Pioneers leave me uttering a cliche

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One thing I loathe is the cliche -- detest it more than dentist appointments, credit card bills or crying babies on airplanes. But I want to use this one -- ‘downward spiral.’ (Ew, just typing that made my spine cold and hands quake.)

Anyway, downward spiral fits one specific club: Artesia boys’ basketball. Artesia, once feared and revered, failed to escape Division I-AA’s wild-card round in a 72-62 loss to Downey Wednesday night, finishing with a wretched 7-19 record.

So much has changed in a season, so much for the worse. Last year, the Pioneers won their second consecutive division crown and went a wicked 66-3 over the two-year span. Then, stars Renardo Sidney and Malik Story transferred -- ditched? -- as Artesia also brought in new coach Kennith Shyne.

But here’s one thing I believe in: redemption, especially with Artesia basketball and Coach Shyne. And that’s no cliche.

-- Anthony Stitt

-- Image from www.renewnorthfield.org