Two years ago, Riverhead head coach Dave Spinella had a vision. The same kind of vision he had with Shanice Allen, Jalyn Brown and Melodee Riley before they became Long Island Champions. He put three eighth-graders and two sophomores on the floor and announced that this would be the starting lineup for years to come. Three young guards, Kim Ligon, Kate McCarney and Faith Johnson-Desilvia complimented two older forwards in Sam Dunn and Dezarae Brown. Spinella saw the potential and worked at it every day.
The first year was tough. Spinella expected it to be. It was all part of the plan.
“It was about getting them experience,” Spinella said. “They were good enough to play at a varsity level but they just needed to get better.”
Year two, they did. The Blue Waves miraculously took their league by storm and vaulted themselves from a few win season to a playoff team. Their season ended in the first round of the playoffs against a strong Kings Park team. They finished the season 11-8.
As Spinella talks about the prospects for this season, he can’t help but smile.
“We are in a good position,” Spinella admits, knowing full well that it’s make it or break it this season.
Dunn and Brown are seniors. The trio of guards are now sophomores. This is the season everyone on the team has been looking forward to.
“Our chemistry is the best it has ever been,” Dunn said, who was awarded All-County last season. “We’re where we need to be.”
Dunn reflected on how different every preseason was in years past. “We were always saying oh this is our growing year and we’ll do it next year. And it’s like, no, this is it. This is the year. For me and Dez, it’s this year or nothing.”
Dunn will most definitely spearhead the offensive attack as she did in years past, causing havoc in the paint and scoring at will.
“She’s a warrior every time she steps on the floor,” Spinella said of Dunn. “She gets beat up, bruised and they’re going to double up on her, swarm her, but she powers through, gets to the foul line, finds the open player. She had five assists last game.”
But don’t count out the 6-foot-1 Brown, who Spinella said had a phenomenal summer season.
“She’s developing a jumpshot, she’s defending better, she’s becoming the player I always knew she would,” Spinella said.
It’s all about diversity when it comes to the Blue Wave offense because each player not only knows their role but executes it differently.
“We don’t have five girls that just do the same thing and that’s a great thing,” Spinella said. “We have a kid that can break down defenses, a kid that can slash and finish, we have a shooter, we have a post presence, we have a leaper and we have a deep bench.”
A big time player coming off the bench will be Sam’s sister, Kristina Dunn, who’s made much improvement from her eighth-grade year to this her freshman season.
Mary Reiter will also be a contributor off the bench who transferred from McGann-Mercy this year. She was a featured player for the Monarchs and will get minutes for the Blue Waves without a doubt.
“She’s just adjusting coming from a lower level competitive environment to league III, where the speed and level of play just aren’t comparable,” Spinella said. “But she’ll be fine.”
Filling out the rest of the bench will be freshmen Angie Graziano and Regan Montefusco, sophomores Ashley Colombus and Madelyn Batista and Juniors Damionna Henderson and Makenzie Palmer.
“Our key will be closing out those close games,” Dunn said. “Two years ago we couldn’t win some those close games but now I think we’ve grown to a point that it’s expected. It’s all business this year.”
It’s going to be a different season in many aspects.
“We’ve always been the ones trying to up our game and prepare for teams and now it’s going to be the opposite,” Spinella said. “They’re now going to try to prepare for us.”
The survival of local journalism depends on your support.
We are a small family-owned operation. You rely on us to stay informed, and we depend on you to make our work possible. Just a few dollars can help us continue to bring this important service to our community.
Support RiverheadLOCAL today.
