10 the Chronicle, Willimantic, Conn., Wednesday, January 3, 2018

By MIKE SYPHERChronicle Sports Editor

Neisha Rodriguez will sit down after practice or a game with her Windham High girls basketball team from time to time and take in an NBA showdown featuring her favorite team, the Golden State Warriors.

Yes, yes, some fans just like the fact that Golden State wins about 70 percent of its games and has seemingly earned just about as many banners as Major League Baseball’s standard of excellence, the New York Yankees, but Neisha watches pro hoop for a different reason.

“I watch a lot of basketball on TV and really like how they play,” Neisha said of the Warriors. “Golden State is a good team to watch because they’re always active. I try to see where everybody goes when they take a shot and how they try to get open.”

And yes, we’ve already mentioned the Yankees, so it’s only fair and proper to pass along that the Bronx Bombers are also Neisha’s MLB team of choice.

Her favorite players? …“Derek Jeter and Robinson Cano,” replied Rodriguez, who

is also an accomplished softball player who admired the way Jeter and Cano handled their middle-infield duties while pair-ing up and anchoring the shortstop (Neisha’s position) and second base positions in the Bronx.

“I liked to watch how they were always in the right place all the time.”

Henry Tiemann prides himself on always trying to be in the right place at the right time with his Parish Hill boys basket-ball team.

It’s worked out just fine thus far this season, thank-you very much, with Tiemann, a captain for the second consecutive season, leading his Pirates in a variety of different ways.

A week ago today, Tiemann popped in 14 points, including four late free throws, to help lead the Pirates all the way back from an early 16-point deficit and a 48-45 non-league victory over local rival Lyman Memorial.

One night later, Tiemann knocked down a 3-pointer in the final seconds of regulation to knot matters at 54-all against Coventry before the Pirates dropped a 63-61 non-league deci-sion to host Coventry.

It’s that type of clutch play and ‘being at the right place at the right time’ mentality that has landed Rodriguez and Tiemann, both seniors, on today’s Page 10 of the Chronicleas our female and male athletes of the week.

Tiemann is averaging a tick over 10 points per game along with 4.5 rebounds, two assists and three steals each night for the Pirates, who currently stand at 3-2 on the young season following a 32-29 Capital Region Athletic League loss to host Innovation of New Britain on Wednesday night.

“As a freshman, Henry was strictly a jayvee player. Then during his sophomore year, he saw some varsity time primar-ily as a defender,” Parish Hill boys hoop coach John Bolduc said of Tiemann’s early development with the Pirates. “Then he made captain as a junior and again this year as a senior.

“Henry leads our team vocally and by his style of play on defense. His offense is a bonus and he’s a load to deal with in the paint.”

Tiemann, a 2-time CIAC Class S All-State soccer player with the Pirates who also stands out on the baseball diamond at the Hill in the spring and with his Zone VI Willimantic American Legion champion squad in the early summer months, was introduced to hoop as a youngster by his Mom and Dad, Jen and Bill.

“I was first introduced to basketball when I was 8-years-old and my parents signed me up for the CAA basketball league,” recalled Henry. “When I was younger I would always stay up and sit next to my Dad watching Celtics games and falling in love with the physicality and quickness of the game.

“My role has become more of a leadership role and a hard worker who sets the example for my teammates. My coach always pushes me as hard as he can and gets the best out of

all of us.”“He’s a fierce competitor and his teammates feed off of his

leadership,” Bolduc said of Tiemann. “That all stems from the defensive side of the ball where he can guard anyone from a team’s point guard to their center.

“His will to win is unmatched.” “I would definitely say that my strength on the court

would be my defensive presence while my offensive game is still developing and my teammates have really pushed me to become a better offensive player,” said Tiemann.

“My best attribute when it comes to leading would be lead-ing by example and I motivate my teammates by trying my best to out-hustle everyone else on the court and make every hustle play that I can.”

Hustle and positioning defines Rodriguez’s game with the Whippets, who are 2-4 overall thus far this season following a 59-29 Eastern Connecticut Conference inter-division setback to Bacon Academy that was much closer than the final score might indicate.

Rodriguez scored 16 of her squad’s 20 first-half points as the Whips went into the break on the short end of a 30-20 margin to the Bobcats.

Rodriguez, who finished with 19 points overall, is now averaging a double-double (14 points and 11 rebounds per game) for the season through six games.

“Neisha has had many ups and downs in her 4-year career on and off the court, but with lots of support from our coaches and Windham High teachers, she has finally realized what it takes to be successful not just on the basketball court, but in life,” veteran coach Ken Valliere said of his leading scorer and rebounder.

“She needs reminders from me sometimes, that’s for sure, but that’s OK. Neisha is in an after-school tutoring program and during the first marking period she was on the High Honor roll with all grades in the 90s.”

Rodriguez certainly has made the grade on the court as well beginning with Windham’s season opener against Griswold back on December 12. Her Whips trailed that night by as many as 17 points before rallying to take the lead late in regu-lation in a game Windham would eventually drop by a 41-36 margin in overtime to the Wolverines.

Rodriguez scored all seven of her points that night in the fourth quarter alone and finished with 16 rebounds, helping her Whips enjoy a 50-36 advantage on the boards.

Other notable performances include a 10-point, 17-rebound

effort in a 36-30 non-league loss to East Hampton last Wednesday and a career-best 25 points along with 10 rebounds in an ECC Division III win over Wheeler two nights later.

“I only played pick-up basketball in the street in Puerto Rico before I came here in eighth grade,” said Rodriguez, who also competed in a softball league on the island before arriving in the States. “Then I started playing basketball here in eighth grade and started watching where I should be and where I should go on offense and defense.

“At first I was frustrated if I missed a shot in a game but I’m working hard in practice to find ways to get open and concentrate on making them.”

“Neisha has always been a hard worker on the court and this year is showing more confidence on offense as we need her to score more than in the past,” said Valliere. “She has developed into a fine overall high school player.”

383 Trumbull Hwy / Rte 87, Lebanon, CT • Lunch & Dinner 7 Days a Week • Take-Out & Delivery Call: 860.456.7663 • www.logcabinct.com

PRouDLy HonoRs ATHLeTes of the Weekneisha Rodriguez

Basketball, Windham HighHenry Tiemann

Basketball, Parish Hill

Windham high School’S

nEISHA RODRIGUEZ

Michael Zaritheny | For the ChronicleSenior Neisha Rodriguez scored 10 points and hauled down 17 rebounds in a 36-30 non-league girls basketball loss to East Hampton last Wednesday and then poured in a career-high 25 points and added 10 more boards as the Whips slipped past Wheeler, 47-37, in an Eastern Connecticut Conference Division III showdown on Friday night.

pariSh hill’S

HEnRY TIEMAnn

Roxanne Pandolfi | StaffSenior Henry Tiemann sank four big free throws and finished with 14 points to help lead Parish Hill all the way back from a 16-point deficit to stun Lyman Memorial, 48-45, in a non-league boys basketball game last week in Lebanon.

Congratulations to:Neisha Rodriguez of Windham High

Henry Tiemann of Parish HillGo Whippets! Go Pirates!!

Peter Leeds 860-377-4433“Not Just The Sports Guy”

“The will to win means nothing without the will to prepare.”

Juma Ikangaa, winner of the 1989 New York City Marathon

For the Best localGame coverage

the Chronicle

“He’s a fierce competitor and histeammates feed off of his leadership.

His will to win is unmatched.” — Parish Hill coach John Bolduc

“Neisha has always been a hard worker on the court and this year is showing

more confidence on offense as we needher to score more than in the past.

She has developed into a fineoverall high school player.”

— Windham High coach Ken Valliere

Field Level Media

The Pro Football Hall of Fame announced its 2018 Modern Era finalists Tuesday, led by lineback-ers Ray Lewis and Brian Urlacher and wide receiver Randy Moss, each of whom is in his first year of eligibility.

San Francisco 49ers general man-ager and former Buccaneers and Broncos safety John Lynch is also a finalist, capping a year in which he went from the broadcast booth as a TV analyst to an NFL general manager’s job.

The full 15-man group: offen-

sive tackle Tony Boselli, wideout Isaac Bruce, safety Brian Dawkins, offensive guard Alan Faneca, offen-sive guard Steve Hutchinson, offen-sive tackle Joe Jacoby, running back Edgerrin James, cornerback Ty Law, Lewis, Lynch, center Kevin Mawae, Moss, wideout Terrell Owens, Urlacher and cornerback Everson Walls.

Nine of the 15 were also finalists last year, while a 10th (James) was a finalist in 2016

Hutchinson joined Lewis, Urlacher and Moss as a first-year eligible finalist, while Walls reached this

stage for the first time in his 20th year of eligibility. Faneca, Jacoby and Owens have been finalists in each of the last three years, while Lynch has done so in five consecu-tive years.

Since 2015, four of the nine can-didates to reach the final 15 in their first year of eligibility have gone on to be enshrined that year: Junior Seau (2015), Brett Favre (2016), Jason Taylor (2017) and LaDainian Tomlinson (2017).

A 13-time Pro Bowler and 2-time Defensive Player of the Year, Lewis seems likely to join that group of

first-ballot selections. Moss has a compelling case as

well — he ranks second all-time in receiving touchdowns and fourth in receiving yards — but Owens has yet to be chosen thus far despite a similar resume (second all-time in receiving yards, third in receiving TDs), and Bruce (fifth in yards, 12th in TDs) adds to the mix at wide receiver.

Also worth watching will be Lynch and Dawkins, as the path to induction for safeties has been exceedingly difficult.

Kenny Easley’s selection last year,

via the senior committee, made him just the eighth pure safety ever inducted, and the first since 1998.

The Modern Era group was whit-tled from an original list of 108 nominees to 27 semifinalists in November.

The 15 finalists will join senior nominees Robert Brazile and Jerry Kramer and contributor nominee Bobby Beathard for consideration for nomination into the 2018 class.

A maximum of five Modern-Era candidates will be chosen for induc-tion February 3, the day before Super Bowl LII.

National Football League announces Hall candidates

the ChronicleAs seen In