ROLLING ON THE RIVER
Shen remains undefeated with tough matchups waiting
CLIFTON PARK, NY >> When a team remains undefeated for a long stretch of time, the natural reaction is that they are going to be a postseason favorite.
That is no different for the Shenendehowa Girl’s Basketball team. Despite their now 11-0 record and 7-0 against Suburban Council opponents, Head Coach Joe Murphy doesn’t lean on the team’s record or standings, but instead, tries to ignore them.
“I couldn’t even tell you our record right now. I can just tell you Sunday we play Lourdes,” said Murphy. “We only look one game at a time, we really do. That’s been the mindset, we do it, the girls do it, we only look at who our next opponent is and we hardly look back That’s all we are focused on. We will watch this film tonight, break it down, see what we need to work on, and then prepare for Lourdes. 8 o’clock tomorrow morning we have practice.”
Last year’s Class AA Section II Champion doesn’t want to get too far ahead of them
selves. Maybe with hopes of surpassing the state quarterfinal where they fell to West Genesee last year 5750. But also, to move on from the 2018 Section II semi final fall to Bethlehem.
“It’s extremely hard,” said Meghan Huerter on being able to not get too excited and look too far ahead.
“Two years ago we lost in the semifinals and that hurt us a lot, including Coach Murphy. I think he is definitely looking to not get ourselves too amped up for sectionals or states, which is what everyone is talking about. Getting better each day and keep winning, or trying to win, is the main focus for us. If we do that, hopefully a sectional title will be in our future and hopefully get us as far as we can possibly get.”
Huerter, a junior, is leading the Plainsmen in their charge with 205 points this season. She hit 19 against Columbia Friday night and her game high this season is 28 points against Jamesville-Dewitt back on December 8.
Huerter is a marksman from three and isn’t afraid to drive into the paint. But most important, she works within a system and a team that feed off of one another.
“I think we all work really well together. We all love each other on and off the court,” said Huerter. “We all have different skill sets that work really well together.”
Joining Huerter is Simone Walker. The senior guard is lockdown on defense and is able to create her own space while seemingly thinking, “pass first.”
“Simone Walker is a great defensive player, one of the best in the section,” said
Huerter. “She is great at passing and getting downhill because she is strong and physical, which is what we need from the point.”
Along with Walker, Huerter sings her praises for teammates like Rylee Carpenter, Bella Stuart, and Kaitlyn Wabtrobski.
“Bella Stuart is a guard but she is playing our big. She’s gotten a lot more physical and she can finish around a lot of contact. Rylee Carpenter is so long for steals and our press and in transition she just grabs the ball and she catches everything around the hoop,” said Huerter. “Kaitlyn Wabtrobski shoots lights out. If you give her the ball from the three and she shoots it you know it’s either going in or going to be around the basket.”
Huerter went on to talk about the bench players on Shen, including sophomore sister Jillian Huerter. Huerter commended her sister as a facilitator, Sam Lee’s growth as a big, and the overall hopefulness the bench provides for the future. “They love playing basketball, they are very good at basketball,” said Murphy on his teams ability to play and win together. “I mean they really get along and they play good team basketball. Every practice is competitive and we have a lot of kids that can do a lot of different things and that helps.”
The team chemistry was evident Friday night when Shen, with a 59-19 lead over Columbia at halftime, sat its starters and let the bench takeover for the whole fourth quarter.
“It’s fun. I like cheering on my teammates. It’s a different part of basketball I like,” said Huerter on taking a seat. “I like team basketball so definitely encouraging my teammates and getting them amped up for plays and encouraging them when they get down is part of that.”
“We are looking for people to be productive when they come in and know their role and do what they are supposed to do,” said
Murphy on the bench following Friday nights game. “It’s good to see some of those bench kids come in there and they did a phenomenal job on the boards there in that fourth quarter. That second unit there did a really good job in that regard.”
Shen’s success can not end here. There are still nine games on the schedule, virtually half the season. Sunday the Plainsmen play Our Lady of Lourdes, with games against Bethlehem, Saratoga, and Niskayuna still on the schedule.
The road to back to back section titles is still long, but at least it has been a smooth ride to start.
“Every game is a learning point where we can learn from every situation we are in,” said Huerter. “We can always improve stuff there’s nothing we should be satisfied about. Our shooting, our passing, our communicating, our defense — we need to keep grinding, keep getting better, and be prepared for the different defenses different teams.”