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Thursday, February 28, 2002

By Mike White and Paul Zeise, Post-Gazette Sports Writers

SCHOOL: Sto-Rox.

WHO IS HE? A 6-foot, 170-pound sophomore point guard on the Vikings' basketball team, which has made it to the WPIAL Class AA championship. He also is a standout on Sto-Rox's football and baseball teams.

	Adam DiMichele: A triple threat for Sto-Rox. (John Beale, Post-Gazette)

THIS WEEK: Sto-Rox defeated South Fayette, 56-42, in a WPIAL semifinal game Tuesday, and DiMichele came close to a triple-double. He had 13 points, 13 assists and 9 rebounds.

SEASON: DiMichele averages 11 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists a game.

MAN IN CHARGE: DiMichele is one of those rare athletes who is a star in three sports, and he plays the key position in all three. Besides being the point guard in basketball, he was Sto-Rox's starting quarterback in football as a freshman and sophomore. In baseball, he is a pitcher-shortstop and had a 4-0 record as a freshman.

"God has given him tremendous ability in all sports," Sto-Rox basketball coach Bill Minear said. "He also has that competitive fire where he hates to lose in anything. I think other guys feed off that.

"The thing I feel bad about for him is that his body never has a chance to heal and get stronger. He just goes from one sport to the next."

A FAVORITE? DiMichele said he doesn't have a favorite sport, but he said "football is the funnest for me right now." DiMichele never played football until he was in eighth grade.

But which sport represents his best chance at a college future?

"I can't tell you right now," he said. "I think I'll just have to wait and see."

KNOWING HIS ROLE: DiMichele didn't score much as a freshman, but his average has gone up this season. "I think he could score more this year if he wanted to," Minear said. "But we have a lot of guys who can score, so he just does what we need."

FOUR FOR FOUR: Sto-Rox won the WPIAL Class AA basketball championship last year. With DiMichele and two other sophomores in the starting lineup this season, the future is bright for the Vikings.

"The thing people don't understand about this team is how young we are," DiMichele said. "But I'm trying to win [the WPIAL] all four years I'm here. That's just a little goal of mine."

-- By Mike White

SCHOOL: Fox Chapel.

WHO IS SHE? A senior member of the Foxes' swimming team and one of the best all-around swimmers in the WPIAL.

PAST WEEK: Santelli won a gold medal in the 100-yard backstroke at the girls' WPIAL Class AAA swimming championships at Pitt. Santelli set a WPIAL record in the event, finishing in 56.32 seconds to earn All-American status. Santelli also won the bronze medal in the 200 individual medley and qualified for the PIAA meet as a member of the Foxes' 200 medley (second place) and 400 freestyle (third) relay teams.

CAREER: Santelli won the WPIAL championship in the backstroke last year and finished fifth in the PIAA meet. She finished second in the WPIAL in the 200 individual medley last year. As a sophomore, she finished third in the WPIAL in both events. She owns the school record in each event.

RECORD IS SWEET: Santelli was the top seed at the WPIAL meet in the backstroke, but her record-breaking time was a surprise because it surpassed her personal best. "I think I broke my best time this year by a second and a half," she said. "I knew in the first length that I had a chance because I felt very good in the water. Usually, I come out slower in the first 50. Now the challenge is going even faster at the PIAA meet, but I think I will because I'll be even more rested and I anticipate more of a race from the field."

THE NATURAL: Santelli has a swimmer's body. She is a lean 5 feet 10 and is very strong. "I could tell her natural ability the first time I saw her in the water," Fox Chapel swimming coach Graham Westerburg said. "She has a very smooth stroke, and I don't think I have ever seen anyone who is stronger under the water."

CORNERSTONE: Westerburg has been with the Foxes for four years, and this year, the team finished second at the WPIAL championships and scored the most points at the WPIAL meet in school history. Westerburg said having a swimmer such as Santelli to build around has made all the difference. "She has a great passion for swimming, is one of the hardest workers I know and is a natural leader and role model for the other girls. Her impact on this team will be felt for a very long time."

FUTURE: Santelli is undecided on her college choice, but she is an excellent student with a 4.5 grade point average. She is interested in Yale, Princeton, Duke, Virginia, Notre Dame and Pitt.

-- By Paul Zeise