By Ross Wilson

The first time I saw Kenell Sanchez was at the Battle by the Bay in Atlantic City in 1999. This kid breaks away from his defender and dunks in traffic versus the mighty Friars of St. Anthony.

"Whoa", I said. "I wonder who that kid is" to my SJ Rock partner Tyrone McCloud.

Just then, the animated face-painted Eustace crowd (who pails in comparison only to Shawnee fans when the going is good) chanted "HE'S A FRESHMAN… HE'S A FRESHMAN".

After the 6-3 Sanchez downed another strong basket versus the Friars, the Eustace crowd erupted again with "THREE MORE YEARS… THREE MORE YEARS".

The P.A. system was a bit muffled and I was too cheap (back then) to lay out the 2 or 3 bucks for a program. Fortunately, the next time down the court, Sanchez caught a pass on the wing and calmly stroked a 3-ball that touched nothing but the bottom of the net.

"KENELL SANCHEZ… KENELL SANCHEZ", chanted the Eustace faithful. Finally. His name.

Despite not experiencing the success of recent years which saw Bishop Eustace competing for the Olympic National Division title with regularity, the brawny Sanchez remains focused and diligent in his attempts to keep his team afloat. He's averaging 27 points per game for the Crusaders and always brings his "A" game.

"We're a young team this year," said the junior after scoring 33 points in a recent loss to Shawnee. "But we'll keep playing hard."

With assistance next year from a solid freshman team, Eustace should be competing for the conference title again. The talented Sanchez will lead the attack, and the Eustace crowd will be painting their faces black and white yet again.