Newsday Athlete of the Week is Sachem East's Samantha Madigan

For Samantha Madigan, the thrill of competition makes it a struggle to stay idle.

The three-sport athlete has put away her basketball sneakers and laced up her cleats as she prepares to take the diamond for the softball season.

“I’m pretty much busy all the time, but it’s a competitiveness thing. I can’t just sit around, I have to be involved in something,” Madigan said. “It’s pushing myself to compete in other sports and challenge myself. Each sport I play requires a different skill set.”

Madigan is Newsday’s athlete of the week.

Last season  Mad igan was part of the Sachem East softball team that won the program’s first Long Island title. In the team’s ensuing state Class AAA semifinal loss, Madigan scored a run.

“We had a good senior class that pushed us and made everyone play better,” Madigan said. “We were a close group that had so much fun. We played loose and that helped us perform better.”

While Madigan is more than capable on the diamond and basketball court, with a volleyball in her hands, she becomes lethal.

The SUNY Oswego commit is an All-County setter, who was named to the Suffolk Super Seven, a distinction given to the seven best players in Suffolk as voted by the county Volleyball Coaches Association.

“She’s proven herself on the court and opposing coaches know to look out for her,” Sachem East volleyball coach Amanda Schmohl said.” She’s smart and tactical. She’s not just a player getting assists, she can do it all on offense and take over a game.”

The senior was called up to varsity during the playoffs as an eighth grader. She played a complimentary role during her freshman and sophomore seasons, before blossoming into one of the county’s best setters in her junior and senior years.

“I realized I had a lot of potential,” Madigan said. “Believing in myself and having confidence, I wanted to keep getting better.”

Madigan eclipsed 1,000 assists this past season in the Suffolk Class AAA final. Her 1,006 career assists are a Sachem East school record. The previous record was 642, held by former assistant coach Brianna Rodda, according to Schmohl.

“That was a surreal moment to get to that mark and have that record,” Madigan said. “The girl who held the record before me pretty much taught me everything I do.”

“She didn’t have many expectations for herself as a freshman, we kind of had to pull it out of her,” Schmohl said. “But we always knew that she was special.”

Despite her many athletic commitments, Madigan still manages to maintain a near 4.0 GPA. Even with a switch to solely volleyball coming in college, don’t expect that to open up Madigan’s schedule much.

“I’ll be doing even more volleyball training, hitting the gym and studying,” Madigan said. “I’ll be keeping myself busy every single day, somehow.”

By Christopher Matias

christopher.matias@newsday.comchrxs_matias

Christopher Matias covers high school sports for Newsday after spending time in Athletic Facilities and Operation at St. John’s and in Sports Information at CUNY York college.