Whitlock hits 1,000 as Monessen rolls

MONESSEN - For three-plus years, it has been Nychole Whitlock who has assisted on countless Charel Allen baskets.

Monday evening in the Monessen Lady Greyhounds' 87-21 pasting of Trinity Christian in a Class A Section 3 opener, Whitlock joined the 1,000-point club.

And ironically enough, it was Allen who assisted Whitlock on the bucket at 4:09 of the first quarter as she threw a no-look pass to Whitlock who scored the magical points on a lay-up.

"This is very exciting and I am happy to get it," Whitlock said. "But to be truthful, my teammates wanted it more than I did."

Whitlock ended up with 20 points while Allen led all scorers with 21 points.

In the first quarter when the Lady Greyhounds (5-1, 1-0) scored 39 points and hit on a whopping 18 of 21 field goal attempts, Whitlock had 16 points and Allen 15. Allen also had an incredible 10 assists in the opening frame.

Monessen coach Major Corley limited Whitlock and Allen to 12 minutes of playing time for the game.

"We came out smoking and I can't remember a team shooting that well in a quarter," Corley said. "I could have left them in, but I chose to give other girls some quality minutes."

Whitlock is Corley's tenth 1,000-point scorer in his 18 years as Monessen head coach.

"It is a good accomplishment for her," Corley said. "Some teams never have one girl get it. I am proud of her."

Allen, who has given Monessen fans countless memories during her high school career, was happy to take a backseat to Whitlock.

"I am so happy for Nychole," Allen said. "This was her night.

"I wanted her to get it more than she did."

Allen, jokingly, said that she wanted Whitlock to hit the milestone the same way she did.

"I did it on the foul line with the entire gym silent and waiting in anticipation," Allen said laughing. "I wanted her to do it the same way so she could feel the pressure I felt."

Allen completed a triple double with 11 rebounds. She also had six steals.

Perriel Pearson and Charrisse Bassett both added 14 points for the winners.

Kelly Crawford led the Lady Falcons (5-2,0-1), who came into the game ranked among the best in Class A in one poll, with eight points.

Despite the milestone, Whitlock says there are bigger goals for her and her teammates.

"We want the WPIAL and PIAA titles," Whitlock said. "This is our (the seniors) last chance."

Monessen is at Ellis School on Thursday for a Section 3-A game.

GAME NOTES: Corley is now 76-18 with this group of seniors. Whitlock, who has 1,008 points, is related to four of the school's 23 combined (boys and girls) 1,000-point scorers in school history: Darren Whitlock, Brandon Jackson, Leenie Grant and Nadine "Peachy" Turner...Monessen goes to Ellis School Thursday.