2002-03 SCHEDULE

Nov. 29-30 -- at Lakeview Tipoff tourney Dec. 3 -- Conneaut Valley Dec. 4 -- at Hickory Dec. 6 -- West Middlesex Dec. 11 -- at Slippery Rock Dec. 13 -- Grove City Dec. 17 -- at Commodore Perry Dec. 20 -- Kennedy Catholic Dec. 21 -- at Moniteau Dec. 27-28 -- at West Middlesex tourney Jan. 7 -- at West Middlesex Jan. 10 -- Sharpsville* Jan. 14 -- at Wilmington* Jan. 17 -- at Reynolds* Jan. 21 -- Commodore Perry Jan. 25 -- Greenville* Jan. 28 -- at Kennedy Catholic Jan. 31 -- Oil City Feb. 5 -- at Sharpsville* Feb. 7 -- Wilmington* Feb. 11 -- Reynolds* Feb. 13 -- at Greenville* [* = MCAC-AA contest]

By The Herald Sports Staff

If games were played on paper, the Mercer High Mustangs would run away with the Mercer County Athletic Conference's Class AA crown this year.

The Mustangs return just two seniors and six lettermen from last year, but among them are players that topped the county in assists (Mike Sankey) and rebounds (Jason Moon) and the school's leading sophomore scorer (Sean Berti).

"On paper, we're the team to beat. Unfortunately for us and fortunately for everyone else, games are played on Tuesday and Friday nights as opposed to in the newspaper," Mercer coach Mike Williams said. "We have to have the understanding that we're not that good. Nobody's going to roll over. We have to be ready to play."

"It should be a war. Anything less than a playoff berth this season would obviously be a disappointment. We've looked forward to this season now for three years. When I inherited the program, there was not a whole bunch of experience left. We started a bunch of young kids for the past two years. It's now time to produce some wins," he added.

To do that, he and his assistants have the daunting task of molding a group of individuals into a cohesive unit.

"We've got to get these guys to understand that we're a team. We've got to believe in each other, both individually and as a team," Williams said. "We've got to trust each other and bond as a unit. If we are capable of taking care of all of this, we'll be very tough within the league and the district; if not, we could struggle."

Offensively, the Mustangs shouldn't have a problem scoring with a host of offensive-minded players returning from last year.

Berti (6-3), who set a new Mercer sophomore scoring record last year, led Mercer with 343 points while Moon (291), David Chaussard (168), Brenton Bestwick (149), Sankey (124), and Josh Haynie (120) rounded out the scoring for the Mustangs, who were 9-15 last season.

As a sophomore, Moon (6-1) pulled down a team-high 264 rebounds and despite not gaining the starting nod until mid-December, Sankey (5-11) topped the Mustangs with 151 assists.

"We have some horses coming back in Berti and Moon. They're as good as anybody coming back in terms of duos. If both are clicking, we can be very, very good. If you stop one kid, you've still got to fight with the other," Williams said. "If Chaussard is healthy and uses his physical abilities, he could be a force in the county. Chaussard is probably as good as anyone we have as far as taking the ball to the basket. Haynie is simply lighting it up on the offensive end, (and) his defense is much improved."

Despite the obvious physical talents of Berti, Chaussard (6-1), Haynie (6-0) and Moon, Williams is expecting big things from his two returning seniors -- Bestwick (6-2) and Sankey.

"Bestwick and Sankey had good years last season," Williams said. "They need to have banner years during their senior years to take us to the next level. After all, ideally, that is what seniors are supposed to do -- lead us to the next level."

The next level is somewhere the Mustangs have not been since 1994, and Mercer has not won a District 10 title in 13 years.

"As for season goals,' Williams said, "that's simple: We want to win the MCAC and the district. We haven't made it past the first round of the state tourney since 1988. Our storied past at Mercer needs to be rekindled," Williams said. "Mercer has won 16 District 10 titles, but only two since 1971. We want to change that. With the work we've started here, I hope we can add a few to that in the next five years. Unfortunately, the kids in the program have to do it themselves because they do not remember the glory days!"

Williams knows that his squad will have to meet certain goals before it can reach for the stars.

"In order for us to have a successful season, a few things are going to have to happen," he said. "First, the kids are going to have to learn to play when they are tired. Everyone is competitive when they are fresh. Winners play hard when they are tired. We've got to play harder and tougher in practice and in games. We are a big, strong team, but we've not quite figured out that we've got to use that strength and move some lesser bodies around."

The Mercer coaching staff will look to a pair of 6-8 yearling Seth Bolyard and 6-4 junior Josh Elford to do some of the moving in the pivot this year. "Bolyard and Elford had a fantastic summers and will help us in the post," Williams said. "We'll need Bolyard and Elford to develop into players we can use in pressure situations."

Williams will be assisted by Ed Berti, Mark Guiler, Dan Weikal. -- By Corey Corbin, Allied News sports editor.