Kevin Bankos can get away with it, at least.
"I think she played like a beast," York Catholic coach Kevin Bankos said of junior forward Brittany Hicks. "I know I'm OK to say that because I always kid with her. That's a huge compliment for her. She's a playoff kid. She's a limelight kid that's not afraid of these moments. She absorbs these moments. She wants these moments.
"We know she's going to be there so we're willing to give her the ball. We're willing to take our chance on her. We expect her to make big plays for us and she made a couple to get us back in the game."
Hicks scored 19 points and pulled down 12 rebounds in York Catholic's 56-51 loss to Villa Maria in Friday's state title game and was the only player on the floor for either team to register a double-double.
Hicks established herself in the post against a physical Villa Maria team and scored six of her points during a 10-0 York Catholic run to end the third quarter and pull the Fighting Irish within eight points. Her toughness has helped give her an edge that she may not have had during her sophomore season and it showed in the biggest game of the season.
If the 5-foot-10 forward can maintain such a tenacity next season, the Irish have a great chance of reaching the state championship game for the fifth consecutive season. She already said she likes the chances of that happening.
"Our freshmen stepped up this year in some big games," Hicks said. "We're losing the McGanns which is definitely a loss for us because they are a big part of our success, but we still have me, Kady, Carly, Karli and Rachel Forjan. I think that once we get to next year we'll play better. We won't have the height next year, but we'll definitely have the speed to compete with most teams."
Having Hicks play like a beast in the post will likely keep that lack of team height from having any real effect.
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