Boys, girls basketball season preview

Another exciting season could very well be in the cards for both the Warwick Valley High School boys and girls basketball programs.

The Warwick Valley Boys Basketball team is scheduled to host Goshen on Tuesday, Dec. 16.

“We have a few goals that we would like to achieve this season,’’ head coach Joseph Mackey said about winning the regular season Division Title. “There are seven teams in the Orange County AA Division (Warwick, Minisink, Goshen, Valley Central, Monticello, Washingtonville and Cornwall) and each team play’s each other twice during the regular season. We won the Division two years ago and finished second last season. We are hoping to win the title again.

Another goal, he added, was to finish as a top two seed for the Playoff Tournament.

“At the end of the regular season, all the teams that qualify for the playoffs from both Divisions combine into one Playoff Tournament. Our goal is to be one of the top two seeds entering the playoffs. This will guarantee that our first two playoff games would be at home and if we won both of those, we would travel to a neutral site for the Championship Game,” Mackey said. “We want to win the Section Title for AA. Warwick boys haven’t won the Section Title since the late 90’s and we are hoping that this year we can get it done. There are some very good teams in our Division, but we think we have a good chance to compete for the title.’’

The Wildcats have a solid core of returning varsity tested student athletes this year including Jake Cosco (junior, forward), Danny Lupkovich (junior, guard), Sean Perez (junior, guard), Jacob Barnett (junior, guard), Doug Evans (junior, forward) and Lucas Miller (sophomore, forward).

“Jake Cosco has been a varsity player for two seasons already,’’ Mackey said. “Last season he was a County All Star, averaging 14 points and seven rebounds per game. Quenten Liciaga is a senior guard that moved into our school district this year from Monticello. He was a County All Star last season for Monticello and averaged 14 points and six rebounds per game. He will definitely have a huge impact on our team this year. Our other newcomers are: Ayden Ward (senior, guard), Dillon Astbury (senior, guard), Cole Micallef (junior, guard), Micah Jean (junior, forward), Alex Pearce (junior, guard) and Joe Rourke (junior, forward).’’

Leadership is prevalent in favor of Warwick Valley this winter season.

“Our three captains this year are all juniors; Jake Cosco, Danny Lupkovich and Sean Perez,’’ Mackey said. “Jake is entering his third varsity season, while Sean and Danny are in their second varsity season. We expect them to be leaders in the gym, the classroom and the community. Our team takes pride in working hard and doing the right thing and we are counting on our three captains to lead the way in that regard.’’

The Wildcats tallied a 13-7 overall record with a mark of 9-3 in Divisional competition last season.

“We view our team this year as a serious contender in our Division,’’ Mackey said. “I think that Goshen, Washingtonville, Valley Central and Cornwall will be the contenders in our Division. I think we match-up pretty well with them all, but our Division is tough and every team has a chance to win on any given night.

“We are looking forward to a great season and hope that our community comes out to support our team.’’

Meanwhile, the Warwick Valley Girls Basketball team is scheduled to host Minisink Valley on Friday, Dec. 12.

Key returning varsity experienced student athletes include Emily Romig (senior, forward) and Reese Girardi (senior, guard).

Abby Horowitz (guard, sophomore) is a promising newcomer to the varsity roster.

“Girardi and Romig [will be looked upon as leaders],’’ Warwick Valley head coach James O’Brien said. “We are a senior led team this year, but we have a culture of trying to do the right thing on and off the court. The goal is to get better every day.’’

The Wildcats tallied an overall record of 22-2 last winter season.

“The favorite is Cornwall,’’ O’Brien said. “We hope to compete with all teams and give them a run for their money.’’