A tip from a family friend helped shape Abby Dugan’s basketball life.
The Marymount star forward, then a freshman, was told to check out trainer Ross Burns, who just began giving sessions at Dalton in Manhattan, and his Pro Hoops Organization. She was immediately hooked and worked with Burns, now a renowned trainer, for the next four years. He has trained NBA stars like Ben Gordon, Mike Dunleavy, Kevin Love and Joakim Noah, was a member of the coach John Calipari’s 1995-96 Final Four team at UMass and has held multiple college coaching jobs.
“He’s helped me with so many things, not just the basketball skills, but he’s been a good mentor for me,” said Dugan, who got to meet David Lee and Noah.
They worked on expanding the 6-foot-1 forward’s mid-range game and added an assortment of post moves. Burns said he saw right way that Dugan was serious about improving and lauded her work ethic and hunger. She will play college basketball next season at Division III Gettysburg, picking the Pennsylvania school over Trinity College, Bowdoin College, Connecticut College, Salve Regina University and Roger Williams University.
“They saw she is a good rebounder and they saw she has some size to her,” Burns said. … “We are going to see how much that helps at the next level when she steps out and makes some of those shots.”
Dugan liked Gettysburg for its balance of athletics and academics, particularly its organization management studies major. She wants to work for the Knicks or in the NBA in general down the road. When she visited in January, she found the coaching staff welcoming and the girls excited for the future of the program. She was trying to stay somewhat close to home anyway. The Bullets went 12-13 overall and 10-10 in the Centennial Conference under head coach Mike Kirkpatrick.
“They enjoy what they do,” Dugan said. “They said they have a good balance of everything at Gettysburg.”
She was named Marymount’s captain for her final season and led the team in scoring with an average of 16 points per game and also averaged 12 rebounds and four blocked shots per contest. Dugan was twice named to the AAIS All-League team. Marymount beat NYCAL regular season champion Columbia Prep at Horace Mann’s Peg Duggan tournament.
“I tried to impart a little advice to them,” Dugan said of her younger team. “This is how we do things on varsity. … Towards the end of the season they really got it. I think I left them in good hands.”
Royals’ Raaf headed to Manhattanville: Ashley Raaf went all-in last summer when she chose to focus on playing basketball in college. She was a star on the Christ the King soccer team, but did not play her senior season. There was some frustration with the recruiting process as the scholarship the 5-foot-6 guard had hoped for didn’t materialize right away.
“I felt like I was running out of time,” Raaf said. … “I’m glad I took my time and picked the right school.”
In the end an even better situation may have arisen. Manhattanville got a look at Raaf during the Royals postseason run to the CHSAA Brooklyn/Queens title and the Catholic ‘AA’ state semifinals and showed interested. Raaf visited in March and committed to the Division III earlier this week. She picked Manhattanville over C.W. Post and earned a full academic scholarship. The Valiants went 9-15 overall and 4-10 in the MAAC conference under head coach Lauren Thomer.
“I remember the day she told me she was going, her voice filled with happiness and it just gave me chills,” CK assistant and Lady Warriors travel team coach Joe DeLuca said. … “I watched her grow from last summer to high school season.”
Raaf’s journey started long before that. She transferred to the Middle Village school when Stella Maris closed after her sophomore year. It took her some time to get used to playing at a high level. Raaf worked her way to being a major contributor this season, including scoring 14 of her 17 points in the second half in a win over Bishop Ford.
“I think it’s a great situation for her,” CK coach Bob Mackey said. “Why do you want to chase that Division I thing and sit on the bench? She is going to play. I think Ashley can step in an contribute very early.”