Huntington Alum Named ACC Player of the Week
Zach Howell is a Huntington High School lacrosse legend and now he’s blazing his way to a stellar reputation on the college level at Duke University.
Howell, a junior attackman, was recently named the Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Week after scoring the game winning goal on a fast break in overtime against 19th ranked Bucknell. The Huntington alum scored four goals and added two assists in Duke’s 12-11 victory, which was played in Atlanta before a crowd of more than 7,000.
The game winning goal came just 15 seconds into the overtime period. Duke is ranked second in NCAA Division I and Howell is a big part of the team this season.
This past Saturday afternoon, Howell notched a goal and an assist before a home crowd of 2,614 as ninth ranked Notre Dame upset Duke, 11-7.
As a college sophomore, Howell scored 29 goals and added 19 assists to help Duke win the ACC championship and reach the NCAA Division I semi-finals, where the he scored three goals in a losing effort against eventual national champion Syracuse.
The 6’0, 190 lb. Howell was exceptional football and lacrosse player for Huntington, earning All-Long Island honors at quarterback and winning All-American recognition for his fine play at attack for the Blue Devil lax team.
Last spring at Duke, the 20-year old Howell, who has also received Academic All-ACC honors, started 18-of-19 games, tallying 48 points, launching 80 shots, including 52 on goal, scoring a pair of game winning goals and scooping up 35 ground balls.
Howell’s two goals in the ACC championship game, a 15-13 win over North Carolina, earned him a spot on the All-ACC Tournament team. As a freshman he saw action in 16 games, scoring 11 goals and contributing four assists. He had a hat trick in the 2008 ACC semi-finals against North Carolina.
In his final three years at Huntington, Howell helped the Blue Devil lax team go 63-1 and win two state titles. Over the course of his high school career he scored 143 goals and added 126 assists for an all-time school record of 269 points.
An All-State football player as a senior, Howell completed 146 of 211 passes for 2,368 yards and 20 touchdowns – the most on Long Island. In three years as the Blue Devil varsity quarterback, he compiled a 73 percent completion rate, connecting on 367 of 501 passes for 5,337 yards and 50 touchdowns. He three only 17 interceptions.
Howell’s best game ever came in the 2006 Suffolk Division III semifinals against Kings Park when he threw for 472 yards on 10-of-17 passing.
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