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Bancks and Utica ruin home opener for WBS Penguins

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Shavertown native O’Donnell finishes second at Ironman Hawaii

Sometimes, it really is about how you play the game.And nobody&#8217;s played it much better around the Wyoming Valley Conference than Brianna Pizzano during the last four years.She will leave Wyoming Area as a very accomplished tennis player, with two District 2 singles titles and two more appearances in the district finals. She became the first girl to ever win a district tennis title at Wyoming Area as a freshman, then won it again.She wanted so badly to win a third.So before her school held its big Friday night football game against nationally ranked Southern Columbia, Pizzano played her own big game for the District 2 Class 2A crown.She suffered a lopsided loss. So did the football team.Pizzano settled for second place and smiled about it.Why was she so satisfied with silver when her main goal was gold?Pizzano immediately pointed to her ace bandage-wrapped wrist.&#8220;I tore a ligament in it,&#8221; she said.This happened before the start of the season, as she was making a video to show to prospective college tennis recruiters.&#8220;I had different strings on my racket (that) weren&#8217;t for me,&#8221; Pizzano said. &#8220;It was a high tension (string). During my college recruiting video, I hit the ball really hard. I felt something pop.&#8221;A frightening thought immediately popped into her head.Was this it?Was her memorable high school tennis career finished before her final season and final run around the Wyoming Valley Conference even began?Not if she had something to say. And her spectacular season said plenty.Pizzano won 20 consecutive matches, most of them in a breeze, before suffering a 6-1, 6-1 loss to Riverside&#8217;s supremely talented sophomore Karissa Ghigarelli in the district final.&#8220;It was my senior year,&#8221; Pizzano said. &#8220;I knew I was not going to not play.&#8221;She got through it on desire, determination, dedication and a little help from the local pharmacy.&#8220;I take Advil right before every match,&#8221; Pizzano said. &#8220;I just tried to use my forehand, make them (opponents) move as much as possible.&#8221;She was pretty much playing one-handed at times.Truth is, Pizzano may have had trouble trying to reclaim her district crown with two healthy hands.Ghigarelli beat her in last year&#8217;s District 2 title match, 6-0, 6-0, and dashed Pizzano&#8217;s dreams of becoming a four-time district champion. Now Ghigarelli is in Pizzano&#8217;s old shoes, hoping to make it four-for-four after winning district gold as a freshman and sophomore.&#8220;I knew even before the brackets came out I&#8217;d have to play her,&#8221; Pizzano said. &#8220;I knew it was going to be extremely hard.&#8221;She never backed down, though.Just as Wyoming Area&#8217;s football team held high-powered Southern Columbia to 14 points until the final minutes of the first half, Pizzano made things a little more difficult than the defending district tennis champion might have expected in Friday&#8217;s final.She won a game in the first set, then another in the second. Aching wrist or not, she wasn&#8217;t about to be shut out again.&#8220;I really didn&#8217;t expect to be in the final again, because of my wrist,&#8221; Pizzano said. &#8220;I just had to stay confident. My main focus was just to get a couple games. I got two.&#8221;She will get surgery on that wrist next month, when her high school career and a season of ache is finally over. But before then, Pizzano will try to win a district doubles title this week that eluded her in last year&#8217;s District 2 finals.&#8220;I&#8217;ll have another girl out there with me, with another healthy wrist,&#8221; Pizzano laughed.Whatever happens with that, Pizzano will always have the fight through this season of plight to rely on, for whatever challenges she may face in the future.&#8220;I was proud of myself,&#8221; Pizzano said.She has every right to be.Because sometimes, the glory isn&#8217;t in the gold medal, but in an unrelenting quest to find one.<style>
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<div class="metaInfo"><subheadMeta>Pizzano&#8217;s steely will is worth more than a gold medal</subheadMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta>Paul Sokoloski covers area sports for the Times Leader. You may reach him at 570-991-6392, psokoloski@www.timesleader.com or on Twitter @SokoSports</shirttailMeta></div>