By Chris Bergeron, Staff Writer
The 2021-2022 Herndon Varsity Basketball Season has gotten underway. The Hornets are led by five Seniors, three returning from last year’s squad: Aiden Grine, Jake Xeller, and Reis Johns. Graham Sears and Hill Naski are seniors returning to the basketball program after a successful season last spring. Junior Sean Garcia is looking to make an impact, having returned to play after tearing his ACL in a football practice early in the season last year.
The Hornets are not off to the start they were working towards, as they have dropped their first five games. They lost a close battle against Alexandria City in the last few seconds, and they lost both games in the Readers for Leaders Tournament against Battlefield and Osbourn. They lost a back-and-forth game against James Madison High School and were dominated by rival South Lakes, who is ranked 9th in Northern Virginia High School basketball as of December 13th, according to NovaHoops.
This week, Herndon has two big games as they look to start district play on the right track.“ We have to put together a couple good practices and play with a lot of energy from start to finish,” said senior Hill Naski. Both of the Hornets’ games this week are at home. On Tuesday, December 14th, they face off against Washington Liberty High School, looking for their first victory. Then, Friday, December 17th, Wakefield travels to the Nest for Herndon’s first Friday night home game of the year. Naski continued, “We have to stay focused and take it one game at a time. It’s a long season, and we have plenty of time to get back on track.”