Leading in Any Season
Senior Kieran McKenna, who got his fair share of reps on the varsity team last year, has faced some of the toughest teams in the league and provides experience to his junior teammates. His ability to read the offense and adjust the coverage allows him to be a dominant defender in any style of football. As a two sport athlete, McKenna’s overall athleticism surpasses most; his agility, speed and stamina make him a go to player any time. Playing at the varsity level for both football and lacrosse, McKenna is the embodiment of a student athlete. He excels on both the field and in the classroom, as an honors student and frequent volunteer throughout the community.
Talking with McKenna he expresses his thoughts about his coaches in which he says, “When it comes to picking my favorite thing about Coach Minucci and his coaching staff there are too many to choose from so here are a few. Initially, Coach Minucci is a football genius and he does a better job than anyone else in preparing the team for game day. When he introduces new defensive schemes it is sometimes hard to understand because his terminology is so advanced but he will dumb it down for us and by the end of the week we are ready to go. As for the rest of the coaching staff, they all do a great job of making us better whether it is during practice, in the weight room or in the film sessions. They all know what it takes to win a championship and they won’t be satisfied until we get there.”
Although a team sport, personal development is important to the team as a whole. McKenna who sat behind Christian Taylor, Grant Gifford, and Mike Talbert last year has gained experience and a gameday mentality from his fellow teammates, can now translate this to his younger teammates. With this knowledge, he has developed a stronger game IQ and hopes to use these skills to enhance his craft and make him a crucial part of the Friar defense this year.
McKenna’s athleticism shined throughout the short 7v7 season. With just a few weeks of play, he was able to show how important heart is for the Friar’s defense. When asked about his favorite moment of the season he said, “It would have to be beating Kellenberg in overtime for our last game. The offense bailed out the whole game and the defense was playing slow for the most part so we ended up going into OT. Moss made a huge stop on the goal line and then Sophomore Dante Torres iced it with a touchdown pass to Senior WR Dominic DiPalma. It was great to see us come out with a final win after all of the work we put in since September.”
By - Gabrielle Miller is a Junior at St. Anthony’s High School, this is her second year at Friar Scoreboard. She is a member of NHS, the Girls Basketball team, and hopes to study journalism in the future.
Jared Valluzzi is a Senior at St. Anthony’s; this is his fourth year writing for Friar news. He has earned his certificate from Hofstra’s program of Sports broadcasting and Journalism. He is the school’s first play by play broadcaster and he plays lacrosse for St. Anthony’s.