January 26, 2004

     WALLINGFORD - Sheehan girls basketball coach Christie Madancy called out instructions from a brown plastic chair placed under the basket in the Sheehan gymnasium on Monday afternoon.
     Last season, Madancy would have been on the court for a more hands-on approach, setting screens and trapping ball handlers in the corner.
     Taking a seat is just one of the differences Madancy has gotten accustomed to this season as she awaits the birth of her first child in the coming weeks. Madancy, 27, is due to deliver a baby girl on Valentines Day.
     She and husband Steve, who also serves as one of the team's two assistant coaches along with Brian Murphy, found out about the pregnancy in May.
     Madancy said taking the season off from coaching never crossed her mind. "It was never an option," Madancy said. "I've always wanted to have a family, but still coach. Coaching is a big part of my life too."
     Although Madancy was sitting during Monday's practice, she has found it difficult to remain seated during the Titans' games even though Steve made that request after his wife "went ballistic" during Sheehan's 41-40 loss to Shelton on Jan. 6.
     "When we got home I told her we needed to talk," Steve said with a laugh. "I said most mothers are reading to their kids and listening to Beethoven and you're yelling at the refs. I don't know if the kid's getting the message. "I'm more nervous about the baby than I am about losing the game," Steve added.
     Steve said he asked Christie to try sitting during the Titans' next game against Mercy. "I tried to sit a little bit during the Mercy game, but it didn't go very well so I'm back to standing on the sideline," Madancy said. "The girls leave a seat open for me now in case I need it."
     "I have been taking it a little easier lately," Madancy said. "I went a little crazy during the Shelton game and I was a little sore that night. Since then, I've been a little bit more nervous and that's why I have them leave a seat open so if I feel I need to sit down I can. I've tried to be a little calmer.
     "The biggest change is that I've never had so many parents come up to me after a game asking me how I'm doing," she said. "We were at Amity (Friday) night and I had a mother come up to me and tell me how worried she was about me. But I'm OK."
     But Madancy is not the only one feeling the excitement. She has an entire team full of girls awaiting the arrival of the newest member of the Madancy family.
     "They're excited," Madancy said. "If they see me holding my side they all say, 'Is she coming?'" "It's been a lot more interesting at practice," senior tri-captain Chrissy Sartori said. "We're all really excited."
     "She always argues with her husband because he doesn't want her to stand up, but she does anyway," Sartori said. "Whenever she has a pain he's like 'Oh my God. Did your water break?' He freaks out a little bit, but I love them. They're both great."
     Steve said the girls are "just as excited" as he and his wife about the baby. He added that the squad has been arguing about which player will make the best babysitter. The girls recently threw a baby shower for Madancy and have also started a friendly pool to try and guess the baby's birth date.
     Sartori, who got the first pick because of her captain status, picked Feb.16.
     The Titans (6-7, 4-1) end their regular season on that day with a home game against Hillhouse. They are currently in position to make the SCC tournament and must win just two of their final seven games to make the CIAC Class L state tournament, which begins on March 1.
     If Madancy is unable to be on the sidelines during either the conference or state tournaments, she said she is confident in the ability of her assistants to take her place. "I have two assistant coaches that I trust completely," Madancy said. "They're going to take over until I can come back. I'm going to come back as soon as I can. We can qualify for states this week so I hope to be back for that." "All the coaches are here every day so it would be just the same," Sartori said.
     Steve said he is ready to take over the team if necessary and added that he has already coached every player at the junior varsity level with the exception of Sartori and junior tri-captain Stephanie Hiriak. "I don't think it would change a bit," Steve said.
     So now all Christie and Steve can do is wait. Wait to see if their team can get into the conference and state tournaments, and most importantly, wait for the arrival of Kayce Jane.
     The name is a combination of Steve's mother's middle name (Kay) and Christie's mother's middle name (Jane). "I get goofed on because I already gave her a basketball name," Madancysaid. "I'm going to call her K.J."