The Huntington girls’ basketball team had a real shot at toppling visiting North Babylon from the ranks of Suffolk’s undefeated, but a failure to make layups and foul shots cost the Blue Devils dearly last Friday night in Louis D. Giani Gymnasium.
Huntington turned in a near masterpiece on defense, limiting to North Babylon to a season low point total, but the Blue Devils still fell, 32-26.
North Babylon led 5-4 after one quarter and 14-11 at halftime. The Bulldogs opened 26-16 lead by the end of the third quarter, but Huntington still many chances to turn around its fortunes in the final frame. Unfortunately, the Blue Devils just kept missing shots.
Emily Plachta led Huntington with nine points. Paige Lennon and Abby Maichin had six points each. Junie Nosile had four points and Alyssa Sorensen had two points. Charlotte Maggio scored one point from the free throw line.
Blue Devils Impress in Race-Walk . . .
Huntington placed three athletes in the top five in the 1500m race-walk at the Suffolk League III girls’ track and field championships last Sunday.
Senior Erika Varady finished second in 7:48.46. Senior Keily Rivas and freshman Erin Ye placed fourth and fifth, respectively.
H-ton Falls to Bellport, 77-62 . . .
The Huntington boys’ basketball team lost a hard fought game at home to Bellport, one of the top teams in Suffolk, 77-62.
Despite the final 15 point spread between the teams, Huntington played very well. The Blue Devils pulled ahead by two points less than two minutes prior to halftime and then got to within 50-46 in the third period before the Clippers went on a 17-8 fourth quarter run to put the game away.
The Blue Devils found it difficult to stop Bellport star Jarell White, who had 41 points, 17 rebounds and four assists.
Freshman Max Rentsch once again led Huntington, scoring 15 points. Junior Dan Danziger had 14 points and sophomore Chad Rowe added 10 points. Ian Ardell had nine points and John Paci had six points. Matt Girimonti and Jack Monahan both had four points.
Danziger dropped four three-pointers and Rentsch and Rowe both hit on a pair of baskets from beyond the three-point arc. Ardell also had a three-pointer.
Frosh Analisse Batista Wins 300m Dash . . .
Huntington freshman Analisse Batista was the class of the field, winning the league title in the 300m dash at the Suffolk League III girls’ track and field championships last weekend. Batista flew past her competitors in 41.93 seconds to claim victory.
Freshman Regan Sansiviero Paces Blue Devil JV . . .
Huntington freshman Regan Sansiviero.
Junior varsity athletics is developmental by its very nature. There are no playoffs or championships or banners affixed to gymnasium walls. But this performance is just too good not to gain widespread notice.
Huntington High School’s JV girls’ basketball team defeated a very good North Babylon squad in Louis D. Giani Gymnasium, 41-29. The game was close well into the second half, but then the Blue Devils went on a long offensive run to pull away.
Huntington freshman Regan Sansiviero scored 17 points to lead the Blue Devils. It’s a rather astonishing total for a JV game, but it offers a hint of the type of talent the teenager possesses.
Eighth graders Asyria Rios, Erin Scanlon and Meg Morrisroe all had six points each for Huntington. Freshmen Ashley Genao (four points) and Shaneek Shand (two points) also scored in the game for the Blue Devils.
Huntington is coached by Blue Devil alum Shea Scully.
Young Blue Devils Are Tops in USA . . .
Huntington has two of the top young runners in the country and both of them are still students at J. Taylor Finley Middle School.
Seventh grader Jahmar Francis and eighth grader Samuel James are integral members of the Blue Devil varsity boys’ track and field team that is ranked among the best in Suffolk and the state. The pair has been outstanding in individual events as well as on Huntington’s highly regarded relay teams.
Francis is ranked No. 1 in the country in the 300m dash among all seventh graders currently competing on the varsity level.
James is ranked No. 1 in the country in the 600m dash among all eighth graders on varsity teams this winter.
The two young dynamos are also doing very well academically at Finley.
“Jahmar and Samuel are remarkably talented athletes who have been representing Huntington with class and dignity,” Blue Devil head coach Ronald Wilson said. “They have been doing extremely well with our varsity program and they are also wonderful teammates. We are also very happy that they’re doing so well in their classes.”
Huntington is Spectacular in League Shot Put . . .
Huntington senior Eric Sands captured the Suffolk League III shot put championship on Saturday night at Suffolk-West in Brentwood.
Sands tossed the weighted ball 48-03.25 feet to win first place. Teammate Gary Barash, a talented Huntington junior placed third with a throw of 43-06.25 feet. Sophomore Mekai Butts finished seventh in the field of 19 with a toss that measured 39-01.00 feet.
Suffern Mat Tournament Medalists . . .
The Huntington wrestling team placed eight grapplers among the top four in their respective weight class at the Kohl Invitational at Suffern.
Aedan McDonald and Tazadon Smith won first place and Joe Petrone and Robbie Smith both finished second. Billy Burton placed third and Ryan Baker and Jon Koumas both finished fourth. Samir Rathore placed fifth.
Blue Devils Win League III Team Championship . . .
The Huntington boys’ indoor track and field team ran away from the rest of the field to claim the Suffolk League III championship on Saturday night at Suffolk-West in Brentwood.
The Blue Devils easily coasted past squads from West Babylon, Half Hollow Hills West, Bellport, West Islip, North Babylon, Eastport-South Manor, East Islip, Comsewogue and Deer Park.
Blue Devil Jumpers Net Points . . .
Sophomore Nasir Youngblood (18-09.75 feet) and senior Jaden Bholan (18-06.25 feet) finished fifth and sixth, respectively in the Suffolk League III long jump.
Senior Johnathan Smith (39-07.75 feet) and junior Rahliek Thomason (39-05.75 feet) placed third and fourth, respectively in triple at the league championships. Sophomore CJ Kiviat was seventh with a leap of 38-10.00 feet.
Senior Jaden Bholan captured second place in the league high jump championship after clearing 6-01.00 feet. Sophomore Trevan Meagher (5-08.00 feet) and senior Joe Garetano (5-06.00 feet) placed fourth and fifth, respectively.
Blue Devil Track & Field Wrap-up . . .
There were many superb performances for the Huntington girls’ track and field team at last weekend’s Suffolk League III indoor championships. Highlights included:
- Junior Alicia Brooks (7.55 seconds) and freshman Analisse Batista (7.58 seconds) finished third and fourth, respectively in the 55m dash. The event drew 29 entries.
- Senior Colette Barron cleared 4-08.00 feet to finish fourth in high jump.
- Freshman Caroline O’Rourke placed fourth in the 600m run in a time of 1:47.78.
- Sophomore Ella Siepel finished fifth in the 3000m run in 11:35.18
North Babylon Dominates Blue Devils . . .
The undefeated North Babylon boys’ basketball team was too much for Huntington to handle last Saturday as the Bulldogs turned back the Blue Devils, 76-38 in league play.
North Babylon led 20-8 after the first quarter 42-17 at halftime. The Bulldogs extended their advantage to 58-17 by the end of the third quarter.
Chad Rowe led Huntington with nine points. Dan Danziger had seven points and Jake Costabile added five points. Max Rentsch scored three points and Jonah Anastos and Omari Stephen had three points each. Lex Colato scored two points. Anastos, Costabile, Danziger, Monahan and Rowe all connected for three-point baskets.
Blue Devils Swift in Relays . . .
The Huntington boys’ track team’s 4x400m relay won the Suffolk League III title by more than five full seconds in an awesome display.
Junior Justin Stevens, seventh grader Jahmar Francis and sophomores CJ Kiviat and Isaiah James ran the four legs of the race in 3:36.22 to easily dispatch runner-up North Babylon (3:41.95) and the rest of the eight team field.
The Blue Devils’ 4x200m relay also easily finished first, but Huntington was disqualified after the race for a lane violation. “I hate to say it, but it happens,” head coach Ronald Wilson said. “We will work on that between and the county championships.
Huntington’s 4x800m relay team of Aidan Heller, Andrew McKenzie, Carlos Martinez and Craig Haas finished third in the league in a time of 8:54.38, about 10 seconds off first place Eastport-South Manor.
Nephar Durand Wins League Shot Put Title . . .
Huntington senior Nephar Durand won the Suffolk League III girls’ indoor track and field shot put championship in dramatic fashion with a throw of 36-01.50 feet on her last attempt. The distance was nearly four feet further than the next competitor.
Blue Devil junior Mya Davis (31-06.50 feet) and senior Grace McKenna (29-09.00 feet) finished third and fourth, respectively in the event.
Huntington Wins 4x200m relay . . .
Blue Devil track stars Alicia Brooks, Analisse Batista, Olivia Conte and Dejanae Linton faced down a superb Half Hollow Hills West team to win the Section XI League III 4x200m relay championship.
Each of the four gifted Huntington athletes handled their leg of the relay in deft fashion, but Ms. Conte, a talented freshman was especially impressive running the anchor leg as she held off hard-charging Hills West for the gold medal.
Blue Devils Are League Runners-up . . .
The Huntington girls’ indoor track and field team didn’t have quite have enough to dislodge West Babylon from atop the standings at the Suffolk League III championships last weekend at Suffolk-West in Brentwood, but the Blue Devils did separate themselves from the rest of the 10 team field.
West Babylon captured the league title with 124 points. Huntington was second with 78 points. The rest of the field trailed far in the distance, including Eastport-South Manor (54), Bellport (44), Half Hollow Hills West (44), Deer Park (33), Comsewogue (30), North Babylon (24), East Islip (19) and West Islip (15).
