The Huntington girls’ junior varsity basketball team came awfully close to finishing the season perfect in league play. The Blue Devils soared to a 13-1 record on the wings of many talented players.
Coached by rookie sideline mentor Perry Marinelli, the 13-player squad compiled an overall mark of 16-4. Marinelli was named the Suffolk League III Coach of the Year for his efforts.
Huntington’s only league loss came early in the season when the Blue Devils dropped a 38-22 verdict to Half Hollow Hills East. They avenged the loss during the second match-up between the teams, grabbing a convincing 36-15 victory.
The roster included eighth graders Teddi Carnesi, Makaylah Frazier, Emily Plachta, Regan Sansiviero and Shaneek Shand; freshmen Alexa Amorison, Giavanna Devoe, Julia Gorecki, Kemberlin Hernandez-Veliz and Lisa Martin and sophomores and team captains Brooke Biernacki and Grace Heuwetter.
Compiling a 13-1 mark in league play was clearly the highlight of the season. “They played like a true team and I’m proud of them,” Marinelli said. “Our biggest accomplishment was beating Hills East the second time we played them. “We prepared and made adjustments and the girls executed well.”
Marinelli said that Hernandez-Veliz and Biernacki were the team’s defensive specialists. “Alexa Amorison did a great job controlling the offense along with Mikayla Frazier,” the coach added. “Emily Plachta and Teddi Carnesi did a great job rebounding.”
Huntington defeated Bellport (24-14), Deer Park (37-12) and Amityville (59-17) in non-league games. Besides the split of games with Hills East, the Blue Devils took league contests against Newfield (33-17 and 47-30), Smithtown East (47-12 and 52-22), North Babylon (46-26 and 54-25) Centereach (30-25 and 35-22), Copiague (35-21 and 46-15) and Smithtown West (41-34 and 56-25).
Several of the JV team members are expected to get the call to go to the varsity next winter. Many others will return to the fold and help Huntington field another very strong squad.