Finley Girls’ Basketball-White Displays Improvement

First year head coach Cole Rudnick and a talented cast of players helped lift the Finley Middle School “white” girls’ basketball team to a competitive season. The squad impressed everyone, including varsity head coach Perry Marinelli, who was able to watch several games.

Similar to many Suffolk middle schools, Finley fields dual teams in several sports and designates them according to the school’s colors, which in Huntington’s case are blue and white.

Rudnick said the top players included seventh graders Maddy Martin. Ally Jo Brady, Poppy Carey and Rosie Carillo and eighth grader Lia Rotunno. Carillo was the team captain.

Here are some of Rudnick’s comments and the top players:

Maddy Martin: “Maddy is a great shooter that provides a spark for our team when she hits her shots,” Rudnick said. “She also is great on the defensive end causing turnovers and pushing the ball up the court.”

Ally Jo Brady: “AJ is a well-rounded athlete that has the capability to do great things on and off the basketball court,” Rudnick said. “Ally Jo has great work ethic and I am excited for her future in basketball.”

Poppy Carey: “Poppy is a great athlete, which gives her the ability to be a relentless defender,” Rudnick said. “She did a great job this season forcing turnovers and giving our team a great chance to win on a day to day basis.”

Rosie Carrillo: “Rosie is a great athlete with great basketball IQ and skills,” Rudnick said. “Rosie has a relentless work ethic with the ability to do great things on and off the court.”

Lia Rotunno: “Lia displays great basketball IQ on the floor and is destined to have a great future next year at the high school level,” Rudnick said.

“Our best team accomplishment was beating Commack Gold at Commack,” Rudnick said. “We were down seven points with one minute and thirty two seconds left in the game. The girls rallied together to get steals and cause turnovers that led to big time baskets. Down the stretch Maddy Martin hit a three pointer to cut the deficit to four points. Ally Jo Brady scored back to back baskets to tie the game at 37. The team once again forced a turnover to get the ball back with 15 seconds left. Ally Jo scored a basket with six seconds left to take the lead. Rosie Carrillo then stole the ball off the inbound pass and scored a buzzer beater to ultimately win the game by four, 41-37. We also hit a season high eight three-pointers as a team that game.”

Rudnick was in his first year with the team and with the Huntington girls’ basketball program. “Our goal for next year is to double this season’s win total and build on the fundamentals we learned this year,” he said.

Brady led the team in scoring and rebounds while Carillo had a team high number of assists. Martin and Carey compiled a team best number of steals.

“This team has a very bright future ahead of them,” Rudnick said. “They worked hard every practice and came in with the never give up mentality. Every game they played their hardest and learned how to win as a team. The girls were dedicated to be successful this season with practicing on the weekend and on school break with the girls’ varsity team. The middle school basketball program as a whole has a very bright future ahead of them.”