Sports

By Bill Landon

It was a sloppily played game with turnovers, missed free throws and shots that just didn’t drop, but the Lady Kingsmen managed to keep the Bayport Mariners at bay when it mattered most in the Suffolk Class A final game March 3. Kings Park (No. 1) defeated Bayport-Blue Point (No. 6) 53-41 at Suffolk County Community College, Selden, and made history as they captured their very first Suffolk title in program history.

The win propels Kings Park to the Long Island championship.

Senior Ryan Currier, the backbone of the Kings Park offense, led the way scoring 22 points with Gianna Zawol adding 13.

The Lady Kingsmen retake the court Sunday, March 10, at SUNY Farmingdale where they’ll square off against Nassau champion Cold Spring Harbor. Tipoff is scheduled for noon.

Tickets can be purchased at: gofan.co/app/school/NYSPHSAAXI?gender=girls. division. 

— Photos by Bill Landon

Photo from Stony Brook Athletics

Sherese Pittman scored 30 points to help lead the Stony Brook women’s basketball team over the North Carolina A&T Aggies 76-62 at home on March 3 to earn at least a share of the CAA Regular Season Championship for the first time in program history. 

The Seawolves had three players score in double figures, led by Pittman, who had a career-high 30 points, nine rebounds and four assists. Gigi Gonzalez added 16 points and Shamarla King helped out with 13 points and seven rebounds off the bench.

Led by Pittman’s three offensive rebounds, Stony Brook did a great job crashing the offensive glass, pulling down 11 boards that resulted in 16 second chance points. The Seawolves turned 19 N.C. A&T turnovers into 20 points on the other end of the floor. Graduate Victoria Keenan led the way individually with two steals.

After falling behind 6-3, Stony Brook went on a 5-0 run that culminated with two free throws by Pittman with 6:30 left in the first quarter to take an 8-6 lead. The Seawolves then maintained that lead and entered the quarter break with an 18-16 advantage. Stony Brook capitalized on four N.C. A&T turnovers in the period, turning them into six points on the other end of the floor.

Stony Brook built that first quarter lead to 32-27 before going on a 5-0 run starting at the 1:46 mark in the second period, highlighted by a three from King, to increase its lead to 37-27. The Aggies cut into that lead, but the Seawolves still enjoyed a 37-29 advantage heading into halftime. Stony Brook forced six N.C. A&T turnovers in the period and turned them into seven points.

The Seawolves continued to preserve its halftime lead before going on a 5-0 run to expand its lead further to 58-47 with 24 seconds to go in the third after a free throw by Pittman, a score which remained until the end of the third quarter. Gonzalez was lights out during the quarter, scoring 11 points in the frame.

The squad kept its lead intact before going on a 6-0 run, finished off by Pittman’s layup, to grow the lead to 71-58 with 3:04 to go in the contest. The Seawolves kept expanding the margin and coasted the rest of the way for the 76-62 win. Stony Brook got a boost from its bench in the period, with non-starters scoring seven of its 18 total points, led by freshman Janay Brantley and King.

The  team will return to the court on March 7 when they head to Virginia to take on Hampton at 7 p.m. and streamed live on FloHoops.

Photo courtesy of Stony Brook Athletics

The Stony Brook University men’s basketball team defeated Delaware 79-56, on March 2 at Island Federal Arena. The Seawolves closed the regular season in fashion with an emphatic victory over the Blue Hens on senior day. Aaron Clarke and Tyler Stephenson-Moore led the charge, scoring 37 points combined.

Both teams traded buckets back and forth early in the first half as Delaware clung to a narrow lead over the Seawolves. A pair of Dean Noll hook shots ignited the Stony Brook offense as they closed the half on a 23-16 run to take a nine-point advantage into halftime. 

The Blue Hens swiftly responded with a 10-2 run to open the second half, cutting the Stony Brook lead to one. Stony Brook quickly regained momentum with a barrage of three pointers to take a 19-point lead, capping off a 23-5 run highlighted by big buckets from Jared Frey and Stephenson-Moore.

Stony Brook did not let up, closing things out on a 14-4 run, never letting Delaware get within single digits in the process. The senior day victory was the Seawolves’ 13th win at Island Federal Arena this season as Stony Brook clinched the No. 7 seed in the upcoming CAA Championship.

By Steven Zaitz

In a dominating performance by their frontcourt, the Northport boys basketball team beat Brentwood in the first round of the Suffolk County, Class AAA playoffs Friday, Feb. 23.

Forward Will Meyer had a career-high 24 points to lead the sixth-seeded Tigers, who knocked off the third-seeded and defending county and Long Island champion Indians, 79-68. Forward Brendan Fenlon had 18 points, including four three-pointers, and Owen Boylan added 15.

Slashing and dashing point guard Jojo Cipollino had 20 points and scored most of his points by aggressively attacking the rim. Northport built a 20-10 lead after a fast-paced first quarter as Cipollino and Meyer each had six in the first eight minutes.

But Brentwood exploded for 23 in the second quarter as Indian swingman Marquese Dennis poured in nine, including a three-pointer. His teammate, 6’6” power forward had 16 points in the first half and the two teams went to the locker room with Northport ahead 37-33.

The Tigers came into the game averaging 56 points of offense a game but seemed to enjoy the electrifying pace and were able to negotiate Brentwood’s attempts at trapping them in the backcourt. Using quick passes to break the press or long baseball-like passes to go over it, Northport was able to get inside for high-percentage shots in the paint or divert to Plan B and make an extra pass for three-point attempts by Fenlon or Boylan — who hit on seven smart bombs in total. 

As is the case with so many high school basketball games, this one was decided in the third period. With three minutes to go in the quarter three and Northport up by five, Fenlon hoisted up a long ball right in front of the Tiger bench. The ball went halfway down, popped out of the basket, and then straight down and in.  It gave the Tigers a 51-43 advantage. Meyer hit a layup and was fouled with less than a minute to go in the quarter and the Northport lead ballooned to 58-46. Meyer had 10 points in the third.

The Brentwood gym has been kind to Northport in recent years as the Tigers boast a 14-7 record. In their last playoff appearance here in 2021, they beat the heavily-favored Indians 58-56 to win the Suffolk County championship. This year, they completed just the first step to a title. They played William Floyd on Wednesday, Feb. 28, for a chance at the finals for the third time in four years — results unavailable at time of print. For Brentwood, the loss means they will not have their 11th Suffolk County title in school history or fifth in the last decade. 

— Photos by Steven Zaitz

Smithtown East senior Ben Haug drives the lane in the Suffolk Class AA semi-finals. Photo by Bill Landon

By Bill Landon

Smithtown East was hoping three times would be the charm when they faced their crosstown rival Smithtown West in the Class AA semifinal round at Longwood High School Feb. 27. East fell to West by 14 points in January, then nine points Feb. 5, and was hoping to upset the No. 1 seed when the score was 14 all at the end of eight minutes of play. Smithtown West showed why they’re the top seed as they stretched their legs the rest of the way running away to win the game 74-47 and, with it, punched their ticket to the county final round.

Ben Rappa along with Michael Cascione topped the scoring chart for Smithtown West netting 16 points apiece, Jack Melore added 14 and Matt Bannell netted 12.

Craig O’Neill led Smithtown East in scoring with 11 points, Ben Haug netted nine and Tom Fanning added eight.

Smithtown West (No.1) returns to Longwood High School Saturday, March 2, where they will face Half Hollow Hills East (No. 2) in the county championship title round. Game time is slated for 2:30 p.m.

— Photos by Bill Landon

By Steve Zaitz

Led by senior guard Benjamin Haug’s 24 points, the Smithtown East boys basketball team beat their rivals to the south, the Hauppauge Eagles, 65-49 on Feb. 24 in the first round of the Suffolk County, Class AA playoffs.

The Bulls, the fourth seed, improve to 16-5 and got  the opportunity to face an even fiercer rival – the number one seed Smithtown West Bulls.

In their win over the Eagles, Smithtown East rode a 19-3 second period to establish a commanding lead after a close first quarter. They took a 37-18 lead into halftime as Haug boasted 11 points and senior big man James Burton had 9 at the break.

Hauppauge junior guard Cole Wood hit three three-pointers in the second half and the fifth-seeded Eagles cut the lead to 11 late in the third quarter, but they never got any closer.  Wood finished with 17 points.

Breaking news

Smithtown West handily defeated Smithtown East in the semi-finals on Tuesday, Feb. 27, 74-47 and will face Half Hollow Hills East for the Class AA championship on March 2.

By Bill Landon

It was Neelesh Raghurama’s long-range shooting prowess that powered the Patriots (No. 9) over the Wolverines (No. 8) with four triples and five field goals for a team high 22 points, leading Ward Melville in a 62-38 win over host Newfield in the opening round of Suffolk AAA playoff action Feb. 21. 

Newfield stayed within striking distance trailing by eight points to open the second half but struggled to gain traction against a potent Patriot offensive press in the final 16 minutes of play.

Rounding out the scoring for the Patriots were Devin Lynch with 14 points and Lorenzo Beaton netted 12.

Josh Hayes topped the scoring chart for the Wolverines with 12 points.

Newfield concludes its 2023-24 basketball campaign with a 10-6 league record, 12-8 overall.

Undefeated Bay Shore ended Ward Melville’s run with a 60-40 win in the quarterfinals Feb. 23. The Patriots took home a 9-7 league record, 12-10 overall.

Mt. Sinai junior Brock Kolsch drives the lane in the Suffolk Class A playoff opener. Photo by Bill Landon

By Bill Landon

When Mount Sinai’s Dominic Pennzello went to the free-throw line shooting two with just over a minute left in the second quarter, he calmly sank in the front end and when he netted the back end, the junior recorded his 1,000th varsity career point in the opening round of the Suffolk Class A playoff round. 

Despite this personal milestone, the visiting Mustangs (No. 5) struggled to keep pace with Bayport-Blue Point (No.4). Mount Sinai fell 69-59, ending their 2023-24 campaign Saturday, Feb. 24.

Pennzello finished the game with five field goals, three triples and three free throws for 22 points followed by teammate Blake Kolsch who netted 13 and Brian Vales with 10.

Pennzello ranks third in Suffolk scoring leaders this season with 122 field goals, 45 triples and 62 free throws averaging 22.1 points per game, as reported by Newsday.

Mount Sinai finishes its season with a 10-6 league record, 13-8 overall.

Photo from Stony Brook Athletics

The Stony Brook University men’s basketball team defeated William & Mary, 75-62, on Feb. 24 at Island Federal Arena. Four Seawolves posted double-digit points in the win, with Aaron Clarke and Tyler Stephenson-Moore leading the way with 18 points apiece.

Stony Brook started hot early, opening the game on an 11-2 run. The Tribe responded with several jumpers from Trey Moss to cut the deficit to six. The Seawolves immediately answered back with buckets from Keenan Fitzmorris and Clarke to regain momentum.

A pair of free throws from Clarke with four seconds left gave Stony Brook a 12-point advantage heading into the half. Stony Brook closed the half on a 15-9 run, highlighted by several big plays by Clarke and Fitzmorris.

Both teams traded buckets back and forth early in the second half as William & Mary cut its deficit to nine. The Seawolves responded quickly with tough shots from Jared Frey and Stephenson-Moore. Stony Brook pushed its advantage to 16 points, its largest of the afternoon, following a three from Stephenson-Moore.

After the Tribe again narrowed the deficit to eight points, the Seawolves put the game away with eight consecutive makes from the free-throw line to close out their 12th win at Island Federal Arena, defeating William & Mary for the second time this season.

“Good win for us … Happy to win at home [with] a good crowd on a Saturday afternoon,” said head coach Geno Ford after the game. “[If] you win by double figures at home in a conference game you’re going to take that any day of the week,” he added.

The team  heads on the road to take on Drexel on Feb. 29. The Seawolves and Dragons tip off at 7 p.m. from Philadelphia, with the contest streaming on FloHoops and NBC Sports Philadelphia.

Debby Mastrodima, above, teamed up with Cornelia Bruu-Syversen to win 6-3 on Saturday. Photo from Stony Brook Athletics

Stony Brook tennis won its first match in the CAA in the 2024 spring season, taking a 6-1 victory at Monmouth to close a weekend swing in West Long Branch, New Jersey on Feb. 24.

Stony Brook improved to 2-5 overall and 1-0 in conference play, as head coach Thiago Dualiby recorded his first conference win leading the Seawolves.

The Seawolves took two of three doubles games to record the point, with freshmen Mia Palladino and Darian Perfiliev teaming up for a win, before sophomore Debby Mastrodima and freshman Cornelia Bruu-Syversen won the clinching game.

Stony Brook then took five of the six singles matches, with Palladino, freshman Elena Lobo-Corral, Perfiliev, Bruu-Syversen, and junior Sara Annamaria Medved winning their matches.

DOUBLES

Brezanin/Mills (MON) def. Boro/Lobo-Corral (SBU), 6-4; Palladino/Perfiliev (SBU) def. Girish/McKinney (MON), 6-0; Bruu-Syversen/Mastrodima (SBU) def. Jamir/Landstrom (MON), 6-3 – clinching game

SINGLES

Palladino (SBU) def. Brezanin (MON), 6-3, 6-2; Lobo-Corral (SBU) def. McKinney (MON), 6-3, 6-2; Girish (MON) def. Boro (SBU), 2-6, 6-0, WR*; Perfiliev (SBU) def. Jamir (MON), 6-3, 6-4; Bruu-Syversen (SBU) def. Landstrom (MON), 6-1, 6-4; Medved (SBU) def. Mills (MON), 6-4, 7-6

“I’m really proud of the team. We set controllable adjustments after yesterday’s play and everyone executed them really well,” said head coach Thiago Dualiby. “We were able to set the right tone from the start today and executed positive behaviors throughout the match.”

The team heads to Rhode Island for two matches next weekend, first with a matchup against Bryant on March 1. First serve between the Seawolves and Bulldogs is set for 12:45 p.m.