Members of the unified team pose for a photo. PHOTO/JOHN CARDILLO

Hopkinton High School’s unified basketball team — which pairs athletes who have intellectual disabilities with teammates known as “partners” — put together another strong season this fall. The roster featured a total of 46 players — 13 athletes and 33 partners. But the impressive showing has become the norm for the Hopkinton program, said coach Jay Golden.

“The number one reason we have such good numbers is because we have good kids in the building who want to be part of something that is bigger than themselves,” Golden said. “This is a great avenue for them to be able to do that.”

The season featured several games and a fun finish that included a game at Bellingham, a jamboree in Natick that included a reception for the players, and a Tri-Valley League jamboree at Ashland on Nov. 10. This year’s team has numerous members, both athletes and partners, who have been with the program for multiple years.

“They find, pretty quickly, that the connections they make with each other, it makes their day,” Golden said. “They have a great experience, they let their friends know about it. We have so many good kids in the building who want to build friendship and connections; we are fortunate to have that.”

The Hillers had seven captains, which Golden said was helpful given the size of the overall roster. Athletes Tanush Vuda, who is in the 18-22 program, and Johnny Murray, a senior, were two of the captains this fall.

“They do a good job at practice,” Golden said. “They lead the stretching, they psych the kids up before games, they do a really good job.”

The five partner captains all submitted essays explaining why they want to be a team captain. The group includes Alyssa Budden, Ella Tedstone, Tory Ahlstrom-Hall, Gavin Cho and Zoe Le Vine, all of whom also participate in other sports.

“They all go out of their way to connect with the kids and make sure the experiences our athletes have in practices, in games and in the school community are positive,” Golden said.

Hopkinton’s athletes include freshmen Sriram Kondaveti and Praneel Srimant, sophomores Avery Schact, Kartik Sharma, Landon Rockhold, Nikki Tenneti and Ryan Molfetas, juniors Jenny Zhang and Giovanni Dos Santos, senior Meri Sahakyan and Jack Ruran from the 18-22 program.

“It’s a good mix of athletes who have been with us for a long time and newer ones,” Golden said. “But they are all having a great experience.”