The Huntington High School softball team was knocked out of the Section XI Class AA playoffs by Smithtown East, which topped the Blue Devils, 6-2. Huntington sophomore Tara Byrnes hit a homerun in the game.
Hayes-Hurley Shines at Cortland
Emma Hayes-Hurley turned in a great year for the SUNY Cortland women’s lacrosse team. The former Huntington High School star scored 41 goals and added 10 assists to help lead the Red Dragons to the NCAA Division III Final Four where they dropped an 8-6 verdict to Trinity College.
Hayes-Hurley is a 2011 Huntington graduate. This year she started 22 of Cortland’s 23 games, taking 93 shots. Her 41 goals included two game-winners. She also picked up 27 ground balls, had 80 draw controls and caused 16 turnovers.
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The 5’7 Hayes-Hurley, who plays midfield, transferred to Cortland from Binghamton University, where she started seven of the 16 games in which she appeared, scoring eight goals and assisting on two others. The former Blue Devil star’s 10 points put her seventh among the Bearcats. She fired off 18 shots, including 13 on goal, scooped up five ground balls, drew six charges and caused one turnover. Binghamton finished with a 3-13 record.
O’Brien at SUNY Geneseo
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Patrick O’Brien, a member of Huntington High School’s Class of 2011, played in 10 games this spring for the SUNY Geneseo men’s lacrosse team, which finished with a 5-8 mark.
The 6’3, 185 lb. O’Brien plays midfield. He picked up two ground balls for Geneseo this season.
Finley Sports Participation Report
There are 241 student-athletes participating in the J. Taylor Finley Middle School spring sports program. There are 129 boys on five teams and 112 girls on four squads.
The girls’ “white” and “blue” teams feature rosters numbering 37 and 36 players, respectively. The boys’ “blue” team has 33 players and the “white” squad has a roster of 31.
The Finley boys’ track and field team is filled with 29 athletes while girls’ track has 23 athletes on its roster. There are 22 baseball players and 16 softball players. Boys’ tennis has a roster totaling 14 players.
Finley 8th Grade Boys’ BB Round-up
Last winter’s J. Taylor Finley Middle School eighth grade boys’ basketball team compiled a record of 3-6 under head coach Phil Lowe. The 21-player team was captained by Matt Gelb, Austin Reda and Sean Paton.
Lowe called his squad a “very athletic team as a whole.” The Falcons topped Deer Park-8 (37-30), Selden-8 (58-23) and Lindenhurst-8 (49-41). Finley lost a close game to Dawnwood-8 (54-52).
Reda, who played both point guard and shooting guard, is another tough defender, with quick hands and feet. “He has a good outside shot and can finish inside,” Lowe said.
Lowe said that Paton, a point guard, “was the best defender on the team. He plays ‘lockdown D’ and runs the floor well. He can finish in the paint.” Matt DeMeo, Taqwan Gooden-Hill, Shane McGuire, Matt Montefusco and Brendan Simpson also played key roles on the team.
“Key injuries to the personnel during the season affected the outcome of many games,” Lowe said. Looking ahead to next year, the coach said this past winter’s seventh grade team “appears very talented,” setting the stage for a solid Finley eighth grade squad.
McGrath in Goal for Adelphi
John McGrath played in five games this spring for the Adelphi University men’s lacrosse team, which reason the NCAA Division II national semi-finals.
McGrath, a member of Huntington High School’s Class of 2011, is a goalie for Adelphi, which had a 14-3 record this past season. The Panthers were upset by LeMoyne College in the NCAA semi-finals, 16-13.
McGrath made a career-high four saves against American International in Springfield, MA on April 15 and faced a career-high nine shots at Bentley College on April 27. Adelphi earned a share of the Northeast-10 regular season championship.
At Huntington High School, McGrath was a three-time varsity lacrosse letter award winner, gained All-County and team MVP honors as a senior. He was picked to play in the Suffolk senior All-Star game. He also won two varsity letters in wrestling. McGrath was on the academic honor roll throughout all four years of high school.
Wright Appears in 11 College Games
Colleen Wright appeared in 11 games this spring for the SUNY Cortland women’s lacrosse team, which reached the NCAA Division III semi-finals and went 12-0 at home.
Wright graduated with Huntington High School’s Class of 2012. She plays defense for Cortland. This spring she picked up two ground balls and caused two turnovers.
Saputo Wins Face-offs for Drexel
Nick Saputo is a key player for the Drexel University men’s lacrosse team. The 2011 Huntington High School graduate plays midfield on his college team.
The 5’10 Saputo scored four goals and added three assists for Drexel this spring. He scooped up 115 ground balls and won 187 of 344 face-offs or 54.4 percent. Drexel finished with a record of 11-4, including 8-0 at home in Philadelphia.
Saputo, who plans to major in business, played in all 15 Drexel games.
Finley Girls’ Basketball-8 Goes 6-4
The J. Taylor Finley Middle School eighth grade girls’ basketball team closed out its season with a 6-4 record under head coach Phil Lowe. The 13-player team was captained by Shannon Maloney, Jolena Smith, Jessica-Rose Greene and Allyson Arleo.
“It was a very talented team physically,” Lowe said. “Skill development took place game-to-game. The team became more physical defensively as the season progressed. Our confidence increased due to hard work and practice.”
Finley had a nice core group of players with a mix of good inside play, outside shots, rebounding, foul shooting and floor leadership. In addition to the captains, Emma Pipolo, Theresa Moreno, Torre Palmer and Rebecca Caballero played key roles on the team.
The Falcons’ victories came over Dawnwood (34-28), Bay Shore (41-24), Selden (36-8), Candlewood (38-25), Nesaquake (28-21) and West Hollow (51-33). Finley dropped games to Lindenhurst (37-22), Commack (40-23 and 35-21) and Dawnwood (28-27).
