Silverado’s girls off to fast start

Tim Graham

Friday, Jan. 10, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.

Same players. Same coach. Same uniforms. Same school.

Different team.

Despite playing with a redundant roster, the Silverado girls' basketball program is enjoying success this season it couldn't have fathomed a year ago.

"We can definitely say our chances this year to make the zone tournament are a lot better than we even anticipated last year," head coach Diane Hernandez said.

In 1995-96, the Skyhawks stumbled to a 3-8 start before winning six of their last eight games and squeaking into the Southern Zone tournament as the No. 5 seed. In seasons past, only four teams qualified for the postseason.

This time around, however, the Skyhawks are playing like an automatic entry. They soared to a 5-0 start and are 10-5 overall and 1-0 in the Sunset Division heading into tonight's game at Clark. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.

"The reason I think we started off so well is the kids worked so hard over the summer," Hernandez said "We went to clinics, we went to camps, we traveled out of town. That gave them the unity they needed to start the season."

The nature of Silverado also was of benefit. As a new school in 1994, the program consisted only of underclassmen. Therefore, the Skyhawks never have graduated a senior.

"We lost no players from last year and everybody went out again this year," Hernandez said. "We raised one player from JV and had one incoming freshman.

"The fact that these girls have played with each other for a few years and all through the summer has to be the determining factor in how we're playing right now."

The Skyhawks are anchored by the inside-outside power of seniors Helen Kale and Joyce Sudario. Kale, a 6-foot center, handles duties down low, while Sudario, a talented point guard, takes care of the perimeter.

Kale is averaging 16 points and 11.2 rebounds. She has drawn interest from Texas A&M, North Texas, San Francisco and Cal Poly-Pomona.

Sudario, a slick ballhandler, is averaging 10.5 points, 5.4 assists and 5.1 steals. She has signed a letter of intent to play for Cal State Fullerton.

"If you want to look at stats, those are the two players to talk about, but there are a lot of talented girls on this team,' Hernandez said. "Last year, I probably could only go 6-7 deep, now I can go 11-12 deep if I needed to. Any of these girls can come through and play any role I need them to play."

Silverado is so versatile that its third-highest scorer, junior forward Amber Fife at 8.3 points a game, doesn't always start.

The rest of the lineup usually is filled out by underclassmen: junior Bri Burton and sophomores Amanda Verba, Carly Avello and Erin McGrew.

Despite the Skyhawks' early fortunes, they aren't eagerly anticipating the postseason, which realistically could see them go one step further than the zone tournament.

"There's a lot of teams out there that can be competitive and anything can happen," Hernandez said. "So our philosophy is to take one game at a time, and whatever happens, happens."

Different team. Same philosophy.

Tonight's AAAA slate

In other girls' AAAA games, all with 7 p.m. tip-offs, Vo-Tech visits Las Vegas; Basic travels to Rancho; Chaparral ventures to Valley; Eldorado plays at Green Valley; Cheyenne heads to Durango; Western visits Bonanza; and Bishop Gorman plays at Cimarron-Memorial.

In boys' AAAA games starting at 7 p.m., Rancho goes to Basic; Las Vegas visits Vo-Tech; Valley plays at Chaparral; Green Valley travels to Eldorado; Bonanza heads to Western; and Cimarron visits Bishop Gorman. Cheyenne hosts Durango at 7:30 p.m.