By Marc Raimondi
“Before every game, I called him,” Lambright said. “I was like, 'Am I eligible yet?'”The answer was always no. According to the PSAL rule book, any transferring student who was on an active roster at a public high school at any time during the year prior to the date of transfer shall be ineligible to represent the school transferred to, in that sport, for a period of one year from the date of transfer, unless there was a change of address or extenuating circumstances.Lambright's address – she and her family live in Jamaica – didn't change. That was the problem. Van Buren was much closer than Flushing, which took 90 minutes for her to get to in the morning by bus. But the PSAL didn't budge.”We don't accept [travel transfers] as one of the extenuating circumstances,” Blanc told the TimesLedger.It didn't stop Lambright from trying to regain her eligibility, though, time and time again.”I felt kind of cheated out of the year,” Lambright said.The 6-foot-1 forward is making up for it now, as a senior. She had 28 points and 22 rebounds in Van Buren's second-round playoff victory against Robeson Feb. 26. The Vee Bees, seeded seventh in the PSAL Class A playoffs, will play No. 2 Food and Finance in the quarterfinals Sunday at Hunter College at 1 p.m.”I knew she was a good player,” said Van Buren coach Mike McClain, who coached against Lambright when she was at Flushing. “I thought, 'Why in the world would she want to come to Van Buren?'”It wasn't necessarily for basketball. Two years ago, Flushing went 18-0 in the PSAL Class B regular season and made it all the way to the city quarterfinals on the back of star Andrea Buckham, who was named to the All-CUNYAC team at Hunter College this season. Lambright, only a sophomore, was in line to be the team's star the following year. But the travel was too much of a burden and it was affecting her grades. She's gotten her average up to 85 now and has interest from Division III and junior-college schools.If this was only a basketball decision? “I would have stayed where I was,” Lambright said.Sitting out hurt, especially when Van Buren fell to eventual champion Thomas Jefferson in last year's PSAL Class A semifinals.”That game would have been a different turn out if she played,” Van Buren senior Aimee Aikens said.With Lambright's help, the Vee Bees will get another shot this season. She already has.Reach Associate Sports Editor Marc Raimondi by e-mail at mraimondi@timesledger.com or call 718-229-0300, Ext. 130.
