Blue Devil Field Hockey’s Spectacular Seven Honored
Huntington’s top field hockey players were honored last week at the Suffolk County Field Hockey Coaches’ Assn. awards dinner at Villa Lombardi’s in Holbrook. A crowd of 700 filled the hall to pay tribute to the county’s best.
Alexandra Kimchy and Isabel Sorrentino were named to the All-County team; Kianna Freitag and Elizabeth McGovern were selected as All-Division and Sarah Casey garnered All-Conference honors; Emma Copp was picked for the All-Tournament squad and Colleen Wright was tapped as honorable mention All-County.
The Blue Devils finished 7-8 in league play (7-9 overall). The team was captained by Kimchy, McGovern, Sorrentino and Yvette Hallman. “This is the most talent that I have seen in a few seasons,” head coach Jillian Seher said. “They worked well together on and off the field.”
Huntington held its own against all of its opponents and sported an excellent defense. But, the offense often struggled and the lack of consistent scoring negatively impacted the team’s record.
Kimchy closed out a splendid career with the Blue Devils with another solid season. Seher called her a “hardworking athlete who improved by determination.” Sorrentino was exceptional in goal and just might have been the best in the division.
McGovern, who plays right defense, “has improved more than any athlete I have known in such a short amount of time,” Seher said. Copp was another indispensable on-field presence. “I have never had a sweeper take charge as well as she did,” Seher said.
The Blue Devil field hockey program has been increasingly competitive since Seher came on the scene. She has a firm idea of where she wants to take the team and how to get there. The varsity and junior varsity teams were put through “developmental practices” as part of the coach’s plan. Stickwork sessions will be held during the off-season and a summer league team is in the works.
“I want to have more skill across the whole team,” Seher said. “I need to be able to sub more during games, but need the skill to do so. I want the team to be consistent no matter who we are playing.” The coach wants to see more offense, too. She even plans to attend a clinic herself to improve her own knowledge and continue growing as a coach.
Huntington graduates six of its 19 players, including four-of-seven post-season honorees. But, the Blue Devils are optimistic about 2010. “I believe we are going to be a strong team next year,” said Seher, who was assisted by Kathy Wright. “There is a large group of juniors that are talented and as long as they put in effort, they will be very strong.”
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