Valley View coach Rob Martin watches from the sideline during Tuesday night’s game against Abington Heights. SCOTT WALSH / STAFF PHOTO
Valley View coach Rob Martin talks to his team during a timeout during Tuesday night’s game against Abington Heights. SCOTT WALSH / STAFF PHOTO
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Valley View coach Rob Martin watches from the sideline during Tuesday night’s game against Abington Heights. SCOTT WALSH / STAFF PHOTO
SOUTH ABINGTON TWP. — It has been a difficult couple of weeks for Rob Martin. The Valley View girls basketball coach missed his team’s last three games to be with his wife Heather as she battles pseudomyxoma peritonei (PMP) stage 4A abdominal cancer.
Martin was back on the sidelines Tuesday night and the Cougars turned in an inspirational effort for an emotional 57-39 victory at Abington Heights in a Lackawanna League Division I contest.
“We had a little rough patch with coach dealing with his family,” said Valley View junior Sadie Cardoni, who led the way with 21 points and 10 rebounds. “We came here knowing that he was back and we wanted to win this for him and his family. We all just played our game. We knew what we had to do, especially because we lost to them the last time. That gave us so much more motivation to come and beat them on their home court. Abington’s a really good team, but we just executed well.”
Ali Mauro added 14 points off the bench for No. 5 Valley View (16-5 overall, 9-4 league).
Emma Coleman led No. 4 Abington Heights (8-5, 13-8) with 19 points. Lily Scoblick, who was honored in a pregame Senior Night ceremony, had five points and 10 rebounds. The Lady Comets played without Sydney Pallman, who suffered a season-ending knee injury last week in a game against Scranton Prep.
“We’ve been struggling defensively. Our identity at the beginning of the season was defense and we took a step back,” Martin said. “Offensively, we weren’t moving the ball as well as early on. So we had to get back in the groove. I thought (Monday) we had a great practice. I was hoping that would transition into (Tuesday) and it did. We shared the ball well, we had some kids step up and did a good job controlling the boards.”
At the very least, the win provided Martin with a distraction for a few hours.
Heather Martin had surgery performed Jan. 27 at Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore, Maryland, by Dr. Armando Sardi, a world-renowned surgical oncologist.
“It was worse than they thought. There was more cancer on her pelvis area and on her liver,” coach Martin said. “They had to take out her abdominal lining, her cecum, her spleen, part of her colon and part of her liver. She had a little setback that Saturday, but she’s been doing fairly well now.”
Naturally, it has been difficult for Martin and 13-year-old daughter Milana. Being away from the basketball team didn’t make it easier. Assistant Ben Lorenzetti coached the Cougars in Martin’s absence.
“It was hard sitting in Baltimore and watching the games on Hudl Live,” coach Martin said. “I kept in constant contact with the kids and the coaches. The kids were always checking in on me. You really take for granted the relationship with the kids and coaching when it’s taken away from you. It was hard for me to accept that. I said, ‘I think I need the kids more than they needed me.’”
He is grateful for the support he has received from the Valley View administration and the basketball community. In fact, before Tuesday’s game, Abington Heights players presented Martin with a card and a basketball-shaped Coaches vs. Cancer placard with Heather’s name on it.
“Coach (Deanna) Klingman has been in touch with me the whole process, asking how everything is going,” Martin said. “Abington is just a class act school district and the girls basketball program is fantastic. It’s emotional, it almost got me. I can’t thank them enough.”
Added Klingman: “It’s just horrific. When you think about basketball, that is just so much more important. I’m glad his kids rallied around him tonight.”
Martin thought about sitting out the rest of the season. But it was Heather who insisted he return to the team.
“I didn’t feel comfortable leaving my wife down there by herself. It was hard for me,” Martin said. “But she said, ‘You’ve got to get back to coaching, the kids need you.’ Because of her is the reason I’m back to be honest with you. She was forcing me to get back. She said you need to be there.”
With the return of their coach Tuesday, the Cougars came out strong, particularly Cardoni. She had five offensive rebounds in the first quarter and scored seven points, including a long 3-pointer at the buzzer to give Valley View a 13-6 lead.
“Coach Martin told me going into the game to be physical, be tough,” Cardoni said. “The last game, our biggest problem was rebounding. So today we just had to attack the boards and go after them. He has confidence in me to shoot my shot, always telling me to keep shooting. Today was just my day.”
Valley View opened the second quarter with an 11-2 run, capped by consecutive baskets by Cardoni, to give the Cougars a 24-8 lead with 3:52 left. The margin never got in single digits the rest of the way.
In the third quarter, Cardoni had eight points to help Valley View increase a 28-17 halftime lead to 38-21.
“Sadie was phenomenal,” coach Martin said. “I always knew she had it in her. A lot of times she gets double-teamed. But she has a lot of ability. Today, we just kept feeding her the ball inside and she kept doing her thing. She was huge for us today.”
Mauro scored 12 of her points in the fourth quarter to help cap the victory for the Cougars.
“Credit to Valley View. They came out with a lot of emotion, they were aggressive, they put the ball in the basket and we struggled,” Klingman said. “Sydney (Pallman) is a big absence. She worked very well with Sarah (Cantner) in the post. It’s an adjustment and we’ll have to figure things out. Hopefully we can continue to grow and learn and get ready for the next game.”
With one game left in the regular season before the District 2 playoffs begin next week, Martin feels his team is back on track.
“I was beating myself up a little bit that my instability with my family situation was a distraction,” Martin said. “We were in a little bit of a rut there for a while. But I told the kids that now is the best time to play our best basketball and get ready for the playoffs.”