Fencor 1989s

Caring for team 07/23/05 James D. Horne Staff Defending champions have gift, which lies in love for each other By JAMES D. HORNE The Leaf-Chronicle Yes, Philadelphia-based Fencor is the top seed at this year's AAU 15U Girls National Basketball Championships. Sure, they come into this year's tournament after most of the same group won the AAU's 14U title last year in Monroe, La. And most people in the basketball world know that Fencor is led by Elena Delle Donne, who is listed as the top freshman guard in the country by USA Today. But here's the essence that makes Fencor such a dominating team. "It's amazing how much this team cares for each other," Fencor head coach Veronica Algeo said after the team's 72-40 opening game win over the Clarksville Net Force at the Dunn Center on Friday. "Caroline Doty fractured her fibula right before Nationals last year, and we went with eight healthy players. The girls were so awesome to her. And Caroline was so awesome to them during the games, she was like an assistant coach on the bench. All the girls went out and got T-shirts with Doty's No. 5 and wore them as warm-ups. "It's hard to say how these girls have become so close. But it's a unique thing, particularly the way sports in our culture have become so individualistic." In the team members' eyes, the reason why Fencor is so tightly bonded is easy to explain. "We always have so much fun," said Doty, 15, a sophomore who attends Germantown Academy in Fort Washington, Pa. "We're always working hard, but we always have smiles on our faces. Like, Shannon (Ferguson) is always picking everybody up. Elena always makes sure we're focused, but having fun and loving the game." "It is a lot of fun," said Ferguson, 16, a junior at Upper Dublin High in Fort Washington. "It's been a lot of work, because we do a lot of traveling. We've been to Virginia, Oregon and Chicago. It's tiring, but I love it because it's always fun. I love all the girls on this team. We always just have a good time, even while we are playing." Admittedly, it does help to have an athlete like Donne on the team. The 6-foot-5 sophomore, who goes to Ursuline Academy in Wilmington, Del., is fully aware all eyes are on her when she steps on the court. In Fencor's win on Friday, in which Donne led all scores with 22 points - most of which came in the first half - college coaches from Tennessee, Duke, Temple, Stanford, Virginia and a host of others were there to see her. But Donne doesn't sweat the pressure. "It doesn't really bother me," the 15-year-old said. "I just play my game. I don't really even think of them being there while I'm playing. I see them when I walk in and when I leave. But while I'm playing, I don't even know they are there." And, sorry, coaches - so far, Donne hasn't decided where she wants to attend college. "I have no idea," she said. Really and truly, Donne is just as focused on making sure Fencor wins as the rest of her teammates are. Mainly, because it's a family affair. "We're like nine sisters," Donne said. "It's not really like a team. Most of us have been together since we were 10 years old. It's just great that we're that close, because some teams have their ups and downs. But we never have to worry about that. We always have a great time together." However, while Fencor is a tightly knit group, the team has only one accomplishment in mind. "We're here to put all our hard work into the game and regain our title," Doty said. Fencor knows it won't be easy, especially since it walks in with the notoriety that comes with winning the 14U championship last year. "That actually makes it harder, because you see other teams when you walk in and they're like, `Oh, that's Fencor,'" Ferguson said. "You just know everyone sees you as the team they want to beat. And they are going to play against us as hard as they can, because they know we've won before. And they know we are coming back to win again." But clearly, the two-fold bottom line for Fencor is ... "We're here to win a championship," Donne said. "But we can still have fun doing it. But once it's game time, we're focused on winning because that's always been our goal."