Huntington's Special Olympics Hockey Grabs Silver
The Huntington School District's Special Olympics floor hockey team is rapidly gaining a reputation for being a powerhouse. The squad captured silver medals at its last two tournaments at Suffolk Community College and Southside High School in Rockville Centre.
Coached by Linda Roth, Chris Hender and Glen Manaker, the team includes players Rachel Stollmack John Manaker, Brendan Cribbin, Nick Smyth, Andrew Oh, Liam Mrotzek, John Cronin, Meghan Latini, Isabel Casey, Stephanie Quesquen, Eric Vallecille and Aidan Mrotzek. Cronin notched a hat trick during the last tournament. Casey is the team's star goalie.
The team's skill level has been improving by leaps and bounds as a result of weekly practices at J. Taylor Finley Middle School. The team is currently preparing for its next tournament. Players and coaches will travel to The Bronx in January and go into battle against teams from across the Tri-State area.
Huntington's floor hockey program is a year old. It got off the ground when the Huntington Booster Club chipped in by purchasing the sticks, pucks, helmets and nets used by the team. "We could not have done it without them," Mrs. Roth said.