Girls Basketball: Glenn 2012 Preview

girls basketball finished off 2011 as the top small school team in Suffolk County. They defeated Harborfields in the class A championship and then went on to defeat Center Moriches in the small school championship. But for a team like Glenn – who lost to Garden City in the Long Island championship – not winning it all is still a slight disappointment.

“Unless you are undefeated you have to end your season with a loss and that’s how we ended our season,” head coach Andy Athanas said. “It was a tough loss for all of us and I think we have rededicated ourselves to get back to that game. However there are teams in our league that I know are going to be pretty good. Amityville is much improved so the competition will be tough. We play East Hampton and they have a couple of really good players.”

As Athanas and his team prepared on December 19 for its game the next day against East Hampton the team seemed focused and ready. At that point Athanas said he believed that the December 20 game against East Hampton would be a good indicator of how his team would perform. The Lady Knights dominated East Hampton 55-25 in a statement game.

Coach: Andy Athanas (25th year)

Last Year: 20-1

Top Players:

• Allison McKenna, senior, center
• Emma Klis, junior, guard
• Rachel Miller, senior, guard

Position Breakdown: Glenn is as deep and talented as any team in the county. Last year’s Suffolk County Class A and small school champions return one of the best post players on Long Island in senior Allison McKenna. “In my opinion she is the best big player on Long Island,” Athanas said.

Klis, a junior co-captain, will also be counted on to provide offense for the Lady Knights. Athanas also said that sophomore Mackenzie Sivilli assumes the point guard role for the departed Danielle Evers.

Senior Rachel Miller is the other starter that Athanas mentioned along with a group of players that he expected to contribute off the bench, including Tanna Mohammed, Meaghan Haber and Lexie Koenke.

“This is a very experienced team,” Athanas said. “They are age-defying. Our starting group and top two off the bench have lots of AAU experience, they play travel. We played in a lot of big games last year – we played Harborfields for the county championships and Center Moriches in the small school championship. We’ve played some big games in front of a lot of people.”

Key Games:

• Jan. 10: Amityville @ Amityville, 4 p.m.
• Jan. 27: East Hampton @ East Hampton, 6:45 p.m.
• Feb 7: Amityville @ Glenn, 4 p.m.