's moves pretty much by heart. As Almodobar noted after the final game: "All of them are close; they like being with each other. It's going to be hard to replace these guys."

Ferreira's scoring prowess will be especially hard to replace, being just the fourth member of the boys' varsity to reach the 1,000 point plateau in NHS history.

And when Angela Paterson matched Ferreira's feat less than a month later, it marked a rare scoring achievement in high school basketball, and one that was not overlooked by island hoops fans.

The last couple of years have been wonderful to watch, and a treat for Whalers basketball aficionados, many of whom returned to the high school gym for the first time in years to watch both varsity teams light it up. The excitement brought by each team sure made the winter seem shorter, although hoops withdrawal has set in. It was a season worth waiting for, and one that ended all too abruptly. Thanks to both teams for a great run.

Some random reminiscences from the season:

•Evan Hourihan's three-point bomb from way beyond the circle against So. Shore Vo-Tech and his 3- pointer against Avon that brought the Whalers within 6 points at the end of the first period, setting the spark for an impressive Nantucket run in the second quarter of that game.

•The steady, hustling play of Tomas Smaliorius. The senior has been a quiet, yet efficient, team player who adapted well to the variety of roles he was asked to fill.

•The passing down the stretch, particularly in the South Shore Vo-

Tech game. The game started with a nice feed from Lawrence to Butler and only got better. The third period, in particular, was a showcase in which Lawrence fed Ferreira on a couple of nice, court-length heaves.

•Simply watching as Ferreira bore down on 1,000 points as his father, Tom, and his brother, Michael - his coaches - shared in his joy from courtside.

•Last year, the Whalers bench was down to 8 players for the quarter-final game against Westwood. What a difference to have a full complement suited up, and to witness the emergence of Delroy Lawrence as the season drew to a close.

And, finally, no surprise - Avon went on to claim the Division 4 South Sectional championship, but it took two overtimes in an 84-81 victory

over Cathedral. I