(Photo by Bill Allen/NJ SportAction) caption: GRAND ACHIEVER: Princeton Day School girls’ basketball star Janie Smukler heads to the hoop in a game last winter. Last Thursday, Smukler scored 18 points to lead PDS to a 49-30 win at Stuart. A day later, Smukler scored 20 and passed the 1,000-point mark in her career as the Panthers fell 58-48 to Rutgers Prep. PDS, now 7-4, plays St. Patrick’s on January 19 in the Blue Star Invitational at Upper Dublin High School in Fort Washington, Pa.

Junior Smukler Adds Leadership to Production; Hits 1,000 Points With PDS Girls’ Hoops at 7-4

Bill Alden

This past fall, Janie Smukler took on leadership responsibilities in addition to her role as the top scorer for the Princeton Day School girls’ soccer team.

The junior star displayed maturity and production, helping PDS win the state Prep B title, culminating the season by tallying two goals and two assists in the championship game.

This winter, Smukler has been charged with assuming a similar dual role for the PDS girls’ basketball team.

“I am a captain this year so I have more of a leadership role,” said guard Smukler.

“I have to speak more on the court; I have to focus on being a leader and playing at the same time which is a lot harder. Soccer prepared me to be more of a leader.”

Last Thursday, Smukler led the way as the Panthers started the 2011 portion of this season’s schedule by going across Great Road and topping Stuart Country Day 49-30.

“We were all excited to play,” said Smukler, who scored a game-high 18 points in the victory, including eight in the first quarter.

“It was good to beat them; we do have a rivalry. I felt like I was shooting well right off the get-go so I got confidence in the first quarter.”

Smukler acknowledged that the Panthers hit a lull in the second quarter. “We weren’t moving the ball around enough so coach got on us for that at halftime,” said Smukler.

“We were taking quick shots that weren’t good and we could have gotten better shots.”

Smukler exerted some leadership to help the Panthers play sharper. “We definitely talked and said let’s get it together,” said Smukler.

“We said we can beat this team by a lot if we work the ball around a lot and get it into Tiffany [Patterson] more.”

With Smukler scoring seven points in the third quarter, the Panthers outscored Stuart 17-4 and never looked back on the way to the win.

In Smukler’s view, the performance against Stuart exemplified PDS’s solid play so far this season.

“I think we have been playing pretty well,” said Smukler. “Having Molly [Rubin] back, that is a big part of the team. We are pretty happy with where we are at.”

A day later, Smukler was happy as she passed the 1,000-point mark in her career, scoring 20 points in a tough 58-48 loss to Rutgers Prep.

“I am excited about that,” said Smukler, reflecting on approaching that milestone.

New PDS head coach Mika Ryan is excited with Smukler’s progress. “Probably the thing I am most pleased about Janie is that her practice habits have improved,” said Ryan, whose team moved to 7-4 with the loss to Rutgers Prep.

“We talk in practice about doing drills and breakdowns at game speed and that was a foreign subject to her. There is no greater competitor on game day but to reach her potential she needs to practice at that speed.”

Ryan acknowledged that PDS needs to take things a little slower at times to reach its full potential offensively.

“We have worked really hard on being more patient with the basketball,” said Ryan.

“We have talked about passing up a good shot for a better shot and we just aren’t there yet. We are still far too impatient.”

The Panthers did show good intensity in other areas of the game. “I thought defensively it was a great effort,” added Ryan, whose team held the Panthers to nine points in the first half.

“I was concerned about Stuart; I knew they are good at the guard position. I thought they played hard and battled the whole game. If we could just rebound a little better, we’d be pretty tough.”

The return of junior star Sarah Godwin from an ankle injury will make PDS tougher.

“It is hard to say how valuable she is,” said Ryan. “She makes my substitutions better; she makes everything better.”

In Ryan’s view, the Panthers should keep getting better and better as the season goes on.

“In general, I am pretty pleased with the progress,” said Ryan, whose club will be playing St. Patrick’s on January 19 in the Blue Star Invitational at Upper Dublin High School in Fort Washington, Pa.

“I think the key for us is, one, to stay healthy and, two, become just a little more efficient on offense. I think we’ll be pretty solid. I think we’ll make a good showing in this Mercer County Tournament. The next goal is to get there and play well against our compatriots.”

Smukler, for her part, believes PDS can achieve some big goals this winter. “I think we could win the Prep B and I really want to get far in the Mercer tournament,” said Smukler. “I think we can do it this year.”

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