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Northport Tigers

Evan Kay and Brendan Fenlon try for loose ball in Commack’s 44-41 victory on Feb. 2. Photo by Steven Zaitz

By Steven Zaitz

It was only the second day of February, but ‘March Madness’ is already running white hot for both the Commack Cougar and Northport Tiger boys basketball teams.

In one of the loudest, most intense, and competitive games this season, Commack held on for dear life to beat their crosstown rival Northport, 44-41, last Friday night. The game featured six lead changes and neither team ever led by more than six, as raucous fans from both schools went bonkers with every loose ball, lead change, hustle play, and made basket.

This contest also featured two of the best guards on Long Island — the 6’0” senior Nick Waga for the Cougars and the 5’11” senior JoJo Cipollino for the Tigers — and this head-to-head battle did not disappoint. The two squared off in their own personal showdown that climaxed with each coming up big in the dying moments of the game.

But who would have the final say?

Cougars and Tigers battle to the finish on Feb. 2. Photo by Steven Zaitz

As is the case with most thrillers, this 32-minute slugfest had plenty of plot twists, triumphs, blunders, unbridled joy, and bitter regret —all bathed in the backdrop of the ultra-competitive Suffolk League II playoff picture, with the Tigers sitting just behind the Cougars in the standings.

“It was one of the craziest atmospheres I’ve ever played in,” Waga said, who scored 14 points and grabbed eight rebounds. “It felt like a playoff game, and it was awesome to see both student sections packed because it made it feel like every possession mattered.”

Waga was a key cog in last year’s Cougar machine that made it to the Suffolk County finals at Stony Brook University, so he knows a thing or two about playing in a playoff atmosphere. He is a four-year letterman under head coach Peter Smith and has come of age in the Commack basketball program.

“Nick is a great leader,” Smith said. “He’s been on the team since his freshman year, and watching him develop as the player and leader that he has become has been a lot of fun.”

This night of high school basketball was a reminder of how much fun this game can be. The Commack faithful, many of whom were dressed up in full superhero and Ninja Turtle costumes, were at fever pitch even before the opening tap, screaming and waving home white towels as if they were connected to a hidden power source underneath the bleachers. 

Although they had sans towels, Northport’s fan base was just as loud when things went in their team’s favor and Cipollino was a major source of this. Like Waga, he has developed into a star. Jojo is still lightning quick with his first step, despite adding inches and muscle to his frame this season from last, and he is even more fearless going to the basket; no matter how many taller defenders are waiting for him in the paint.

“It was one of the loudest games I’ve played in, and that was great, but we couldn’t get the job done in the end,” an exhausted Cipollino said. 

While disappointed, Northport head coach Andrew D’Eloia, whose team has a record of 9-5, sees the bigger picture.

“We are very close to being in a position to win these types of games,” D’Eloia said. “It comes down to one or two plays, and to their credit, they made them down the stretch. They play the game the right way; they share the ball, they play defense, and we try to teach our kids the same thing at Northport, and that’s why the games are often so close between Commack and Northport.”

Despite the late fireworks, both teams suffered through a sleepy first quarter, shooting below 20% from the field. Northport led 5-4 after eight minutes.

Cougars and Tigers battle to the finish on Feb. 2. Photo by Steven Zaitz

Commack leveraged a 6-0 run to end the first half, and they took an 18-13 lead into the break. Cougar star quarterback Jeremy Weiss, who plays power forward for Smith, had an athletic rebound and put-back to spark the run with three minutes left. The Commack portion of the crowd was content to cheer his name for the remainder of the quarter.

Northport sliced the lead to one entering the fourth quarter. At the very end of the period, senior guard Liam Sevey collected the rebound of a last-second, half-court heave from teammate Owen Boyland and was able to barely beat the buzzer to pull the Tigers to within one at 27-26.

“That was a great example of game awareness, hustle, and playing to whistle by Liam,” D’Eloia said.

Enter another hustler into the mix, Commack senior swingman Evan Kay, who would figure prominently in the final quarter.

With four minutes left in the game and Commack up by three, Kay fought for a loose ball with Cipollino and Tiger forward Brendan Fenlon. All three would pile on top of each other, but the possession arrow pointed to Commack. Waga hit a three moments later to make it 39-33.

Cipollino countered with a triple from the elbow, and it was the Northport cheering section’s turn to scream their heads off. Kay, who was scoreless in the first three quarters, made his second bucket of the fourth, to give the Cougars a five-point lead with less than three minutes to go. Kay pumped his fist in the air as he ran back down on defense and the Cougar crowd had a new hero to holler for.

“Evan has been a great addition to our team because he brings a lot of energy off the bench,” Smith said. “He has a ‘no-lose’ type of mentality to everything he does, and he brings that extra dynamic and fight to our team. It’s something that every team needs, and Evan gives it to us every night.”

Kay, who played for Smith as a sophomore but decided to rest last winter for baseball, really didn’t seem to mind the fans in the Northport section showering him with disparaging chants about his physique.

“I play with a lot of passion, and to have the fans notice me from both sides, means a lot to me,” Kay said. “I heard the Northport people chanting ‘Eat a Salad’ and I feed off stuff like that. It just fueled me even more because I knew that I was having an impact on the game and helping us win.”

Nick Waga led the Commack Cougars to victory over Northport on Feb 2. Photo by Steven Zaitz

But Kay and Commack were not sitting down for a celebratory post-game meal just yet.

With 1:45 to play in the game, Cipollino stole the ball as a result of Northport’s press, drove to the hoop, and was fouled by 6’5” Cougar forward Devin Spahn. It made the score 42-41.

After the basket, the usually stoic Cipollino slammed the padded wall behind the basket and screamed with primal delight. He was mobbed by his teammates and serenaded by the Northport student section, just feet away.

“I really wanted to get this win and at that moment, the emotions came out of me,” Cipollino said, who led all scorers with 19. “It was a great game.”

Cipollino’s three-point play brought the Tigers to within one point and Northport continued to apply pressure in the backcourt. They created another loose ball and it squirted to Fenlon at three-quarter court and he quickly fired a pass to Boylan, who would have had an uncontested layup. But the pass was too far in front of Boylan. It sailed underneath the basket and out of bounds, and the ball went back to Commack, who was extremely fortunate to still have the lead.

“I just misjudged the pass, and it’s going to stick with me for a while,” said a distraught Fenlon, who played another solid game with six points, seven rebounds, and four blocked shots. “It changed the game, but I have to use it as motivation and not make the same mistakes in the future when it matters most.”

Always the teacher, D’Eloia was philosophical in his post-game remarks.

Evan Kay and Brendan Fenlon try for loose ball in Commack’s 44-41 victory on Feb. 2. Photo by Steven Zaitz

“I told Brendan and all of the guys that everyone who steps on the floor is charged with finding something they could have done a little better throughout a game, and it’s never about one single play,” D’Eloia said. “A close-out, a sharper pass, getting to a loose ball. When you’re playing in a game like that, those little plays that you make, or don’t make, can put you either up by three or down by three. Tonight, they made more of those plays down the stretch.”

There was still time in the game, and it was Kay and Waga helping to make such plays to close it out. Kay killed some clock and drew a non-shooting foul. Waga snatched an offensive rebound and was fouled. He sank two free throws, and a prayer by Cipollino to tie at the final horn went unanswered. Commack was the team left standing and is now 12-3 on the year.

“I shoot with confidence because I know the hard work I put in during the off-season,” Waga said, who shared an embrace with his parents at center court right after the final horn. “I live for these types of moments when the pressure is high, and I feel like it brings out the best in a person.”

If this game is any indication, and with the Suffolk County playoffs just around the corner, the best is likely yet to come.

By Steven Zaitz

The air was like soup and the astroturf near its melting point, as the Northport Tigers and North Babylon Bulldogs fought a hotly contested battle of attrition to open the football season this past Saturday.

Temperatures soared and tempers flared as momentum swung wildly throughout the course of this sweaty, sticky, hard-hitting mess of a game. There were almost as many players gasping for air, for both teams, as there were empty water bottles strewn about the sidelines.

At the climax, against a gassed group of Tiger defenders, North Babylon junior tailback Jawara Keahey delivered the death blow to the home Tigers with his fifth touchdown of the day — a 33-yard run around right tackle on third down and 13. Keahey, who rushed for a Long Island-best 258 yards on the day, slithered through a small hole at the line of scrimmage, broke a tackle attempt by Tiger defensive back Tommy O’Brien at the 10, and outran three other Northport defenders to score with a little over a minute remaining in the game to win it. The final score was 33-27 as the Bulldogs rang up 368 yards on the ground.

“That run was heartbreaking,” Northport head coach Pat Campbell said. “We had a chance to stuff it at the line of scrimmage, but [Keahey] found a crease, broke it to the sideline and was off to the races.”

O’Brien had a chance to stop Keahey before he scored, but could not.

“I had him and should have wrapped him up and brought him down,” said junior O’Brien, making his first varsity start. “I’m going to learn from this experience, and I know that it won’t happen in the future.”

Also making his first varsity appearance is junior quarterback Enrique Hernandez, who had a double order of unenviable as he is replacing the graduated football and baseball star Owen Johansen, and he had to do it against this snarling Bulldog defense.

“After that first drive, I felt pretty natural and comfortable,” Hernandez said. “It was the most physical game I’ve ever been a part of, and I think we had a good chance to win. We just need to fix a few things, and we’ll be fine.”

Hernandez looked like a seasoned veteran on Northport’s first possession, as he led the Tigers on an 80-yard, 11-play touchdown drive that was capped off by an 8-yard dash up the middle by senior Giancarlo Valenti. Senior running back Michael Campoli juiced up an already frenzied crowd with a 40-yard run on the second play from scrimmage. Hernandez then got the Tigers into the red zone with an 11-yard keeper. Five plays later, Northport led 6-0.

The Bulldogs bit back on their second possession. North Babylon quarterback Chris Stumpf completed a pass to Keahey for 29 yards midway through the second quarter and shortly thereafter, Keahey was doing the first of his five touchdown celebrations after he waltzed up the middle virtually untouched. It made the score 7-6 in favor of the Bulldogs, and it marked the first of three lead changes on the day.

“North Babylon is a very senior-heavy team, and they like to run it down your throat,” Campbell said. “We got a taste of it today with their guys up front, and obviously their running back [Keahey] had a special kind of day.”

After an exchange of punts, Northport took advantage of a short field and took back the lead right before halftime. Junior Christian Campoli, Michael’s brother, caught a 6-yard touchdown pass at the front-right pylon to give the Tigers the lead, 13-7, on the last play of the first half.

“Enrique threw me a perfect ball with a lot of pressure in his face,” said Christian Campoli, who would later leave the game with a painful leg cramp. “He got hit hard and still was able to get the ball to me.”

Hernandez only completed three passes for 48 yards, but Campbell was very pleased with his performance.

“Enrique did a great job,” Campbell said. “He went toe-to-toe with that defense in a tough environment and took a couple of big hits. But he’s a cool cat, and he kept his composure. I believe that he is only going to get better.”

But would it be enough on this day? The 5-foot-7-inch, 150-pound Keahey would provide the answer.

He ripped off 56 yards on three carries to start the third quarter and finished the 10-play drive with a 1-yard plunge off right tackle to swing the lead back to the Bulldogs at 14-13. North Babylon forced a punt, and Keahey got right back at it. He galloped 47 yards to cap a two-play drive and put North Babylon up by eight — a double-barreled assault on the Northport defense to start the half and wrest control of the game.

But the Tigers were still a touchdown and a two-point conversion from tying the game after Michael Campoli, his brother Christian now ruled out of the game, blocked the extra point.

“I didn’t know how bad his injury was,” Michael said of his younger brother. “But I was playing angry — for him. I know what he means to this team, so I did everything I could to keep us in the game.”

After Valenti electrified the crowd with a 44-yard touchdown run, slicing through the middle of the tiring Bulldog defense for his second score of the day, Northport trailed by two. Campbell called Michael Campoli’s number to try and tie the score.

On a play called “wing sweep,” Michael Campoli followed right guard Connor Henigman and left guard Connor Farrington and lunged the ball over the goal line just as his knee hit the turf. The game was tied with just over three minutes to go.

“I told the guys in the huddle that there was no way they were going to stop me,” Campoli said. “And I was right. It was great blocking by the big guys up front, both of the Connors, and I just did the rest.”

Campoli finished the game with 91 yards rushing on 12 carries.

“He’s a warrior,” Campbell said. “He’s a quiet kid but he plays with a nasty streak.”

But North Babylon has competitors, too. The senior Stumpf picked a great time to complete his second pass of the day when he hit his tight end Jack Montecalvo on a bootleg for 27 yards to the Tiger 30. After a penalty, Northport had a chance to stop the Bulldogs on 3rd and 13 with a minute to go in the game and was likely headed to overtime if Northport could prevent a North Babylon first down. 

Keahey did them one better. He took the ball from Stumpf for the final time, made a subtle juke at the line of scrimmage and raced down the right sideline into the endzone — in his wake, leaving five exhausted Tiger defenders sprawled out like felled bowling pins. It was the final strike of the afternoon and, fittingly, it was delivered by Keahey.

“We got a little pinched in the middle, and he busted it outside,” Campbell said. “We have a lot of new guys on defense, and I’m thinking as the season goes along we’re going to learn on the job and get better. We have to.”

Northport will not have long to wait to show if they have taken lessons out of this one, as they play a rare Thursday afternoon game, Sept. 14, at home against Smithtown East. 

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Northport celebrates winning its season opener against Comsewogue. All photos by Steven Zaitz

By Steven Zaitz

Students across Long Island squeezed one last day out of summer vacation Tuesday, Sept. 5, but the Northport Tiger boys volleyball team was certainly open for business.

The Tigers traveled to Port Jefferson Station and vanquished the Comsewogue Warriors in three straight games, barely breaking a sweat. The scores were 25-17, 25-17 and a final dominating game of 25-8 to close out the match.

It marked the debut of new head coach, Liz Capra — Northport Class of 2000, former lady Tiger volleyball star and University of Delaware graduate. She was the girls junior varsity coach last year and has now taken over from the departed Amanda DiPietro, who had piloted the team since 2008.

The Tigers dominated the match from wire to wire as senior middle hitters Brendan Fenlon and Peter Kucza imposed their size over the smaller front line of Comsewogue. Fenlon had eight kills and Kucza had six to go along with his seven blocks at the net. Setter Dylan Sofarelli had an eye-popping 23 assists as well as 6 digs.

“It felt like nobody could stop us out there tonight,” said Sofarelli. “There is no better feeling than that, and it was awesome.”

Capra was pleased about the way  the way the Tigers played as a team, considering that the season is in its infancy.

“It was a total team effort tonight,” Capra said. “We served very well, got the ball deep, and that kept them from easily setting up their offense.”

The Tigers took advantage by taking shallow returns and bombing away from every angle, spiking the ball almost at will against the outgunned Warriors.

Above, middle hitter Peter Kucza with one of his six kills. Photo by Steven Zaitz

“It’s a great way to kick off the year,” Kucza said. “Coach Capra had us prepared, she’s very knowledgeable about the game. We really had a good plan and once we started to get warmed up, we played really well.”

Getting warmed up was not exactly difficult for either team on this day, as it was 90 degrees outside at the start of the match and probably an extra 10 degrees inside the Comsewogue gym. In fact, the volleyball itself had to be switched out several times due to moisture accumulation and the floor had to be mopped frequently between points. None of these factors slowed down Northport.

“Coach DiPietro did such an amazing job of building a strong foundation for this program,” said Capra, who as a middle hitter won two Long Island championships and three league championships as a Lady Tiger. “It’s a privilege to get the opportunity to carry on the excellence of Northport volleyball as a former player to now, 23 years later, as a coach. It feels great to start off with this win.”

If Tuesday’s match result is any indication, it will be the first of many for Capra. When asked if she’s ready for perhaps a 15-year run of her own as coach, she displayed that she has already mastered yet another aspect of coaching — handling the media.

“We got to take them one match at a time,” she said.

That next match will be at West Babylon Sept. 7. Capra will make her home debut as coach against Patchogue-Medford on Sept. 13.

At 5 feet, 8 inches tall, goalkeeper Michael Ippoliti is not the imposing figure of a typical lacrosse player.

But in the battle for the Long Island Lacrosse Championship against Northport on Saturday, he might as well have been the 10-foot-high, Great Green Wall of Farmingdale — a wall that stood between the Tigers and their third straight Long Island title.

On one of the largest lacrosse stages in the country, Ippoliti made a ridiculous 14 saves at Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium on the campus of Stony Brook University to deny Northport of this natural hat trick of championship rings as the Dalers topped the Tigers, 5-3. Northport’s mighty offense came into this match averaging 12 goals a game for the season but was stymied time and time again by Ippoliti.

Trailing 2-1 at halftime, Farmingdale scored four straight goals bridging the third and fourth quarter to take a three-goal lead. Superstar Sniper Brendan O’Keefe gave the Dalers the lead for good at 3-2 with nine and a half minutes left in the third, and Jake Norton had two goals late in the fourth to ice it. The rest of the day belonged to the Syracuse-bound Ippoliti.

“It feels great to be Long Island champions,” said Ippoliti, who transferred from St. Dominic High School in Oyster Bay for his senior season. “I was seeing the ball well today and since I’m not the biggest guy, I make up for it with my speed, hands and footwork.”

One dazzling display of footwork came at the end of the second quarter when Northport’s leading scorer, sophomore Jack Deliberti, ripped a shot from 20 yards away that Ippoliti turned away with his right shin. The rebound caromed back to Deliberti and from a sharper angle and 10 yards closer, he burned in another low laser.

But Ippoliti scampered laterally across his crease to kick it away seconds before the horn sounded to end the half. These two saves kept the Tiger lead at one.

Later on in the game, Ippoliti’s quick hands got the better of Northport’s junior attacker Luca Elmaleh, who had seven goals in the three previous playoff games for the Tigers.

With the score knotted at two to start the fourth quarter, Elmaleh was able to turn the corner on All-American Farmingdale defender Trevor Gayron and flash right in front of the net with only Ippoliti in his way. Elmaleh tried to go up high, but the Daler keeper was able to get his stick and shoulder in the way of Elmaleh’s shot — which was from no more than three feet away. O’Keefe would give Farmingdale the lead two minutes later — a lead they would never surrender.

“I wish I threw maybe another fake in there,” said Elmaleh, who had four shots on goal for the game. “But I can’t go back in time. As a team, we have to move forward, practice harder and try again next year.”
Tiger Longstick Midfielder and two-time All American Andrew Miller, who put on a Tiger uniform for the final time in his illustrious high school career, will not have the luxury of another try next year. A two-time Long Island Champion in lacrosse, Suffolk champion in basketball and one of the finest athletes ever to grace the halls of Northport High School will be at pre-med at West Point in the fall. He scored two goals in this game for the Tigers, and he had previous experience watching Ippoliti play.

“We played club lacrosse together and he is very talented,” Miller, who scored two of the three Tiger goals, said of Ippoliti. “It wasn’t him alone though. His defense played well too, and they just outplayed us overall.”
Ippoliti didn’t forget about his supporting cast either.

“My defensemen played incredibly well today, and I couldn’t have done it without them,” said Ippoliti. “I have to make the saves but it’s those guys executing the game plan that puts us all in a position to win.”
This was the first Long Island title for the proud Farmingdale Lacrosse program since 2011. They won the New York State Title that year as well. They will travel to Albany to play Scarsdale in the New York State semi-final and if they win that one, they will come back to the island next weekend to play at Hofstra for the state crown.

Larry Cerasi, who in his third year as Tiger head coach was bidding for his third straight Long Island Championship, coached Northport in that Hofstra title game last year and lost to upstate Baldwinsville. Despite not earning an invitation to Albany this year, he still feels the 2023 season was a success.
“We lost a lot of firepower from last year and we still went a long way,” said Cerasi. “Winning Suffolk County and getting to the Long Island Championship game is an incredible achievement and it sets us up nicely for next year.”

As Michael Ippoliti will be in Syracuse by then, Cerasi and his guys, if they are lucky enough to be in this position again, may need not run through a wall to win it.

It was the miracle that wasn’t.

In the Long Island Championship, the Northport Lady Tiger lacrosse team came back from a six-goal deficit in regulation capped by a goal from freshman Kate Atkinson with less than three minutes to play — only to lose the game in sudden death overtime 9-8 at Adelphi University in Garden City.

Massapequa Lady Chief Caitlyn Dorman scored with less than 20 seconds remaining in the first overtime period to win the L.I.C. and deny Northport its fourth straight Long Island Championship as well as a chance to compete for their third New York State title.

The Lady Tigers were 17-2 this year and they had handled Massapequa (11-5) the two previous years to win the L.I.C., but the Lady Chiefs came out of the gate on fire, determined to stop that streak.

Jessica Giller scored two minutes into the game for Massapequa on a free position opportunity and the flood gates were open. Allison Pertullo took a nifty feed from Bridget Valentine a minute later, and it was 2-0 Massapequa, and when Giller beat Tiger goalkeeper Megan Morris at 4:24 of the first half, it became an almost unfathomable 7-1 lead for the Chiefs.

But Northport, as everyone knows, is made of championship stuff — and they started to chip away. They got two goals in the final moments of the half — both by Kennedy Radziul and the score was 7-3 at the break.
Radziul opened the second half scoring in the first minute and the momentum was still firmly on the Tigers’ side. Emma McLam dodged her way through traffic and slipped one past GK Christina Fredella to cut the deficit to two and the Lady Tigers sideline was delirious, sensing what they thought was inevitable.

With the score 8-6 in favor of Massapequa, Northport’s Payson Hedges, who will attend Adelphi in the fall, took on three defenders with nine minutes to go and zing on past Fredella from close range. Atkinson would complete the comeback on a curl play, taking a brilliant lead pass from Radziul to tie the score at eight. On to overtime.

After Atkinson bounced a ball just wide that would have won the game, Northport turned the ball over and committed a turnover. Dorman was awarded a free position opportunity from 10 yards away to Morris’s stick side. Dorman bounced it in and Massapequa captured its first ever Long Island Championship.

The Ward Melville Patriots hosted the Northport Tigers in the semi-final round and managed to stay within striking distance through the first two quarters of play, looking to avenge their one-point loss to the Tigers earlier in the season, but faltered in the second half.

Northport freshman Luke Loiacono with a dominant performance beyond his years, topped the scoring chart for the Tigers with five goals along with an assist with teammate Luca Elmaleh’s three goals proved too much for the Patriots slamming the door for the 13-4 victory, Wednesday afternoon May 24.

Northport senior goalie Mike Tittman had 12 saves on the day.

Sophia Cox in the 100 meter hurdles against Connetquot. Photo by Steven Zaitz

The Northport Lady Tigers girls track team competed in a dual meet at Connetquot on April 20. Despite losing to the Lady Thunderbirds 100-50, the Tigers excelled in many events:

• Emily Wickard won the 3000-meter in a season-best of 10:25. Courtney Coronato placed second and scored a personal best of 12:04, while Payton Cotter was third, allowing Northport to sweep the event.

• Wickard also won the 1500-meter in 4:55 and Ella Cancro was third.

• Sophie LaBerre became the first Northport athlete in four years to clear a height of six feet in the pole vault.

• Madison Duffy ran her first 400-meter race ever and got second place in 66 seconds flat. Alexa Colondona of Connetquot was first. Colondona was the star of the meet, as she also won the 100-meter, the 200-meter, and the long jump events.

Northport has two more dual meets left against Huntington and Copiague before they attack the Suffolk County Invitational circuit that will begin the week of May 8.

Fabulous freshman attacker Kate Atkinson had an astonishing seven goals for Northport as the Lady Tigers beat the Smithtown East Lady Bulls, 17-11, on Tuesday.

Northport continues its undefeated season and moves to 7-0 and has won 61 of its last 62 games dating back to 2019. The only blight on this record is a loss to Baldwinsville in the New York State Championship final last June. Smithtown East falls to 4-2.

Northport spotted East the first goal of the game, and the Lady Bulls controlled the ball for a large portion of the opening five minutes. Jenna Mehlinger scored at 19:32.

The Lady Tigers got in gear after Mehlinger’s goal and reeled off the next seven in a 13-minute span, three of which coming off the stick of Atkinson. Northport took a commanding 10-3 into the half.

The two teams traded goals in the second half, and the Bulls outscored the Tigers 8-7 in the second session, but it was not nearly enough.  Kennedy Radziul had three goals, and Haleigh Greenberg and Grace McCarthy had two each. Goalkeeper Megan Morris had six saves.

Ava Aceri had five goals for Smithtown East, all of them coming after halftime. She also assisted on a goal by Jenna Soto, who had a pair of goals.  Mehlinger totaled three goals and an assist as beleaguered Bulls netminder, Grace McDonald, faced 24 shots on the afternoon, stopping seven of them. 

Northport has a non-league match coming up on April 22 against Westchester County’s Fox Lane High School, and Smithtown East will suit up next against Sachem East on April 20.

— Photos by Steven Zaitz

The Hauppauge girls flag football team remained undefeated after shutting out the Northport Lady Tigers on Monday, 21-0.

They are now 6-0 in their maiden season, have the most wins on all of Long Island, and are 5-0 in League I play. Northport, who had their three-game winning streak snapped, falls to 3-2.

Hauppauge freshman quarterback Taylor Mileti was 9 for 13 and tossed two touchdowns passes. She played well in all three phases of the game, collecting 10 flag pulls on defense, had two interceptions and punted the ball effectively on special teams. One of her punts was downed at the Northport one-yard line and on the next play from scrimmage, Hauppauge was able to force a Lady Tiger safety for two points. Eagle receiver Melissa O’Connor had seven receptions for 46 yards, and H Back Meredith Terracciano had caught a 40-yard TD bomb from Mileti in the first half.

Northport Freshman quarterback Grace Gilmartin had a much rougher day as she threw six interceptions, the last of which was returned for a touchdown at the final gun by Francesca Gatien. Gilmartin was pressured by a relentless Lady Eagle pass rush that was aided and abetted by an injury to Northport center Isabella Bica.  Northport’s replacement centers were having trouble snapping the ball back to Gilmartin with sufficient velocity, and she was forced to scramble and hurry her throws. In Northport’s two losses this year, they have committed a combined 10 turnovers.

Despite giving the six turnovers, Northport’s defense was responsible for 12 of Hauppauge’s points as Tiger defensive linemates Kenzie Bliven and Caroline Bender combined for 14 flag pulls — five of which were behind the line of scrimmage.

Hauppauge tried to roll a lucky seven in a row when they traveled to Huntington on Wednesday. Results were not available at press time. Northport will look to get back on the winning track on the road at Lindenhurst on Friday, April 21.

— Photos by Steven Zaitz 

The Northport Lady Tiger lacrosse team continues to put up football-like numbers on the scoreboard, as they steamroll over all comers thus far, two weeks into the 2023 young season.

Northport’s latest road apple were visitors from Nassau County, the Long Beach Lady Bulldogs. The final score was 17-7. The Lady Tigers have outscored their opponents 65-23 in four games this year, all easy wins, and look every bit the team that won the Long Island Championship last year, despite graduating a minibus-load of 2022 All-American and All-State caliber players.

Junior Attacker Julia Huxtable had three goals and four assists and was orchestrating the offense masterfully from behind the net, as she and her teammates circled around hapless Long Beach goalkeeper Emily Backlin like a swarm of hungry buzzards. Versatile attacker/defender Kennedy Radziul was constantly moving without the ball to find cracks in the Bulldog defense, and she scored four goals and had two assists. Radziul also shared faceoff duties with Grace McCarthy and the duo won 61% at the X. Senior Sniper Haleigh Greenberg had three goals and two assists and despite losing highly prolific players like Kaylie Mackiewicz (All-American), Ella Cabrera (All-American), Isabella Germani (All-American) and Shannon Smith (All-New York State), who combined for 204 goals last year, she is loving the chemistry of this 2023 version of the team. 

“Northport has always been lucky to find girls who can play well and score year after year,” Greenberg said. “Even with those All-Americans having graduated, we know how to play as a team, and with everyone contributing the way they are, it makes us such a strong team.”

Northport was strong in this one, right from the opening whistle as Greenberg and Huxtable combined for five big ones in the first nine minutes as the Lady Tigers took a 10-4 lead into halftime. Radziul netted the last two of those ten.

On the other end, Northport goalkeeper Meghan Morris stood tall in net, making a number of acrobatic saves to frustrate Long Beach when they were able to penetrate in deep. However, the Lady Tiger defense was stingy in granting this access as back-liners Casey Koenig, Mary Breckling, Leah Riccardi and Haleigh’s sister Emma, a freshman, kept Bulldog scoring chances to a minimum, hound-dogging Long Beach into a multitude of turnovers and subsequent ground ball recoveries for Northport.

“Our defense is strong and physical, and we’re able to get a lot of the loose balls,” Emma Greenberg said, “When a ball hits the ground, it’s really just a matter of who wants it more and a defensive unit, we pride ourselves on getting those balls.”

Northport won 69% of the ground balls on Saturday, and they have hovered around that number all year so far.

The second half of the game more of the same with Northport holding leads of eight, nine or 10 for much of the game. Radziul scored two early in the second half, and junior midfielder Christina Lauro scored on her birthday to make the score 16-6 with just over six minutes remaining in the game. Haleigh Greenberg closed out the scoring for the Lady Tigers with a minute to go, as Huxtable assisted. 

“Hux is a great player, and she has great field vision and instincts,” Haleigh said.  “She is such a good player, one of the best teammates I’ve ever had and something about her as a person, that when she scores or makes a great play, it gives the whole team a boost of energy. She just has that way about her and we love her for it.”

Huxtable is humbled by this.

“It feels amazing to know my teammates think of me in this way,” said the junior Huxtable, who has 69 career points in two-plus season as a Lady Tiger.  “I’m always working hard to be the best teammate that I can possibly be, and I’m glad that I can make a positive impact on and off the field.”