Rudish Leads Blue Devil
JV Girls' Soccer
Huntington freshman Summer Rudish scored 11 goals to lead the Blue Devil girls' junior varsity soccer team to a 6-7-1 mark this fall.
"Summer was always in the right position with a great finishing touch," said Vincent Tannazzo, who coached the 17-member Blue Devil squad. The team was captained by Anne Nugent, Hannah Pipolo and Naomi Medina-Jaudes.
There were many positive developments and performances during the season. For example, Huntington lost to Hauppauge early in the season, 4-1 before topping the Eagles in a rematch, 2-1. The Blue Devils dropped a 4-1 verdict to Deer Park and then came back to earn a 4-4 tie in overtime the second time around. Huntington bested Walt Whitman, 2-1, despite having just 12 players that day.
Sophomore goalkeeper Rachel Bosco recorded 108 saves to bolster the team's defense. Freshman forward Emily Saltman put the ball in the net five times and led Huntington in assists. "She outhustled defenders and made strong runs," Tannazzo said.
Sophomore forward Jackie Contino scored four goals before earning a promotion. "Jackie played like a bull before being pulled up to varsity," Tannazzo said. Nugent, a sophomore who played midfield and forward, was the Blue Devil's on-field leader, according to the coach.
Medina-Jaudes, a talented freshman and Pipolo, a seasoned sophomore, were stellar "shutdown" stoppers on defense. Three of Huntington's losses were by 1-0 scores.
Tannazzo called the squad a "hardworking, defensive-minded team. We out-hustled and out-worked our opponents." Remarkably, 11 of the 14 games were decided by one goal.
Looking forward to next year, the Blue Devils look solid. There are seven players set to return and a skilled cast ready to move up as freshmen from J. Taylor Finley Middle School.
"We are going to be very talented and hard to beat," Tannazzo said. "Next season we should have a good balance of tough defense and an explosive offense."