Sports

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Mount Sinai protecting a two-point lead over Islip with 11 seconds left in regulation went to Mount Sinai junior Kylie Budke who drained a three pointer from the corner to ice the game giving the Mustangs a 50-45 win in a League VI matchup at home Feb. 19.

Mount Sinai junior Casey Campo topped the scoring chart for the Mustangs with 8 field goals a triple and 4 from the line for a team high 23 points. Budke followed with 2 treys and 5 from the floor for 16 and Brielle Williams and senior Makayla Hartcom banked 4 points apiece.

The win lifts the Mustangs to 2-2 dealing Islip their first loss of the season falls to 4-1. Mount Sinai has two games remaining in this Covid shortened season before playoffs begin Feb. 26.                                              Photos by Bill Landon 

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Photo by Andrew Zucker

By Andrew Zucker

Five games played, five wins for the Port Jefferson Royals.

On Wednesday, Feb. 17, the Royals defeated the Bridgehampton Killer Bees 63-21, their second victory over Bridgehampton in three days. 

“It’s been two weeks of just craziness, trying to get things in, a whole new system,” Port Jefferson head coach Pete Meehan said postgame. “It’s been my most enjoyable two weeks of the past year.” 

Photo by Andrew Zucker

Sophomore guard Drew Feinstein continued his scorching hot start to the season, scoring 20 points, including an empathic dunk halfway through the first quarter to put the Royals up by 10. Port Jefferson’s second-leading scorer, John Sheils, chipped in 10 points during the victory.

“He’s [Feinstein] an extremely talented player,” Meehan said. “There’s no doubt he’s a weapon… He’s tremendously unselfish. They’ve all bought into what we’re doing.” 

Feinstein’s 20 points against Bridgehampton dropped his season average of points per game to 24.2.

The Killer Bees were led by Kristopher Vinski, who scored seven points during the contest, and Alex Davis, who added six. 

Port Jefferson (5-0) looks to continue their perfect season when they head to Smithtown Christian on Friday, Feb. 19 at 5 p.m. Bridgehampton (0-5) heads home seeking their first win of the season as they take on Shelter Island on Friday at noon.

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With 11 seconds left in regulation, the Northport Tigers boys basketball team clung to a 1-point lead hoping to run out the clock on the road against Bay Shore Feb. 16. But the 1-point victory was not to be, when Bay Shore grabbed an offensive rebound, passed to Jamari Smith-Elie who drained a 3-pointer at the buzzer to snatch a 46-44 win.

Northport tasted its first defeat of the season having handily defeating Lindenhurst 80-31 in their season opener and besting Central Islip 55-40 Feb. 15.

Northport senior Patrick Healy scored 3 from the floor, a triple and 3 from the stripe to lead the Tigers with 12 points. Jason Ahlstrand followed with 11 and teammates Nicholas Watts and Jake Santamaria banked 8 points apiece.

In this COVID-19 abbreviated season, the Tigers have five games left in the next eight days as the regular season wraps up Feb. 25, before post season play begins.

Earlette Scott prepares to drive during Sunday's game against Maine. Photo from Stony Brook Athletics

The Stony Brook women’s basketball team honored McKenzie BusheeJonae CoxVictoria JohnsonIndia Pagan and Hailey Zeise in a pregame Senior Day ceremony on Feb. 14. The Seawolves then surged to as much as a 16-point lead before halftime against Maine with first place at stake.

Ultimately, Maine rallied for a 54-49 victory at Island Federal Arena to split the weekend showdown.

The teams could very well meet again as the top two seeds in the America East Tournament, with a ticket to the NCAA Tournament on the line.

Employing a full-court press, Maine took its first lead, 43-41, with an 11-0 run in the fourth quarter that included three steals in a 38-second span. The lead eventually swelled to six points late.

Zeise’s three-pointer with 61 seconds remaining pulled Stony Brook within 52-49, but a late possession with a bid to tie went awry.

Pagan and Asiah Dingle scored in double-figures. Dingle also contributed five assists.

Maine improved to 12-2 in America East, while Stony Brook sits comfortably ahead of the rest of the field in second place at 9-3.

“I’m definitely disappointed with the outcome today,” coach Caroline McCombs said. “I thought we were playing some really good basketball early and then allowed Maine to get back in the game by capitalizing on our mistakes. We have to learn from it and move forward, which is what we will focus on.”

The team returns to action when they host UAlbany on Feb. 22 and 23, both at 2 p.m.

Dylan Pallonetti paced the Seawolves with six goals in his collegiate debut. Photo from Stony Brook Athletics

The Stony Brook men’s lacrosse team waited 343 days to return to game action. The Seawolves then took only 69 seconds to get on the scoreboard.

Stony Brook ultimately opened its 2021 season with a 20-8 win against Sacred Heart on Saturday afternoon at Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium.

Stony Brook native Dylan Pallonetti, a redshirt freshman who transferred from Maryland, tallied six goals as well as an assist in his long-awaited collegiate debut — the most goals ever by a Seawolf in his collegiate debut, and the most by a Stony Brook player since Tom Haun had that same output against Binghamton on March 29, 2019.

The 12-goal margin of victory was Stony Brook’s largest since a 14-goal victory against NJIT on Feb. 20, 2015.

The Seawolves last had played on March 7, 2020, after which the season was halted due to COVID-19. 

“It was great to be back out there playing another team,” said Pallonetti, a Ward Melville High School product. “It was the first time in a while. I want to thank my teammates. They supported me the whole way. It was a team effort today.”

Maritime graduate transfer Matt DeMeo, the lone other new arrival in the starting lineup, added a hat trick and two assists in his Seawolves debut. His tally with 7:25 remaining in the third quarter opened a game-high dozen-goal lead. 

“When you look at it, it’s a credit to the guys who are already here,” second-year head coach Anthony Gilardi said about the contributions from Pallonetti and DeMeo. “… We set the table the first day we were here as a new staff, saying we’re going to play unselfish, team lacrosse. One day some guy is going to have a lot of opportunities. The next day it’s going to be somebody else. But if we just do one-sixth offensively, then we’re going to be good. Those guys really bought into it.

“And Dylan and Matt come into the fold and they fit right in seamlessly. The best part about it is our current guys were the ones teaching them the offense.” 

Cory VanGinhoven also had three goals, while Tom Haun and Chris Pickel Jr. contributed a pair apiece. VanGinhoven added a team-high four assists.

Haun passed Alex Corpolongo (95, 2014-17) for ninth on the program’s all-time list with No. 96. Next up: No. 8 Chris Kollmer, who had 97 from 1994 through ’97.

Austin Deskewicz won 12 of 13 faceoffs, and the Seawolves won 23 of 30 overall.

After Jaden Walcot evened the scored at 1 early n the first quarter, Stony Brook rattled off eight straight goals while holding Sacred Heart scoreless for 18:44.

Anthony Palma, who succeeded graduated Michael Bollinger in goal, recorded seven saves in his first collegiate start to earn the win.

“Coach told us all week, ‘We’ve got to make the first move. We’ve got to really end it early,'” Palma said. “I think we came out with great energy and we kept it up the whole game. My defense played phenomenally in front of me. I have no complaints. I think every single one of them played their hearts out. They never let up intensity.”

Stony Brook returns to action next Saturday, Feb. 20 at noon when it hosts Bryant.

Trailing the Bulls of Smithtown East, 15-2, late in the opening quarter the Cougars of Centereach clawed their way back to draw within 6 at the halftime break Feb. 14. The Cougars found their rhythm in the third quarter and closed the gap to a single point in the last three minutes of play, but the Bulls were able to hold off the late game surge and win the non-league matchup, 35-28.

Ava Mueller topped the scoring charts for Smithtown East with two field goals, a triple and 4 from the charity stripe for 11 points. Teammate Paige Doherty netted 8 and Josie Lent banked 6.

Two sophomores led the way for Centereach with Juliana Speziale netting 9 for the Cougars, and Ashlynne Gangji tacked on 7.

In this COVID shortened season, Centereach has three games left as Smithtown East has four before post season play begins on Feb. 26.

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By Steven Zaitz

The Power Triangle may be gone, but success roars on for the Lady Tigers.

The Northport girls basketball team picked up right where they left off pre-pandemic, as they opened the short season last Friday with an 80-32 dismantling of the Lindenhurst Bulldogs.

Daniella Pavinelli, Kelly McLaughlin and Kerry Dennin, highly decorated players that led the Lady Tigers to the Suffolk County championship in 2020, are now freshmen
in college.

However, Coach Richard Castellano has seen this movie. He has been putting together championship caliber teams for four decades and is fully aware that each player’s tenure with the team, no matter how talented they are, is so very finite.

“Yeah, we lost a few players,” said the affable Castellano in a fit of understatement. “But every team does. We try to put five girls on the floor who can score and five girls who can play defense. If we share the wealth and share the basketball, we are successful. And today we were.”

The players have obviously bought in to this style of ball as ten different Tigers registered points in this opening day rout that took place at Lindenhurst.

Juniors Sophia Bica and Sophia Yearwood led the way, combining for 40 points and 15 rebounds. As the first half lead ballooned to 20, it was Sophia and Sophia slicing and dicing through Lindenhurst’s defense, which seemed to be in no mood to guard anyone. Bica had 21 points to lead Northport with Yearwood booking 19. They both rested the entire 4th quarter.

Junior forward Allison Soule was a terror around the rim with 10 rebounds and 4 blocks, and team captain Emma Blanco had 10 points. Natalia Donofrio and Rachel Mincone added a thick layer of icing on the cake combining for 12 points in the 4th quarter, with Donofrio canning two 3-pointers, and Mincone injecting her signature brand of energy despite the lopsided score.

Lindenhurst forward Kelly Griffin, who led all scorers with 23, scored 18 of those in the first half, as the Tiger defense clamped down on her as the game wore on. The rest of Griffin’s teammates combined for only 9 points for the entire game and the Bulldogs failed to score even a single point in the 4th quarter.

“She (Griffin) was second in Suffolk County in 3-point goals last year, and we knew we had to key on her,” Castellano said. “We didn’t defend as well as I know we can in the first half.”

That might seem a little bit of a harsh critique for a team that pitched a shutout for an entire quarter of basketball, but Castellano has built both a reputation and a program that constantly strives for excellence. He and his Lady Tigers are never satisfied.

“I’m blessed to have girls who buy into the design of sharing the ball and finding the open person,” he said. “It’s something that we as a program always take pride in.”

To punctuate this resounding victory, the next day, Bica and Yearwood were listed in Newsday’s Top 100 girls basketball players on Long Island for 2021. Lindenhurst’s Griffin is also on the list.

“It is an honor to be mentioned along with these talented female athletes,” Bica said. “It is very encouraging to see that with hard work and dedication, you can achieve anything you put your mind to. I have been fortunate enough to work with great coaches and trainers who helped me develop into the player I am today.”

As has been the protocol, there were no fans in the stands as Section XI is doing everything in its power to allow high school athletics to continue uninterrupted. They have provided livestreams to many high school events that can be found on the Section XI website, www.sectionxi.org.

The Lady Tigers have a grueling schedule in the next 10 days, playing seven games.

“It doesn’t make for a lot of practice time,” Castellano said. “But these are crazy times for everyone, and we have to make the best of it.”

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Comsewogue had the measure of the Connetquot Thunderbirds in a non-league contest at home where the Warriors coasted to a 37-10 victory Feb. 14, their first win of this early season. 

Comsewogue senior Kayli Gregory topped the scoring chart for the Warriors with 10 points and 9 rebounds with teammate Jaidyn Donley a junior, netting 6. 

In a COVID-19 abbreviated season, Comsewogue at 1-1 will play their remaining 5 games over the next 8 days before post season play begins on Feb. 26. 

 

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The Ward Melville Patriots boys basketball team dusted off the cobwebs in their season opener at home where they hosted Central Islip in a League I matchup Feb. 12. Trailing by three to open the second half, the Patriot offense sprang to life led in part by senior Ben Shank and Tommy Ribaudo, a junior, outscoring CI by 12 points giving up six in the fourth to win the game, 63-60.

Shank and Ribaudo topped the scoring chart with 18 points apiece, senior Jason Flynn banked seven, juniors Tommy Engel tacked on six, and Frank Carroll banked five. 

Ward Melville head coach Alex Piccirillo said the key to the game was patience.  

“We knew that if we could that if we could slow the pace down and take care of the basketball that we would win the game,” Piccirillo said. “We knew that if we could box out one more time (in the final minute), we would win on the rebound. We’d get on the free throw line and ice the game from there.”

Ice the game they did.

With a COVID-19 shortened season, Piccirillo was grateful that his team would see any playing time this season.

“I’d be remiss if I didn’t thank all of our administration at Section XI for allowing us the opportunity to get back on the court, with all of the safety measures in place and allow us to get this done for the kids it’s an amazing opportunity for them,” said the coach. 

With the abbreviated season, the Patriots will play their remaining six games in eleven days-time before playoff season begins Feb. 26. 

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The Miller Place Panthers couldn’t ask for a better start in this COVID shortened season. With a 46-20 win at home against East Hampton Feb. 11, building on their momentum from a victory over Amityville in their season opener earlier in the week.

Seniors Alexa Corbin topped the scoring chart for the Panthers with 18 followed by teammate Jessica Iavarone who banked 10, with Lauren Molinaro a junior netting 8.

At 2-0 Miller Place sits atop the League VI leader board tied with Islip. The Panthers are back in action Feb. 13 on the road against Sayville Feb. 13 before returning home on the Feb. 17 to host Mt. Sinai. Tip off for both games is 10 a.m.