'99-00 SCHEDULE

Dec. 3 -4 -- at Farrell Tipoff tournament      10-- at Reynolds      12-- at Coca-Cola Classic (Cleveland St. Joseph)      14-- Wilmington      17-- at Sharpsville      21-- West Middlesex      27-29 -- at Blackhaw Christmas tourney Jan . 7 -- Warren-John F. Kennedy      11-- Mercer      14-- at Grove City      18-- Commodore Perry      21-- Slippery Rock      25-- Campbell Memorial      28-- at Mercer Feb. 1 -- at West Middlesex      4-- at Slippery Rock      5-- at George Junior Republic      8-- Sharpsville      12-- Titusville      15-- Reynolds      18-- at Commodore Perry

By The Herald Sports Staff

You're the coach of the two-time defending PIAA Class A champions and your roster is stacked with two handfuls of returnees from those squads. You're on Easy Street, right?

"This will probably be my greatest challenge as a coach,'' 18th-year Kennedy Christian High School mentor Joe Votino admitted.

Led by Votino (364-130), the Golden Eagles garnered the school's fourth Class A Commonwealth crown last March with a 24-6 overall ledger. But he recently related, "I don't even want to hear ŚHershey,' to be honest with you. What we've accomplished in the past is tremendous, but it's over with, it's exactly what it's called ‹ the past ‹ and we don't live in the past.

"I'm concerned obviously. Every year I am,'' Votino admitted. "They're just not hungry. We need to get some enthusiasm and some energy. It's like, after winning two state championships, we need to have a different motivation ‹ and that's not to win another (championship); that should not be the motivation. The motivation, in my opinion, is to take one day at a time and improve and work hard and play together. All those things should be their daily goals.''

But believe it or not, Votino, ever the stern taskmaster, wants his players to have more fun.

"They need to enjoy the game more, instead of treating it like a job, and that's my job. I need to find a way to make the game more fun for them, but not let them lose their work-ethic, because the bottom line is you've gotta work.''

One point on which Votino, however, is adamant: His club will not become a victim of its own success.

"We're not going to make the same mistake New Castle made last year,'' he said regarding the three-time WPIAL Quad-A champions who fell short of a state crown, "and I hope our fans don't make the same mistake that New Castle's fans did ‹ they had New Castle going to the state finals in December.''

The likelihood of that happening to Kennedy this December is remote for, as Votino admitted, "We're not even close to where we should be, not even close.''

However, his cast of characters remains impressive, led by returning Herald co-player of the year John Reimold, a 6-foot-6 senior who is equally adept at stroking the trey or posting up. Reimold, bound for Division I Loyola of Maryland, averaged 21.3 points and 7.3 rebounds during the Golden Eagles' eight-game playoff run last year.

He will be joined by classmates Ryan McElhinny, the club's emotional barometer who can play either guard spot, role-playing point guard Paul Passerrello, swingman Kenton Hockett and West Middlesex transfer Bill Bowers. A quartet of juniors will lend depth, including 6-5 Gary Satterwhite, sharpshooting Keenan Christiansen, improved Nick George and frontliner Jared Clayton. A pair of sophomores, marksman Dan McElhinny and versatile Nolan Reimold, will complement the upperclassmen.

"Our strength is we're a very, very good shooting team; we can shoot the ball,'' Votino assessed. "But defensively, we're not even close to where we want to be. I'm very concerned about our defense, I'm very concerned about our rebounding, and I'm very concerned about our lack of aggressiveness.

"They need to realize that every (Kennedy) team in the past, whether they attained the ultimate goal or not, had to go out every day and work their fannies off,'' Votino reasoned. "There was nothing handed to them; they worked for everything they got. Sometimes when kids get in Kennedy's program, they assume they're automatically going to be good without having to go out and work their tail off. Sometimes they forget that it's gonna be a difficult season for these kids, that everybody wants to knock them off. But we have to be aware of that and deal with that.

"I just think we need to find a way to make the game a little bit more enthusiastic and to find a way for them to enjoy the game, without losing the fact you've gotta work to get somewhere one day ‹ that's what life's all about,'' Votino said. "Everybody goes through that (tedium); you've gotta just hang in there, ride it out and keep working. There's nothing else you can do.

"I don't care what anyone does, (but) in sports, you've gotta work, and sometimes work is not fun.''

In spite of his apprehension, however, Votino pointed out, "I like this team. I like the kids on the team. I like their personalities. I don't have a bad kid on the team, and that's important. You've gotta like your kids and like working with them.''