Fresh off the Huntington High School varsity boys’ soccer team’s first appearance in the Suffolk finals in 57 years, the Blue Devil players are displaying their compassionate side.
Huntington won 15 games this past fall and showed exceptional competitiveness, but when it comes to helping others, players have hearts of gold.
“We partnered with United Amigos to raise money for families in need throughout both the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays,” Blue Devil head coach John Pagano said. “The boys raised over $800.”
The funds were used by United Amigos members and faculty advisor Rosario Lorenzana to assist targeted families in need throughout the holiday period.
“These funds were used to supply families with basic food stuffs, such as peanut butter and jelly, etc., as well as holiday food,” Mr. Pagano said. “I am very proud of our boys for stepping up. It is important to showcase that these players are continuing to do good work even after the season has ended.
The Blue Devils enjoyed a fantastic season. Seniors Danny Alzate and Roberto Contreras captured All-Conference and All-County honors. Senior Julio Martinez was named All-Conference. Juniors Ian Husselbeck and Kieran Husselbeck and senior Jeison Blanco Portillo were tapped as All-League. Junior Vincent Grassi garnered Academic All-County recognition.
Huntington advanced to the county championship game for the first time in 57 years. While the Blue Devils dropped a one goal game to West Islip. The Lions went on to defeat Rochester area Hilton for the state title, 5-0.
The Blue Devils were also named a New York State Scholar Athlete team after meeting the requisite 90 composite average for 75 percent of its roster.
Individual state Scholar Athlete Award recipients include Vincent Grassi, Enzo Pupillo, Matthew Lange, Liam Lennon, Kieran Husselbeck, Cristian Avelar Romero, Roman Borovica, Bryan Lizama, Enrrique Garcia, Maximilian Rentsch and Kevin Velez Rua.