Island boys wrap basketball season at home

The Shelter Island boys varsity basketball team hosted the Greenport Porters on Tuesday, Feb. 7, for their final game of the season, losing 63-20.

Head Coach Zack Mundy, JV Coach Matthew Dunning, Assistant/Volunteer Coach Jay Card Jr., Athletic Director Todd Gulluscio and the crowd honored the four seniors on their roster: Bazzy Quigley-Dunning, Sebastian Romero , Elijah Davidson and John Torres  prior to the start of the game.

The crowd gave these players a tremendous ovation, and  here’s the icing on the cake — they all scored, accounting for 12 of the team’s 20 points.

The Islanders only found themselves down 20-9 at the halftime intermission, as they managed to play good defense and limit turnovers against the Porters 2-2-1 full-court zone press. Once again, Quigley-Dunning led his team with 5 points in the 1st half. 

This being the last game of the season, Coach Mundy decided to play all 11 of his eligible players, including several JV players who had been moved up to the varsity to help build some bench support. 

The Islander’s leading scorer, sophomore Harrison Weslek missed his fourth straight game due to a wrist injury.  

Unfortunately, there were not a lot of highlights in this game, but when Charlie Murray hit a big 3-point shot in the 4th quarter, the hometown fans went crazy.

The crowd also acknowledged Sebastian Romero’s 3-point field goal in the 3rd quarter, as well as Sebi Martinez making 1 of 2 from the foul line toward the end of the game. Believe it or not, those were the only free throws that the team had in the entire game.

At the end of the game, the team posed for a few photographs and then headed to the classroom for some thoughts about the game and what challenges lie ahead. All three coaches thanked their players for their efforts during a long and sometimes difficult season.

They all stressed the need for the players to make a commitment to playing basketball in the off-season, especially during the summer months. There are no magical cures; it will take a much more concerted effort on the part of both the coaches and the players to significantly improve both their individual and team skill levels.

The coaches will be involved, and they urged their players to attend basketball camps this summer.

I thanked the players and coaches for allowing me to be a small part of its season. It is always a pleasure for me to be around the players and the coaches in this very supportive community.

I still enjoy watching these kids perform. I also acknowledge  that it appears to be a lot easier from the stands than it does from the bench and sidelines. The fact remains, that being a part of a team and experiencing “the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat” is still an important learning tool for young people growing up. 

It is my hope, along with the rest of the Shelter Island community, that the team can experience much more success in the 2023-24 winter season.

A special thank you to our varsity cheerleaders and their Coach Adrianne Pitch, Athletic Director Todd Gulluscio, the chaperons, and to the loyal fans who help support their team throughout the 2022-23 winter season. Once again, thank you to Coach Jay Card Jr. for volunteering your time, knowledge, and experience in helping to improve the level of play in our boys basketball program.

Finally, we all wish Bazzy, Sebastian, Elijah and John continued success in their senior year.

It was a pleasure watching you play, and hopefully, the lessons that you learned on the court, will support your future successes.