From the sports archives: Burlingame High's Frankie Ferrari and Serra High's Henry Caruso: A friendly rivalry

Frankie Ferrari, a sophomore point guard for Burlingame, and Henry Caruso, a junior forward for Serra, have known each other nearly their entire lives. They grew up playing on the same basketball and baseball teams. Ferrari said he talks to Caruso almost daily, while Caruso has fond memories spending hours at Ferrari’s house.

The two cemented their relationship as members of the Hillsborough Little League All-Star squad that captured four straight District 52 titles — two 9-10 championships in 2005 and 2006, the 2007 10-11 crown and the 2008 11-12 championship. Caruso was the big slugger who could play virtually every position and who was arguably the best player on a team full of great players. Ferrari, an infielder, catcher and pitcher, was a table-setter offensively. A spark plug at the top — or bottom — of the lineup that got the offense going.

"We’re like best friends. We’re more like brothers than friends,” Ferrari said. "We hang out all the time and our families are close.”

When it came time for high school, the friends went their separate ways — Ferrari to Burlingame and Caruso to Serra. Ferrari said neither really seriously considered going to the other school to be with his pal.

"My dad was coaching here at Burlingame, so I was coming here,” Ferrari said. "Some of his family went to Serra, so I think he (Caruso) was destined to go to Serra.”

Now, after literally hundreds of games as teammates, Caruso and Ferrari take the floor Friday night as opponents for the first time in their athletic careers.

"We talk about (Friday’s game), but we don’t overhype it,” Caruso said. "We’re excited for it. We both like to compete and go after it. We both have the same values.”

Ferrari said nearly the same thing about Caruso.

"He gives it his all every game,” Ferrari said. "That’s probably his biggest [asset].”

Both will be key components to their teams’ success this season. Last season, Caruso was Serra’s annual "Super Soph,” the one sophomore the Padres always seem to bring up every season to play a major role for the team in his first year. He nearly averaged a double-double in 2010-11.

Ferrari made the Burlingame varsity squad last year as a freshman, but didn’t see a ton of playing time. This year, it’s already clear this Panthers squad is Ferrari’s to run. In six games so far this season, Ferrari has eclipsed the 20-point mark four times.

Despite the success the two have experienced in baseball, both Ferrari and Caruso consider themselves basketball players who play baseball. Ferrari was a member of the Burlingame frosh-soph baseball team last season, while Caruso missed the season with a broken hand.

Caruso said he’s still debating whether he wants to play baseball this season. "When I was younger, I played a lot more basketball,” Caruso said. "After Little League, I stopped (playing baseball) for a little while. My passion for basketball just grew after that.”

While a one-on-one matchup between friends — a la Magic Johnson and Isiah Thomas in the 1992 NBA All-Star Game — would be the perfect ending to this story, it probably won’t happen. Ferrari plays in the backcourt while Caruso is mixing it up near the basket.

At that point, it will no longer be about Ferrari and Caruso anymore, it will be about the teams and the game, a matchup the Padres have owned over the last decade. Serra has won five of the last six meetings, with Burlingame recording its first-ever win over the Padres in 2009 with a 49-47 victory. This on the heels of the 2008 game that saw the Padres survive 38-36, only after officials ruled Rodrigo Puliceno’s basket at the buzzer was a hair too late. 2007 was also a two-point Serra win, 50-48.

The other times? The games were all but over at halftime with Serra cruising to wins.

"I don’t know if I’ll have a chance to guard [Ferrari],” Caruso said. "But it will be a good game.”

Regardless if the pair find themselves matched up against each other, they will be on the floor together — a lot. There will be plenty of instances for the two to interact.

"I’ll definitely be joking around with him, for sure,” Ferrari said. "Try to get in his head a little bit.”

And don’t expect either to show mercy to the other if their paths do cross. If Ferrari comes down the lane on a drive and Caruso is the last line of defense …

"I’m going up to contest it,” Caruso said. "I’m trying to beat him. On the court, he won’t be my friend.”

Said Ferrari: "It’s definitely a battle of friends, for sure.”