dugout." Brooklyn College is only a short bus ride up Bedford Ave., but the change of locale brings a world of difference.


Here, the coach has a chance to start from scratch. The college will be replacing tiny Monsignor Farrell Field with a new, million-dollar stadium in 2011, and Dumont wants the new digs to be home to a champion. Coaching in college also relieves Dumont of many of his former pressures.


As a high school coach, Dumont had to spend much of his time at bake sales and other fund-raisers. Now, he no longer worries about how his team will pay its expenses; the Bulldogs have their uniform and equipment costs paid by Nike, and the college covers the rest.


The change in his players' age has also made a difference.


"I don't feel like a high school coach anymore," Dumont said. "At Madison, I had to teach them how to be student- athletes." College players already grasp the fundamentals and have the ability, Dumont said. He is just there to refine it.


Already, he's helped the Bulldogs to get better; they finished the regular season 16-15-1 (7-7 CUNYAC). They'll open the conference playoffs as the fourth seed and face No.5 John Jay tomorrow.


The coach could be displaying a facade, trying to appear relaxed simply because he has yet to find his place in the new organization. Dumont, for his part, said he sees little change. "I rarely yell during the games," he said. "Am I intense? Yes. I give directions and that's why I get paid."


It was Danielle Maresca, Dumont's former player and assistant, who helped convince Dumont to leave. She graduated from Madison in 2007 and had just finished her first season with Brooklyn as a sophomore (she transferred from Hunter).


"She's probably the reason I am here," Dumont said of Maresca. "She sort of prodded me, pushed me, nudged me."


Dumont was taking control of a program that longed for his leadership, but he's the first person to say he was nervous. "I had major fears and doubts and all of those 'What am I doing?' moments," he said.


The main source of his anxiety was the change in age group. He was no longer teaching 13-year-olds; now, he would coach women.


To help make the adjustment, Dumont turned to his former players. In addition to Maresca, he coached senior Jenna Ferrara and freshman Danielle Brovokas.


Dumont only serves as a hands-on coach to the pitchers. He offers encouragement or makes an occasional joke during practice, but he prefers to leave the instruction to assistant Frank Izzo, who also worked with him at Madison.


When Maresca steps up to the plate, however, Dumont doesn't hold back, perhaps owing to the friendship they built at Madison.


Dumont met Maresca before high school, when she participated in summer clinics that he ran as part of the Big Apple Games.


"She'd play six hours a day in 90- degree heat," Dumont said. "We both love softball; we can each play 10 hours a day." Dumont has placed Maresca on a pedestal, but he said he's working to build bonds with others. Samantha Lombardi began practicing with him daily during the fall, and he said the commitment of Brown, a graduate


Page 56 of 155


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99  |  Page 100  |  Page 101  |  Page 102  |  Page 103  |  Page 104  |  Page 105  |  Page 106  |  Page 107  |  Page 108  |  Page 109  |  Page 110  |  Page 111  |  Page 112  |  Page 113  |  Page 114  |  Page 115  |  Page 116  |  Page 117  |  Page 118  |  Page 119  |  Page 120  |  Page 121  |  Page 122  |  Page 123  |  Page 124  |  Page 125  |  Page 126  |  Page 127  |  Page 128  |  Page 129  |  Page 130  |  Page 131  |  Page 132  |  Page 133  |  Page 134  |  Page 135  |  Page 136  |  Page 137  |  Page 138  |  Page 139  |  Page 140  |  Page 141  |  Page 142  |  Page 143  |  Page 144  |  Page 145  |  Page 146  |  Page 147  |  Page 148  |  Page 149  |  Page 150  |  Page 151  |  Page 152  |  Page 153