By Andy Loigu

A former North Warren girls high school basketball standout, who also shined in Division One play with the Manhattan Jaspers, Caitlin Flood has been hired as a full-time physical therapy assistant by BAYADA Home Health Care this summer.

She has advanced from entry level work and is on an upward career path in a field that provides vital services for senior citizens in need.

Back in 2001, when North Warren legend Desire Almind headed for college challenges with the Bucknell Bison, Flood was given huge shoes to fill on the basketball court as an underclassman playing varsity for coach Sandy Toronzi. Without the benefit of any freshman or junior varsity experience, she and her sister Mary were excellent varsity players right away. The naysayers who called for the demise of the program with Almind having graduated, were proven wrong.

Caitlin Flood went on to total 1,845 points in her career with the Patriots, who continued going to the state tournament. She became the second highest career scorer in Warren County as a senior. She also pulled down over 1,000 rebounds for North Warren. Maintaining a high and consistent level of  performance, she, just like Almind before her, was honored as the county’s Player of the Year twice and also was named Warren County Female Athlete of the Year by the Warren Reporter in 2004.

Flood also played on a winning girls soccer team  at North Warren.

This columnist remembers how shy she was, when I tried to interview her after wins during her first varsity season. Four years later, as Manhattan held a press conference to announce her commitment, she was quite eloquent, exuding confidence and poise. The Jaspers picked a good one. She went on to be honored on both the All-Middle Atlantic Athletic Conference academic first team and the all-conference first team as a player when she had a marvelous season with 428 points and a .512 shooting percentage.

Always looking to include a play on words in my writing, I wrote that Long Valley and Chester were suffering from flood damage, after North Warren won on the road against a very good West Morris team.

Here is hoping that’s the only kind of flood damage that area will ever “suffer.”  My alma mater of Rider University also suffered “flood damage” as Caitlin left my beloved “Broncs’ Zoo” in her wake in a college game in Lawrenceville.

Ladies and gentlemen, Elvis has left the building.