Huerter shows the way
Providence-bound senior led Shen to perfect 15-0 season
Athlete of the Year: Meghan Huerter, Shenendehowa
The way things were unfolding as her senior year began, Huerter's hopes of a final scholastic season in a Shenendehowa uniform dwindled with each passing day. The way the superlative shooting guard was feeling, it didn't seem prudent to invest too much emotional stock.
"It turned out a lot better than I thought it would be," Huerter said. "I set my expectations really low that we would get the chance to play."
The New York State Department of Health eventually said winter sports deemed 'high risk' could begin practicing in February and Saratoga County eventually provided Shenendehowa and the other sports inside its borders permission to play.
In a season in which she openly experimented with different elements in her game to help prepare herself for Division I basketball at Providence College, Huerter managed to galvanize her teammates into producing a dominating campaign that ended March 12 with an impressive 75-37 win against Saratoga in the title game of the Suburban Council
Tournament.
"Once we got the go-ahead, Meghan took it serious from Day 1. It was awesome to see," Shenendehowa coach Joe Murphy
said.
Huerter not only led the Plainsmen on the court, but she also took the initiative to make sure the team stayed off the court
as Huerter reminded her teammates constantly to adamantly follow the coronavirus protocols so Shenendehowa would have no issues in a 15-game season contested in just a one-month span.
"Her leadership was absolutely amazing," Murphy said. "Meghan was demanding, yet she would be the first player there to encourage a teammate if they missed a foul shot or made a mistake."
"I wasn't really looking to score x amount of points. I really wanted to make sure I got my teammates involved," Huerter said.
Huerter led Shenendehowa with averages of 19.9 points and 8.2 rebounds per game. The senior, who also contributed 5.1 assists and 3.3 steals per outing, knocked down 54 3-pointers to lift her career total to a programrecord 193.
"The stats were really impressive, even with the limited (playing) time, said Murphy, referring to the senior captain often sitting out in the second half with the Plainsmen holding lopsided leads. "She led our team this season and last season in rebounding. Her unselfishness in her play, being
our leading scorer, shows a lot about her."
Shenendehowa captured Section II Class AA titles in 2019 and 2020 and Huerter hoped her team this season could have competed in a state tournament that for the state second straight year did not survive the pandemic.
What the Plainsmen did with the season available to them, and Huerter's role in leading her squad to a spectacular 15-0 mark, is something she will always cherish.
"I am pleased with how we left off than I thought I would," Huerter said. "Obviously, I would have liked to play in regionals and hopefully the state tournament. That didn't happen, but we really improved and did the best we could with what we had."
First team Rylee Carpenter, Sr., G/F, Shenendehowa:
A
A long and lean wing player with a multitude of skills,
Carpenter turned in the finest season of her varsity career in landing a Suburban Council first-team nod and also helping the Plainsmen finish with a 15-0 record. Headed to play at Division II Dominican College, Carpenter averaged 12.8 points, 7.4 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 3.2 steals and shot 51 percent from the field. She twice scored 21 points in her senior season, the first time all coming during the first half of a 64-34 win at Averill Park.
A Natasha Chudy, So., F, Saratoga Springs: During a season littered with superlative showings, Chudy dropped in a career-best 38 points against Guilderland and tallied 29 points against undefeated Shenendehowa. Named a Times Union third-team selection as a freshman, Chudy averaged 24.7 points, 5.7 rebounds and shot 60 percent from the field in earning Suburban Council first-team honors. The sophomore's season was cut short by injury, leaving the Blue Streaks without their top scorer for the Suburban Council tourney's semifinals
and final.
A Valencia Fontenelleposson, Sr., G, Guilderland: The Suburban Council first-team selection averaged 29.6 points, 9.8 rebounds and 4.9 steals per game in her final varsity season. Fontentelle-posson, who shot a career-best 47 percent from beyond the 3-point arc, delivered 35 points, 12 rebounds and nine steals in an 80-66 win against Bethlehem and tallied a season-best 37 points (seven 3-pointers) in an 80-63 setback against Saratoga. She is headed to play at Siena College.
A Meghan Huerter, Sr., G, Shenendehowa: A shooting guard who knocked a program-record 193 3-pointers during her illustrious scholastic career, Huerter is set to take her game to the collegiate level at Providence College on the merits of a senior season where she earned Suburban Council Player of the Year. She averaged career-best totals of 19.9 points and 8.2 rebounds per game, standards all the more remarkable when considering how often Huerter spent outings sitting on the bench in the second half with her squad comfortably ahead. Huerter shot 48 percent from the field and led Shenendehowa to a 15-0 record in a season without sectionals or state playoffs.
A Olivia Olsen, Sr., C, Niskayuna: A dominant force in the paint for the Silver Warriors, Olsen topped the team with averages of 22.5 points, 11.8 rebounds, 5.2 blocks and 3.3 steals per game. Standing 6-2, the junior is extremely athletic and capable of handling the ball in transition. She was named to the Suburban Council's first team.
Coach of the Year
A Joe Murphy, Shenendehowa: Although the coach of the Plainsmen did not get the opportunity to add a sixth sectional title under his leadership, Shenendehowa showed it was plenty prepared to play a 15-game schedule in a span of one month. The Plainsmen finished 15-0, capped by a resounding 75-37 decision over Saratoga in the Suburban Council Tournament final.
Second team
A Jillian Huerter, Jr., G, Shenendehowa
A Anna Jankovic, Sr., G, Averill Park
A Antonia May, Sr., G/F, Amsterdam
A Abby Ray, Sr., G, Saratoga A Amelia Wood, Jr., G, Averill Park
Third team
A Jenalyse Alcaron, Sr., F, Troy
A Andie Gannon, Sr., F, Amsterdam
A Navaeh House, So., G, Albany
A Maddisyn Mahoney, Sr., C, Shaker
A Jackie Stanavich, Sr., G, Amsterdam
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