Mission Statement
Lightning Basketball is an independent nonprofit that was founded in
1992 to offer young athletes in the New York City metropolitan area an
opportunity to work with top coaching staff, compete in the
highest-level tournaments, and improve their athletic skills to
prepare them to play both high school and college-level basketball.
The Program
For the past 23 years the Long Island Lightning have been a basketball club to reckon with. Under the direction of Tom Sclafani this club always comes ready to play. The program starts its development of players at age 8 and currently has over 55 teams in 3rd- 8th grade. Not only are the players performing on the court, but in the classroom as well. Lightning players
combine for an accumulative GPA over a 3.2
Currently the program has some excellent players. When you watch them be sure to take notice of :
Alyssa Torres-2016 Combo Guard- An explosive scorer who can really defend,
Melanie Hinger-2016 Center- Can score from high or low post, and is a mid- range jump shooter, Haley Garcia-2016 Combo Guard- a deadly shooter with great ball-handling skills and a lockdown defender. Leading the charge for the 2017 class is Aislinn Flynn-Center- She is an excellent shot blocker with midrange offensive game. She teams up with Taylor Triptree-2017 Shooting Guard-who is a Good Shooter that can defend
multiple positions.
The Future of the Long Island Lightning appears to be very bright. Some names to remember are Grace Stone-2018 Shooting Guard- a knockdown shooter with extreme range, Jenna Annecchiarico-2018- Point Guard- a gifted floor general who can score from anywhere, Danielle Cosgrove-2018 Center-Fundamentally sound and can pass, shoot and finish at the rim. Let’s not forget those in the class of 2019. Celeste Taylor-2019 Small Forward- Very Athletic and has mid range game and is an electrifying shot blocker.
Cassidy Roberts-2019 Point Guard- Has excellent ball-handling skills and a
vision on the court beyond her years. Lightning is one of the largest travel basketball organizations in the country. With teams at all levels they continue to grow and prosper. They take the time to learn about the dreams of their athletes and then work with them relentlessly to make those dreams a reality.