Leading off today: With the early-signing period still a month away, many top basketball prospects are closing in on decicions about the future.

   Two major women's Division I recruits have made up their minds, announcing college decisions this week.

   Guard/forward Shenise Johnson, easily the best prospect to ever come out of Section 5, said Thursday that she will sign a Letter of Intent next month with the University of Miami.

   The two-time Democrat and Chronicle player of the year, who's led Rush-Henrietta to consecutive NYSPHSAA Class AA crowns, only visited Miami and Syracuse before making her choice. She previously had also considered Boston College, Georgia and Louisiana State.

   Miami has been making a living off of Rochester-area recruits recently. Former Monroe Community College stars Renee Taylor and Maurita Reid were Miami's top scorers last season.

   Meantime, Commack point guard Sammy Prahalis, who has rolled up 1,742 points in five seasons, has given a thumbs-up to Ohio State. The three-time All-Long Island selection, who's been compared to Sue Bird and Nicole Kaczmarski, announced her selection earlier this week.

   Mahopac players step up: Mahopac varsity boys basketball players started a petition drive yesterday asking the school board to reconsider its decision not to appoint Phil Diasparra as coach.

   The Journal News reported the board voted 5-4 against hiring Diasparra, who was backed by AD Frank Miele and Superintendent Robert Reidy.

   "We all know that Coach Diasparra is a great coach and we had a lot of respect for him," Mahopac junior Tim Taps told the paper. "We were really disappointed that he didn't get the job."

   Board president Penny Swift would not comment on the vote but said that there has been some feedback in support of the board.

   Diasparra spent eight seasons as an assistant basketball coach at Mahopac until 2005 and 10 years as an assistant

baseball coach until 2003. He's a long-time AAU coach as well.

   Strictly opinion: A 5-4 split after the AD and superintendent have alreay signed off on a candidate usually indicates that there's a personality conflict or a grudge; had there been a character issue of some sort, the vote against Diasparra would have been 8-1 or 9-0.

   Bob Thomas wins again: Feel free to skip this item if you're under 40 years old and/or have no interest in politics. For some of us, though, another chapter has been written in a fascinating battle involving a man who could sit on the U.S. Supreme Court one day.

   The Kane County Chronicle has agreed to apologize for publishing defamatory statements about Illinois Supreme Court Chief Justice Robert Thomas and to pay a reduced damage award of $3 million to settle a case playing out in state and federal courts.

   Thomas, a McQuaid graduate who kicked the winning field goal for Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl against Alabama and then went on to a long career with the Chicago Bears, had been awarded $4 million by the trial judge, who had reduced the jury's original award of $7 million in November.

   In the case, the jury found two reports by a columnist for the paper had "falsely and recklessly" accused Thomas, 55, of misconduct in a disciplinary case pending before the Illinois high court.

   Though he's not been known to have been on the "short list" of candidates to fill recent U.S. Supreme Court vacancies, Thomas' name has been floated as a future prospect, which would have been complicated had he not won his court battle with the paper.

   Extra points: New Hartford Andrew Steates did all the scoring Thursday in a 3-0 boys soccer triumph that ended Clinton's amazing run of 14 consecutive shutouts to open the season. . . . Unatego girls soccer coach Sue Herodes earned her 200th victory with a 1-0 decision over Sidney. She's 200-93-24 in 17 seasons. . . . The story didn't break any new ground, but The Post-Standard followed up on the plight of Jordan-Elbridge senior Kristin Raeon, who was more or less barred from the girls soccer team after enlisting in the U.S. Army in March.

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