Going into the playoff season in girls’ basketball, the SJV Lady Lancers are in full swing ending their regular season with an 84-43 win over the Red Bank Catholic Caseys. Heading this prestigious program is coach Dawn Karpell. Going into her 10th year here at SJV, she and her team are planning on going all the way this season to compete with the already stellar school record of 16 state championships.

Not only is Karpell one of the top girls basketball coaches in the state she is also a member of the SJV Athletic Hall of Fame for her time as a player here. She won two Tournament of Champion titles in 1993 and 1995.

When asked about playing for SJV and the opportunities she has had as a coach Karpell said, “I think it makes the message that I am delivering to the team that much more believable because I have been in that position and I am not coming from someplace else. Having been there, done that, I am just coaching from my past experiences.”

She went on further to say that she feels that each team she has coached here has had their opportunities and created their path of how they were to be remembered, but her team this year has the ability and strength to make it all the way.

This year’s team is 16-1 on the season and undefeated in the conference going into tournament play. After a go-ahead win of 68-37 over Colts Neck, the Lancers play again on Monday night against Saint Rose in a semifinal game of the Shore Conference Tournament, with the hope of making it to the finals and winning the tournament in its entirety.

Karpell walked me through her routine of picking out her outfits the night before whether it be with senior forward, Zoe Pero, over facetime or sending messages out to the team about what style boots she should wear.  Then she explained other pre-game rituals like having to go to the locker room to do scout and pray at center court at the same time each game.

“Coaches, we each have our little rituals that we do on the bench as well, so yea. Every athlete has them don’t they.” “When it becomes playoff time they get even worse,” Karpell remarked about her pregame rituals, but they are all a part of the game.

Being a coach comes with so many moments that can be cherished and memorable. When asked about this, Karpell said that there are too many to choose from, between memories with girls that have graduated and gone off to college to more recent ones like her team’s state championship last year.

However, there are more memories to come, especially with her daughter, Sarah, who is a freshman on the team this year. “For me it is a little odd coaching her at times, especially early on in the season, but now I think we are past it. I think I am a little harder on her at times than I would be on any other freshman, but that comes with the parental relationship as most parents are with their children.”

Even with such a promising freshman class and stacked roster of sophomores and juniors, it is hard to picture this SJV team without the beloved and talented seniors. Graduating one of her biggest senior classes of players, with eight seniors, Karpell said that she does not like to think about the end of their road here. “It will be upsetting because I believe that our senior group has done an excellent job of carrying on the tradition of what it means to be a Lady Lancer basketball player, and I am proud of them for that. You know we just have a lot of games in front of us still, and that’s what I am looking at,” Karpell remarked about the remainder of the season. With the seniors still in full swing, the team is on the road towards their second straight championship and their first TOC title.

Karpell is both a great coach and role model for her players. Her love for basketball springs from early in childhood when she knew she wanted to be a coach, enjoying all the plays and make-ups of the game. Her love for the game truly became prevalent to her, however, only once she went to college.

“I wasn’t having the greatest experience at my first college (Fairleigh Dickinson), and I decided to transfer (Sacred Heart University). I decided the thing I love to do the most I could never grow to hate it, so I have to make a change in my life. I decided to transfer… so that was a good life decision for me,” she said about her college experience and how it changed her perspective on the game. Without a doubt, Karpell’s love of the sport and the girls she coaches runs deep, and we are excited to see how she and her team complete their season.