MacArthur captures conference crown

MacArthur’s girls’ basketball team dominated Conference A-I en route to a league title and will now look to make some noise on the county stage.
The Generals completed an unbeaten conference play at 12-0 with a 53-39 win at New Hyde Park last Friday. Conquering the league gave MacArthur the No. 5 seed for the upcoming Nassau County Class A playoffs.
“We’re playing together and very unselfish,” said sixth-year head Dave Radtke. “We usually have three girls every game in double figures.” 
In the New Hyde Park win, MacArthur took control early jumping out to a 22-11 advantage after the first quarter. Marissa Cardon led all scorers with 23 followed by 11 from Ava Ava Angiuli and seven by Gia Stamatelo. Senior Hailey Hnis also shined with five points and seven assists. 
MacArthur clinched the conference title for a second straight season with a convincing 49-27 home win on senior day on Feb. 5 against Mepham led by 19 points from Hnis, 10 by Sara Kealy and 10 from Angiuli. The Generals, who held a 25-12 lead at halftime,  led by seven after three quarters before outsourcing the Pirates 17-2 in the final period to pull away.

“We are getting out to leads and run like crazy and teams have a tough time keeping up with our pace,” said Radtke, who runs an up-tempo offensive system with heavy defensive pressure utilizing a deep bench. “Between the pressing and running we end up tiring people out.”
Hnis, a reigning All-County guard, has been a major force of late on both ends of the floor after missing some early season games due to club soccer commitments. She will play Division I college soccer at Albany next year.
“She has really turned it up of late,” said Radtke of Hnis. 
Every conference win was by double figures with the closest game being a 46-36 victory at Mepham on Jan. 8. The Generals biggest margin of win came in a 71-35 win at Great Neck North led by 14 points from Cardon and 13 by Anguili. Hallie Bray, Ani Angelakis and Sara Kealey all registered six points. 
Radtke said his defense has been a big catalyst for the team’s success with his athletic roster forcing a number of turnovers that lead to transition baskets. Ryann Murphy and Gia Stamatelo have particularly stepped up on the defensive end of the floor of late. 
“We’re not tall, but we’re long and quick,” Radtke said. “Because they play other sports they have great anticipation skills and that is something you can’t teach.” 
MacArthur will begin the playoffs this Saturday at home in the round of 16. Radtke said depending on matchups he could see the team continuing the regular momentum with a deep postseason run given its unique style. 
“There are only a couple teams in the county that play the crazy up and down style that we do,” he said. “We’re tough to prepare for.”