Newsday's top 30 Long Island girls flag football players for 2024
Clockwise, from top left: Rose Azmoudeh of half Hollow Hills, Jennifer Canarutto of Plainview-Old Bethpage JFK, Lara Glasser of Plainview-Old Bethpage JFK, Rachel Ganz of Plainview-Old Bethpage JFK.
Newsday's annual list of the top girls flag football players in Long Island high schools as the spring season gets underway. The list is in alphabetical order and all stats are from last season unless otherwise noted.
Rose Azmoudeh, Half Hollow Hills, WR/CB, Sr.: She had 500 receiving yards and five touchdowns, and made three interceptions for the Suffolk champions.
Alexis Bulson-Couzzo, Patchogue-Medford, QB/LB, Sr.: She carried the ball 59 times for 340 yards and completed 177 passes for another 1,765 yards and totaled 30 touchdowns.
Jennifer Canarutto, Plainview-Old Bethpage JFK, QB, Jr.: Newsday’s Nassau Player of the Year threw for four touchdowns in a 27-7 win against Warwick Valley in the regional championship at the Jets' Florham Park facility in New Jersey to cap a perfect season (18-0). Canarutto passed for 2,365 yards and 43 touchdowns, and rushed for 703 yards and five scores.
Kate Cusack, Bethpage, WR/RB, Sr.: She caught 10 touchdown passes for the Golden Eagles.
Jessica Faranda, Plainedge, QB/FS, Sr.: She scored 12 touchdowns and added 15 flag pulls and one interception.
Rachel Ganz, Plainview-Old Bethpage JFK, WR/DB, Jr.: She had 31 receptions for 641 yards and 14 touchdowns for the champion Hawks. She added 202 rushing yards and one touchdown. The Newsday All-Long Island first-team selection also had nine interceptions and 26 flag pulls.
Lara Glasser, Plainview-Old Bethpage JFK, RB, Jr.: She totaled eight touchdowns, including five receiving. She also had 34 flag pulls for the Long Island champions.
Regan Glick, Roslyn, WR/LB, Soph.: She accounted for 10 total touchdowns on offense. She was a ball hawk on defense with eight interceptions, including four returned for touchdowns for more than 30 yards.
Samantha Goldberg, Syosset, WR/DB, Sr.: She caught eight touchdown passes. She also had six interceptions.
Meghan Harker, Center Moriches, WR, Jr.: She was all over the field for the Red Devils, finishing with 63 flag pulls, 19 sacks and one interception.
Gianna Hernandez, Roosevelt, LB/RB, Soph.: A speedy defender who finished with 31 flag pulls for a one-win team in 2023. She’ll be the catalyst for team improvement in 2024.
From left: Samantha Heyman of Half Hollow Hills, Iris Hoffman of Whitman, Julia Hromada of Center Moriches.
Samantha Heyman, Half Hollow Hills, QB, Soph.: One of Long Island’s most prolific offensive units was led by Heyman, who passed for 2,087 yards and 26 touchdown passes. She also rushed for 843 yards and 10 scores, leading Hills to the Suffolk title and earning a spot on the Newsday All-Long Island first team.
Iris Hoffman, Whitman, WR/DB, Sr.: An elusive open field pass-catcher who finished with a whopping 93 receptions for 908 yards and 18 touchdowns, Hoffman got the nod for Newsday's All-Long Island first team. She also had five interceptions in five games.
Julia Hromada, Center Moriches, RB/DB, Sr.: Hromada amassed 655 rushing yards, 155 receiving yards and 10 total touchdowns. She had four interceptions, including two returned for touchdowns.
Sara Kealey, MacArthur, WR/DB, Sr.: She caught 37 passes for 677 yards and 14 touchdowns, including five extra-point conversions. She rushed for 323 yards and two scores. She also pulled 33 flags and had four interceptions.
Sofia Larrea, Sachem East, QB, Soph.: Larrea passed for 1,642 yards and rushed for 312 yards, leading Sachem to an 8-2-1 record.
Stephanie Lynch, East Rockaway, RB/DB, Sr.: The Rocks are looking for leadership and a big year from Lynch, who had 24 flag pulls and four sacks.
Ivy Matthews, Syosset, QB/DB, Jr.: Matthews passed for 15 touchdowns and ran for another seven scores. She also had seven interceptions.
Hailey Metzger, MacArthur, WR/LB, Sr.: An outstanding defensive player with 35 flag pulls, four interceptions and 11 pass break-ups. She added 31 receptions for 466 yards and nine scores, including four extra-point conversions.
From left: Melissa O'Connor of Hauppauge, Olivia Moynihan of Sayville, Taylor Mileti of Hauppauge.
Taylor Mileti, Hauppauge, QB/DB, Soph.: She passed for 1,642 yards, 25 touchdowns and 12 point-after conversions to earn a spot in Newsday’s All-Long Island first team. She added 270 rushing yards and three scores. She had 70 flag pulls and eight interceptions, including two returned for touchdowns. She punted for a 45-yard average.
Olivia Moynihan, Sayville, QB/LB, Jr.: She was a dual threat on offense and led Sayville to an 11-3 record. She completed 107 of 195 passes for 1,560 yards and 18 scores. She added 622 yards rushing and nine touchdowns . She had nine interceptions, and earned Newsday’s All-Long Island first-team honors.
Jazlene Narvaez, Valley Stream District, RB/LB, Jr.: She made a big impact on defense with 50 flag pulls, four sacks and two interceptions.
Melissa O’Connor, Hauppauge, WR/CB, Sr.: This Newsday All-Long Island first-team selection had 61 receptions for 780 yards and 15 scores, and added nine point-after conversions. She also had 32 flag pulls and seven interceptions, leading Hauppauge to a 12-1-1 record.
Patchogue-Medford's Diamond Pertillar, left, and Sachem North's Hailey Zambriski.
Diamond Pertillar, Patchogue-Medford, RCV/DB, Sr.: She had 52 catches for 372 yards and 12 touchdowns as the Raiders reached the Suffolk championship game. She also had nine interceptions as one of Long Island’s top two-way players.
Ava Rueb, Sayville, LB/RB, Sr.: Rueb had 20 flag pulls in one game. She is also one of Long Island’s top cheerleaders and is headed to cheer at Oklahoma.
Alyssa Santiago, Valley Stream District, QB/SS, Sr.: She passed for 1,633 yards and 21 touchdowns, leading her team to a 9-6 record. She also rushed for 1,200 yards and six scores. As the strong safety, she had 44 flag pulls and two interceptions.
Ava Vadyak, Sayville, DB/WR, Jr.: An explosive open field runner, this three-sport athlete will play both ways and impact the game.
Lilia Weeks, Connetquot, RB/DB, Soph.: She rushed for 453 yards and five scores. She also had 79 flag pulls and five interceptions.
Jolie Yablon, Bellmore-Merrick District, WR/DB, Jr.: An experienced defender back from a 9-4 playoff team. She had 29 flag pulls and five interceptions.
Hailey Zambriski, Sachem North, RB/LB, Sr.: She was a leading defender with 37 flag pulls. She totaled 718 yards of total offense and nine touchdowns.
Gregg Sarra is Newsday's high school sports editor and has been on the beat since the mid-1980s.