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Thursday, February 13, 2003

By Mike White, Post-Gazette Sports Writer

MICHELLE MANFREDI

SCHOOL: Serra

WHO IS SHE? A 5-foot-11 junior "do-it-all" player for the Eagles' girls' basketball team. Manfredi also is a standout in two other sports.

LAST WEEK: Manfredi had 25 points in a 95-35 victory Thursday against Greater Works Academy. On Feb. 3, she set a school record with 42 points in an 87-45 victory against Elderton. She broke the record of 40 set by Bernadette Kielur in 1994.

SEASON: Manfredi finished the regular season as the 15th-leading scorer in the WPIAL with a 20.1 average. She also averages six rebounds and five assists a game to help the Eagles to a 19-2 record. They are the No. 1 seed for the WPIAL Class A playoffs.

CAREER: Manfredi is in her second season as a Serra starter.

SHE'S EVERYWHERE: Don't ask what position Manfredi plays because she doesn't have a position in the traditional sense.

"She usually starts the game at forward, but usually ends up at point guard," said Serra Coach Bill Cleary. "There really isn't anything on the floor she can't do."

A year ago, Manfredi played strictly point guard and shooting guard. Her role changed this season -- and it took some time for her to adapt.

"I never really played forward before. I had to learn how to post up," she said. "I'm the biggest player on the team now. I like playing guard better because that's what I'll play in college, but it's nice posting up sometimes if you can get the ball."

THE OTHER SPORTS: Manfredi also is a talented soccer player and excels in track and field.

"She's a tremendously gifted athlete," Cleary said. "She runs well, she's quick and she can jump. Plus, she's very serious about everything she does in sports."

As a sophomore in 2001, she was one of the top goal-scorers in WPIAL soccer with 40. She played mostly a defensive position as a junior and had only 16 goals. In track and field last spring, Manfredi finished third in the 800-meter run at the WPIAL Class AA championships.

THOMAS JEFFERSON'S LOSS: Manfredi, who lives in Jefferson, attended Thomas Jefferson as a freshman before transferring to Serra for her sophomore year. Manfredi was on Thomas Jefferson's varsity basketball team as a freshman.

"Basically, both of my parents grew up in Catholic schools, and my dad wanted me to get a Catholic education," Manfredi said.

Her father, Ed Manfredi, is the assistant athletic director at Brentwood.

THE FUTURE: Cleary believes Manfredi, who has a 3.8 grade point average, might get a Division I scholarship next year. Kent State, Illinois State and Youngstown State already are showing interest.

By Mike White

P.J. SCHUMACHER

SCHOOL: Waynesburg

WHO IS SHE? A 6-foot-2, 170-pound senior and sharpshooting guard on Waynesburg's basketball team.

LAST WEEK: Schumacher had 31 points in a 64-58 victory Feb. 4 against Belle Vernon. On Saturday, he scored 22 points as Waynesburg defeated Brownsville, 71-70, to gain a spot in the WPIAL Class AAA playoffs. Schumacher made two free throws with eight seconds left to give Waynesburg the win.

SEASON: Schumacher averages 18.4 points a game for the Raiders, who will play Moon in the first round of the playoffs at 8 p.m. Monday at Upper St. Clair.

CAREER: A starter since his freshman year, Schumacher has 1,443 points. Earlier this season, he broke the school record of 1,224 points, set by 1999 graduate Aaron Ankrom.

3'S ARE WILD: Schumacher is an excellent 3-point shooter and has 225 career 3-pointers.

"I learned to shoot when I was young," he said. "I have a lot of uncles who played, and they helped me a lot with my shot."

This season, he has made 40 percent (59 for 146) from behind the arc. He had 45 3-pointers as a freshman, 64 as a sophomore and 57 as a junior.

"But my goal here was to balance my game out," Schumacher said. "I didn't want to be a one-dimensional player. When I was a freshman, I had 45 3-pointers and only 18 two-pointers. I have just tried to build up my overall game."

FROM THE HILLS OF WEST VIRGINIA: Schumacher grew up in Morgantown, W.Va., but moved to the Waynesburg district in eighth grade. "My mom got married, and we moved here," he said.

Schumacher would have attended University High School in Morgantown.

"As far as school, it was crazy down there," he said. "University High is packed. When you left your classes, you were shoulder to shoulder with other people in the halls."

THE FUTURE: Some small colleges are interested in Schumacher, who has a 3.5 grade point average. Foremost on his mind is the WPIAL playoffs.

"We lost in the first round last year, so we're hungry for more this year," he said. "Our main goal is to be playing in March in the state playoffs."