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Thursday, January 02, 2003

By Mike White, Post-Gazette Sports Writer

SCHOOL: Monessen

	Charel Allen: 67 points in the Monessen tournament. (Matt Freed, Post-Gazette)

WHO IS SHE? A 5-foot-10 point guard on the girls' basketball team, and one of the best juniors in the state.

LAST WEEK: Allen had two big games and was selected MVP of the Monessen Holiday Tournament. She had 27 points in a 40-19 victory against Belle Vernon Friday and had 40 points in a 61-54 victory against Clairton in the championship game Saturday.

SEASON: Allen is the third-leading scorer in the WPIAL at 28.9 points per game. She has helped Monessen, ranked No. 2 in the WPIAL in Class A by the Post-Gazette, to a 10-1 record.

CAREER: Allen has been a starter since her freshman year and has a chance to reach 2,000 career points this season. She has 1,721.

BEAR HUNTING: Beating the Clairton Bears was an accomplishment for Allen and Monessen. Monessen was 0-3 against Clairton the past two years and two of the losses were in the 2001 WPIAL Class A title game and the 2002 semifinals. "We finally proved we can beat them. I hope it gives my teammates some confidence," Allen said. "It was a big win, but it was just a tournament game. It wasn't in our section. Clairton is in our section this year, so this was kind of like a practice against them."

ALLEN VS. GISSENDANNER: Clairton features Kamela Gissendanner, one of the best players in the state. Allen and Gissendanner have had some epic battles the past few years. In the 2001 WPIAL title game, Allen scored 39 points, while Gissendanner had 34 and 21 rebounds. Clairton won the game. "I love playing against her because she gives me competition," Allen said.

SHE'S WANTED: Many Division I colleges are recruiting Allen. Coaches from Pitt, Penn State, West Virginia and Georgetown have been at Monessen games. Coaches from Connecticut have called Monessen Coach Major Corley.

"I've had correspondence with 100 colleges, whether it's letters or talking to the coaches," Corley said. "Every coach says she can fit right into their program because she's a 5-10 point guard."

Some college coaches send e-mail to Monessen High School for Allen. Corley said the volume of e-mails is so large Monessen is thinking about giving Allen her own e-mail account.

"I don't want to pinpoint any school that I'm looking at," said Allen, an honors student. "I just keep telling everybody I'm leaving my options open."

SCHOOL: Canon-McMillan

WHO IS HE: A senior and one of the best wrestlers in the WPIAL.

LAST WEEK: Miles defeated Mack Lewnes of St. Joseph, Md., to win the 152-pound championship of the Powerade Tournament at Trinity High School. The tournament is one of the best in the state and included teams from Ohio, California, West Virginia, Maryland and Virginia.

SEASON: Miles has a 15-0 record.

CAREER: Miles has been on the varsity since his freshman year and finished fifth at the PIAA Class AAA tournament last season.

BIRTHDAY PRESENT: Miles has a 99-25 career record and will try for win No. 100 tomorrow when Canon-McMillan has matches against Hopewell and Moon. Tomorrow also is Miles' birthday.

FOOTBALL STAR: Miles was a standout in football for Canon-McMillan and led the Big Macs in rushing with 955 yards on 145 carries. He also played linebacker, led the team in tackles and had 12 sacks.

SIZING IT UP: Miles is only 5 feet 7. "People always told me I was too small to be a good football player," he said. "But it really doesn't matter how big you are. It matters how much you try."

CUTTING WEIGHT: At the end of football season, Miles weighed 173 pounds. Now he's wrestling at 152. How does a high school senior as small as Miles lose 20 pounds in two months.

"I didn't do it all at once," he said. "It took me about a month and a half. I wrestled 171 at the start of this year. My first match at 152 was the Powerade Tournament."

Does Miles starve himself to lose the weight?

"I get to eat a little bit. You just have to eat everything that's good for you," he said. "It's hard this time of year because of the holidays. There's a lot of good food around. But I have to just go past it and go right to the vegetables."

THE FUTURE: Miles is being recruited by some Division I colleges for wrestling. His main goal is a PIAA title this season.

"We really emphasize that state championship to him," said Canon-McMillan Coach Chris Mary. "We don't want to peak too early, but that's what we're shooting for."