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Oakland Catholic High School graduate Erica Prosser, a Whitehall resident, is having an outstanding season for the Mountain Hawks and is averaging 14.9 points a game.
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PG South/East: Oakland Catholic grad Prosser catches fire at Lehigh

Specialty Photographic

PG South/East: Oakland Catholic grad Prosser catches fire at Lehigh

Even though she chose to go to college 250 miles to the east, it's nearly impossible for her not to be reminded of her Steeltown roots.

From time to time, the similarities between her hometown and her current home, Lehigh University in Bethlehem, spook her a bit.

"There's this one spot by some of the old steel mills, and it's kind of scary because it's so similar to Pittsburgh," Erica Prosser said. "Some of the other streets look just like Mount Washington."

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It's not anything bad, Prosser said, but some of the scenes of the historical, steeltown city in Lehigh County do remind her of some sights she would pass while commuting from her family's home in Whitehall to Oakland Catholic during her high school days. One thing that has remained constant from her days at Oakland Catholic is basketball.

A former Eagles standout, she is the starting point guard for the Lehigh University women's basketball team. Check that, the Patriot League-leading Lehigh University women's basketball team. Prosser leads the Mountain Hawks, averaging 14.9 points, 4.7 assists and two steals per game.

She recently received recognition for her efforts with her second-consecutive Patriot League Player of the Week award.

Prosser, a sophomore, received her most recent award, her fourth this season, after she averaged 24.5 points and 4.5 steals per game in a 61-43 win against Colgate on Jan. 21, and a 73-51 victory over arch-rival Lafayette on Jan. 24.

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"I always attribute [the award] to my team," Prosser said, "I wouldn't have my success without them."

Even if she cites her team's play, there is at least one person who knows she has always had a special quality about her when she steps onto the hardwood.

"She was the most 'impactful' player I've ever seen," said Rich Irr, her former coach at Oakland Catholic High School. "If I had to start a team with anyone I've ever seen, she would be my No. 1 pick, and that's saying a lot for the players that have come out of this area and who have come through Oakland Catholic."

Irr said after Prosser would have big games against standout, Division I recruits, people would line up outside to ask him one question: "Hey, who was that No. 21 girl?"

"She wasn't recruited as highly as she should've been, and why the big universities weren't recruiting her was a mystery to me," Irr said. "In my opinion, those coaches didn't realize everything else she brought to the floor. She made so many clutch plays, I couldn't even begin to list them."

After looking at colleges, Prosser's list dwindled down to two Patriot League schools and two Atlantic-10 Conference schools: Lehigh, Colgate, Fordham and Duquesne.

"From all my visits, it really came down to the people," Prosser said, "It felt more like a family at Lehigh and my visit was way better, I felt that I already fit in here."

"We saw her a couple of times in the state playoffs and that kind of initiated us to her," Lehigh coach Sue Troyan said. "The summer of her junior year, I was at every one of her AAU games and we offered her in early September during her visit. She was at the top of our list."

Troyan knew she was getting a special player, but she didn't know just how physically gifted Prosser is.

"She's a phenomenal athlete, she's broken all of our records as far as the testing we do," Troyan said.

"Things like vertical leap, broad jump, bench, squat, all of those, and that's for all women athletes here at Lehigh."

Troyan, now in her 14th year as head coach at Lehigh, said it took a little time for Prosser to become comfortable with a new system, new teammates and new friends.

"Last year, she was really shy and didn't talk a lot," Troyan said, "This year she's really personable and her teammates love her. Over the last year and a half, it's been nice to see her come out of her shell, she's a wonderful young woman."

That's not to say Troyan didn't get a good grasp of her personality during her freshman year. Troyan found out during Prosser's first practice during a fast-break drill that she wears her emotions on her sleeve while on the court.

"I was correcting her mistake, and I turned around and tears were coming out of her eyes," Troyan said. "She turned to me and said, 'Just so you know coach, I'm a crier.' I thought that was funny and cool because she was honest with me while she was getting corrected."

Her attitude has blended well with a team that currently sits atop the Patriot League and is looking to compete in this year's NCAA tournament.

"We're really excited about how we've been playing," Prosser said. "The Patriot League is tough this year, the competition is pretty even. Hopefully, we can win the conference [title]."

As for the life at Lehigh, it doesn't come free of a few minor difficulties.

"I just hate going into the stores where there's all [Philadelphia] Eagles stuff," Prosser said, "They have Steelers stuff now that they're in [and have won] the Super Bowl though."

It's a small price to pay, she said. She said she is taking "a bunch of random classes," to help her decide on a major to pursue.

Steel sharpens steel, as the saying goes. It seems in Prosser's case, indirectly, her Pittsburgh roots have led her to a hard-working future in the Lehigh Valley.

First Published: February 5, 2009, 10:00 a.m.

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Oakland Catholic High School graduate Erica Prosser, a Whitehall resident, is having an outstanding season for the Mountain Hawks and is averaging 14.9 points a game.  (Specialty Photographic)
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