Struble leading Rangers through her senior season

When considering Wallkill Valley High School girl’s basketball standout Jamie Struble a word that immediately comes to mind is versatility.

Struble, a senior is not just versatile on the court, but also as a teammate and very noteworthy in the classroom. It’s no surprise that she is the team captain for the Rangers.

There are numerous reasons why veteran and successful Rangers’ head coach Earl Hornyak made the right decision to select her to be the team’s captain.

“I chose her for captain because she deserved it,’’ Hornyak said. “She has been a varsity player for us for four years and has made major contributions to our team's success all along the way. She is a student athlete who leads by example. She does a little of everything for our team and she does it in a humble manner."

“She is a team player and focuses on doing all she can to help our team achieve some success. Her experience and senior leadership helps keep our team on track when things start to get a bit crazy on the floor. We like to play a bit reckless, but sometimes we need to settle down and Jamie is the one who gets us to do that.’’

Struble reached a very significant milestone on Feb. 4 during a road victory versus Vernon.

“In our game at Vernon she became the 10th player in Wallkill Valley history to reach the 1,000 point career scoring plateau (five girls and five boys),’’ Hornyak said. “Statistic wise this season so far she leads in team points scored with 251, leads in rebounds with 155 and leads in free throws with 51.’’

Paced in no small part by Struble, Wallkill Valley had 14 wins through their first 15 games.

“Overall we really exhibit the true meaning of team,’’ Hornyak said. “All members of our team contribute greatly to being the best we can possibly be. Samantha Opilla is a leading scorer, plays excellent defense and leads in team assists. Natalia Mianowski is one of our toughest defenders, can score and leads the team in steals. Steph Hutnick can do battle with anyone and leads the team in three pointers. Freshman Erin Anderson is a force inside on defense and leads the team in blocks. Angela Christmas is a great defender and passer and can also score for us.

“Freshman Trinity Hartung does a great job seeing the floor and can score from anywhere on the court. We hope to keep working hard and continue doing the best we can.’’

NOTES: The individual statistics listed above were from games played through Feb. 4...Wallkill Valley is scheduled to host Butler on Feb. 15.