Thursday, October 1, 2026
The Freeport girls basketball team has been clicking on all cylinders this season with strength at both ends of the floor.
The Red Devils improved to 12-1 overall and 7-0 in Conference AAA-I last Friday with a 55-26 win against Plainview-JFK. The convincing victory marked Freeport’s 12th with at least 50 points and the fifth game holding opponents under 30 points.
“We have a good inside game and we've got great guards that can handle the ball and drive to the basket and shoot the three,” Freeport head coach Meredith Jones said of her balanced team. “And then our defense is really what has sealed our success.”
The successful start to the season was highlighted by a 65-60 overtime win at previously unbeaten Massapequa on Jan. 13 led by 20 points from junior power forward Madison Harris and 14 from senior shooting guard Shaniya Bonny. Sophomore guard Ja'Niyah Eady was clutch in the signature victory, sinking three free throws with 2.7 seconds left in regulation to send the game to overtime.
Bonny continued her hot play in Massapequa's next game last Friday following a break for midterm exams with 22 points against Plainview-JFK. She also led Freeport with 24 points in a 66-43 non-league home win against Seaford on Dec. 30 in the Coach Kight Invitational.
“She is a great shooter and this year she has really stepped up her defensive game,” Jones said of Bonny. “She also has stepped up being able to take the ball to the basket and finish which has helped a lot because now she has to be defended for everything.”
Jones said senior guard Madison Starks has stepped up large on the defensive end of the floor this winter with a number of key steals and deflections. Starks has also been instrumental on the defensive board as the team’s leading rebounder.
Junior point guard Sabrina Ligonde has helped steer the ship with her passing ability and scrappiness on the court with important effort plays that don’t always show up in the boxscore, according to Jones. Ligonde registered 19 points and five steals in a 54-32 non-league win against Roslyn on Jan. 6.
Harris has shined throughout the season as an offensive force averaging 13.6 points per game and is among the team’s leading rebounders.
“She's 110 percent every moment on the floor whether it's diving for loose balls or jumping in the air to make a save or a rebound,” Jones said of Harris. “She just doesn't know the word quit and unless a whistle blows she's playing and just having that energy and that mentality on the floor has brought everybody's game up.”
Freeport hosts Syosset this Thursday evening at 6:45 p.m. before traveling to Port Washington Saturday for an 11:45 a.m. tipoff.
Jones said the Red Devils enter the final two weeks of the regular season in position for one of the top three seeds in the upcoming Class AAA playoffs.
