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Injuries starting to bug the Hornets

Friday, January, 18 By Matt Langone
Sports editor

Just one month ago, Manchester Essex boys basketball coach Bill Cahill believed that his team had the potential to win the division in the Cape Ann League, bettering the likes of North Reading, Georgetown and Lynnfield.

Now, to say Cahill would settle for a .500 season would be an understatement. In fact, if the Hornets win half of their games, Cahill may jump for joy right up until the opening tip of his team's state tournament game, which is automatic for a team with a .500 record.

The reason for the change in Cahill's expectations has nothing to do with his team's ability or progression. Instead, it's due to a string of injuries that have victimized several key Manchester Essex players.

Cahill can't help but chuckle at the misfortunes of his team.

"I've never experienced a set of injuries like this," said Cahill, before holding yet another undermanned practice last night. "I've been coaching for over 20 years and this is the most frustrating by far."

A good sign of a frustrating year is when you lose a player for a game because the player slipped on some ice and split his chin open, requiring 20 stitches on a game day. That is what happened to senior forward Ian Graham back in late December. Fortunately, he only missed that one game.

The Hornets have senior forward Sam Cohen (recovering from a separated shoulder) and junior guard Kyle Donovan (broken toe) on the injured list. Senior guard James Settipane, the team's third-leading scorer at 11.3 ppg, missed the last two games due to dehydration and senior forward Andrew Willwerth missed a game in late December with a sprained ankle, which he still hasn't fully recovered from.

Donovan (6 ppg, 10 3-pointers) will probably be out three more weeks, which eliminates a proven shooter from the perimeter. Meanwhile, Cohen has missed the entire season after hurting his shoulder during a stellar football season for the Hornets as a wide receiver. Cohen's absence has hurt in the paint, where the Hornets have struggled with consistent rebounding.

On the positive side, Settipane will be back to handle point-guard duties today at Masconomet (7 p.m.).

Needless to say, the injury bug has definitely tested the depth of the Manchester Essex roster.

"I've basically been coaching on the fly," Cahill said. "We've had to give our bench players crash courses and use some junior varsity players. The kids that have stepped in have really done a nice job. But the rotation is a lot easier when you have all of your starters and key players."

Despite all they have endured, the Hornets have still been able to post a very respectable record (4-6) to remain very much in the postseason hunt. A 6-4 record to finish the season would clinch a tourney berth.

Cahill praised the efforts of senior guard Marty Nally and freshman forward Joe Mussachia. The duo have averaged 18.4 and 15 points per game respectively to lead the Hornets, while opponents have routinely tried to deny them the ball. Senior Joe Roy and junior Zeke Gillette have also provided contributions.

"The kids have done a great job fighting through these tough times," Cahill said.

Things don't get any easier as Manchester Essex begins its toughest three-game stretch of the season tonight with Masco (7-2). Monday night, the Hornets will host North Reading (7-2). Wilmington (8-1) comes to town next Friday.

"As a coach, you always figure that you'll get a couple of wins that you weren't supposed to get and also lose a couple games that you shouldn't have," said Cahill. "Hopefully we'll be able to surprise Masco tonight."