Comeback Ends In a Loss For Blue Devils

Mike Kaplan's team pulled off the improbable to reach the postseason. The first-year coach of the girls basketball team saw the Blue Devils scrap together four wins over their final five games to finish .500 in League IV.

That playoff run was cut short Saturday afternoon in Port Jefferson Station. The 19th seeded Blue Devils lost to No. 14 Comsewogue, 44-37, in the outbracket game of the Suffolk Class AA playoffs.

“They played very hard in the second half, it just didn’t turn out our way,” Kaplan said after watching his team play brilliantly in the fourth quarter before falling short.

Led by star senior guard Jackie Waldron, who averaged better than 15 points and 10 rebounds per game this season, Huntington (9-9) was able to clinch a playoff berth with a 6-6 record in League IV.

“We lost one starter due to injury this season and we had some other injuries as well, but we were still able to go pretty far, it was just one step too short,” he said.

On Saturday, a packed gymnasium at Comsewogue High School watched both teams struggle offensively from the opening minute, with Waldron the only standout, drawing fouls although she was unable to convert most of her shots from the free-throw line in the first half. Huntington led 8-5 after the first quarter and Kaplan addressed his team from the sidelines with encouragement, “Get the nerves out of your system,” let’s go,” he said.

The Blue Devils hit a three-pointer to pull ahead 11-5 at the start of the second quarter, but it would be the only shot Huntington would make during the final seven and a half minutes of the half as shot attempt after shot attempt missed its mark. Meanwhile, the Warriors (7-5 in League IV) stepped up their defensive play, guarding Waldron tightly while passing the ball quickly and finding open players such as Michelle Rubino (11 points) and Cindy Edwards (10 points), who each hit a three-pointer during a 9-0 run to give Comsewogue a 19-13 lead at halftime.

With the Blue Devils shooting 1-for-10 from the field in the second quarter, Kaplan desperately needed his team’s shots to start falling in the third quarter, but instead he saw his team commit several costly turnovers, allowing extra chances for the Warriors, which were more than happy to capitalize on. When Edwards his her second three-pointer of the game only seconds before the buzzer sounded to end the third quarter, Comsewogue was leading 32-17.

Instead of packing it in after scoring only nine total points in the last two quarters of the game, Huntington’s offense finally awakened and led by Waldron (14 points, 8 rebounds), senior guard Emma Hayes-Hurley (12 points, 5 rebounds) and eighth grade forward Heather Forester (7 points, 11 rebounds), the Blue Devils began to chip away at the Warriors lead.

Hayes, who played a superb defensive game for Huntington, leading all players in rebounds, made a nice shot under the basket, was fouled and then went to the line to sink her free-throw, cutting Comsewogue’s lead to 38-34 with just over two minutes remaining in regulation. Unfortunately for the Blue Devils, the Warriors were able to hit just enough mid-range jumpers down the stretch to keep their lead and advance in the playoff tournament.

Still, Huntington’s players could hold their heads high after the game, knowing they gave it their best effort in the clutch minutes to make it interesting.

The Blue Devils will lose several key starters to graduation this spring, with their biggest losses being guards Waldron and Hayes-Hurley.