It’s Friday, Jan. 9, and Pascack Valley is play Northern Valley Demarest at home. The score of the game is 46-37 and Demarest is leading. There are 54.2 seconds on the clock in the fourth quarter, and Demarest has the ball under the PV basket. The Indians are playing man-to-man press on the Norsewomen in an attempt to steal the ball. The play is started, and the Demarest players thought they had broken the press with a short inbound pass to the baseline.

They were wrong.

Else DiGiacopo, a senior, jumps in front of the ball, full body blocks the pass, takes a hard hit to the floor and gets up. That’s the kind of player she is.

“She’s got the greatest combination of personality, compassion, caring and commitment,” said PV coach Jeff Jasper about DiGiacopo, describing her as a “selfless” player and person.

These qualities all come together for a person who displays great character. And that is just what DiGiacopo is, on and off the court. But in her opinion, it took time for her to become this great person and she attributes some of these qualities to basketball experiences.

“If it were not for this team and the way it was run I would not be the friend or leader I am today,” DiGiacopo explained. “Playing basketball at PV teaches you more than just the game of basketball; the most important things we learn are how to carry ourselves and how to treat others.”

And those are just the things you see when she plays basketball. Something that DiGiacopo prides herself on is being a good friend. Not just off the court, but on the court too.

“Whenever someone does something well on the court, [DiGiacopo] is the first one to get over to them to congratulate them,” says Jasper.

She has great awareness of her teammates. Constantly, she is looking to them, making sure they are comfortable, giving them that boost of encouragement they need to keep pushing.

“On the court I am always making sure my teammates are relaxed and feeling good. Off the court I do my best to put my friends before myself and make sure everyone’s happy,” said DiGiacopo.

She wasn’t always a poised veteran. Jasper recalled DiGiacopo’s freshman year, laughing, describing her as “a little spacey,” but “happy.” Which is where her nickname “Ellwood” began.

“She’d talk about her cats and stuff,” Jasper said, “and we’d be like ‘Ellwood what are you talking about?’”

At that time though, Jasper had seen that she was going to become a great player and leader. The girls basketball team passes the numbers 3 and 22 to players that Jasper believes have the combination of skill, commitment, and leadership as a young player. These numbers have had a long string of stellar players wearing them. Most of them have gone All-County, but more importantly, they have all made an impact off the court too. DiGiacopo wears the number 3 and sophomore Shannon Culloo wears 22.

“It’s a big responsibility and sometimes it’s a lot of pressure, but it’s definitely an honor and I was really happy to get it,” says DiGiacopo about her number. “It’s been a process to be able to fill it out, but I think now that I’ve done a pretty good job.”

Last week: The Indians defeated Bergenfield at home on Tuesday 49-43 in a game that came down to the final minutes as PV nearly squandered a large halftime lead. High scorers were Culloo with 15 points and Lyndsay Grilo, who added another 12 points.

On Friday, the team hosted the Norsewomen of Demarest and was defeated 48-37. The team had a lead in the first quarter, but was unable to regain it.

A look ahead: On Tuesday, the Indians travel to Teaneck to play at 6 p.m. in one of their toughest games yet. They round out the week with two home games: one game against Paramus at 4 p.m. on Thursday and the other game at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday against Rutherford.