"The Howard Huskies support the Susquehanna Girls Hockey Program, a partnership of the Baltimore, Huskies, York and Lancaster youth hockey clubs. For more information, visit the Rapids' web site at www.susquehannarapids.org



The Susquehanna Rapids announced Sunday the establishment of an annual award named after Julie Buonato, a senior player whose determination to play ice hockey despite diabetes has been an inspiration to her teammates and coaches. "This award will recognize the player who shows particularly strong dedication to her sport and to her team, and who sets a good example that will inspire others, especially younger players," said Rapids general manager Dan Rodricks.

Julie Buonato, the daughter of Marty and Bud Buonato of Columbia, Md., has been with us for five seasons – first with the Baltimore Stars, then with the Baltimore/York Stars, and finally the Rapids. She will graduate from high school in the top 10 of her class. For all these years she balanced rehearsal for dance recitals with hockey practice. Each year during high school, she has traveled with a group of volunteers to Appalachia to help rebuild homes. This service commitment includes raising funds, and giving between 150 and 200 volunteer hours.  Making these accomplishments even more special, Julie has been living with type 1 diabetes – as USA Hockey magazine reports this month, that’s another balancing act.  Both high and low blood sugar can rob you of your energy, bring on nasty headaches, and leave you very confused.  Julie's teammates, coaches, and extra hockey moms can tell you tales of the juice boxes and quick sugars to bring her sugar back up. For these reasons – and because she’s just a great young woman we have been proud to have in our organization – this year we establish the Julie Buonato Award: "To honor Julie Buonato, so that her perseverance and dedication, love of hockey and support of team will always be an inspiration to others