Rohan Murphy, a wrestler who lost his legs at birth, shares his story to encourage kids at R.C. Murphy Jr. High School. Photo from Three Village Central School District
The words and story of Rohan Murphy captivated R.C. Murphy Jr. High School students and staff as the inspirational speaker visited the building in early April and encouraged all to live a life with “no excuses.”
Murphy, who lost his legs at birth, shared his story of overcoming life’s obstacles and physical challenges in order to achieve his personal standards for success.
He told the students how he pushed himself to achieve both academically and athletically, as he went on become a Division I college wrestler at Penn State University.
The event was held in conjunction with the annual town hall meeting, which serves to bring the entire school together to focus on a topic of particular importance.
At the end of his speech, Murphy joined the students’ lunch periods to speak in small groups in order to continue the conversation.
A convincing victory at Rocky Point Tuesday, 102-34, kept the Huntington boys’ track and field team undefeated at 5-0, in first place in League V.
Scott Gulizio races in a previous contest. File photo by Darin Reed
But first, the boys claimed a 93-48 win over visiting Hauppauge last Tuesday, April 28, where Huntington’s athletes turned in strong performances across the board, winning most of the contested events.
The Blue Devils throwers had the greatest day of all, sweeping both the shot put and discus. It started with junior Vernon Alexander, who, on his first attempt, tossed the shot put nearly 48 feet, but kept his eyes on the moving object too long and ended up fouling when he stepped over the toe board. He rebounded in his second attempt and threw 45’8 for third place, a personal best for the teenager.
Senior Matteo McNeil finished first in shot put after tossing the weighted ball 47 feet. Senior Jimmie Nelson took second place with a throw of 45’11. Junior Amaru Jones hit a personal best of 44’10 on his first attempt to finish fourth.
In the unseeded section of the shot put, senior Aubrey Brewster threw a personal best of 40’8 and junior Tasean Betts threw 43’9.
In the discus circle, the competition was even more exciting. Nelson and rookie Kenny Charles battled it out for top honors. Both athletes notched personal bests, with Nelson’s measuring 139’10 and Charles throwing 131’2. McNeil finished third with a throw of 118’2.
Infinite Tucker leaps over the hurdles. Photo by Jeannie Kopstein
On the track, senior Scott Gulizio won the 3,200-meter and was second in the 1,600. Junior Kyle O’Brien finished second in the 3,200. Sophomore Shane McGuire continued to display his potential. He closed ground late in the 800 to take second place.
Sophomore Kyree Johnson and junior Infinite Tucker dazzled the crowd.
“Both athletes performed at the top of their game,” Huntington head coach Ron Wilson said.
Tucker won four events, including the long jump, with a leap of 22’6.5, the 110 high hurdles in 14.6 seconds, 400 intermediate hurdles in 55.2 seconds and the high jump with personal best leap of 6’6.
Exzayvian Crowell lands on the other side. Photo by Jeannie Kopstein
Johnson won the 100 dash in a personal best time of 10.6 seconds, took first place in the 200 dash in 22.2 seconds, finished second behind Tucker in the long jump with a leap of 21’1 and anchored the 4×400 relay team to a first place victory. That relay also included McGuire as the lead leg, Tom Kopstein as the second leg and Gulizio as the third leg.
Sophomore Alaa-el-dien Elfaham captured the triple jump. The teenager soared 38’10.5 on his first jump to lock-up the victory.
Senior Sondy Jean-Baptiste also had a good day, finishing second in the high jump at 6’2, the triple jump at 38’4 and third in the long jump, with a personal best leap of 20’1.
Senior Joe Saginaw won the pole vault with a height of 11 feet. Elfaham and junior Connor Grosso took second and third, respectively, with efforts that measured 9’6. Placings were decided by the fewest misses.
Huntington has a dual meet remaining against defending League V champion Eastport-South Manor. The Blue Devils will compete in the Chrissy Games at Bellport on Saturday May 9 and in the Suffolk Freshman and Sophomore Championships at Longwood on Tuesday, May 19. The division championships are set for Wednesday, May 27 and Friday, May 29.
Centereach’s Nick Kostulas makes contact with the ball. Photo by Bill Landon
By Bill Landon
Newfield’s Brandon Alberto hurls a pitch from the mound. Photo by Bill Landon
The Newfield Wolverines hosted their crosstown rivals Centereach for district bragging rights Tuesday afternoon. The Cougars jumped out to a three-run lead, but the Wolverines battled back in a game that was decided on the final pitch of the seventh inning, where Newfield found its way out of a bases loaded scare, to hold on to a 10-7 win.
Centereach struck first when junior Victor Corsaro hit a solo home run over the left center fence. With runners on first and second, senior Joe Calabrese hit a line drive to left field to load the bases. Senior Nick Kostulas scored from third on a passed ball at the plate to help his team go up, 2-0. Centereach squandered a scoring opportunity with bases loaded when Newfield senior pitching ace Brandon Alberto worked his way out of the jam — fanning the batter at the plate to retire the side.
Newfield’s bats did the talking in the bottom of the second, when senior Joe North ripped a two-run homer to center field to close the gap, 3-2.
Newfield senior Joe Pepe followed with a base-clearing rip to deep right to break out to a 4-3 lead, and senior J.J. Lindgren smacked a deep shot to the fence for a two-RBI double and the 6-3 advantage.
“We played defense, we hit the ball well and that’s what you’re supposed to do,” North said. “But J.J.’s home run was the difference. It cleared our minds, and they got down over it.”
Centereach’s Austin Turner fires from the mound. Photo by Bill Landon
Centereach senior Austin Turner took over on the mound in an attempt to quell the scoring fest and closed out the inning.
Centereach pulled within one run in the top of the fourth when Corsaro blasted one through the infield gap to drive in senior John Boss. Kostulas struck again with a line drive down the right side to bring Corsaro home and make it a one-run game, 6-5.
“We tried to get back in it there late,” Boss said. “We never give up. We’re resilient. We never get down on ourselves, but we came up short today.”
With runners at the corners, Centereach tried a suicide squeeze as the runner on first took off to draw a throw so the runner on third could head home. Newfield didn’t fall for it though, and ran down the third base runner for the out.
Lindgren’s bat was the difference-maker again, when he smacked a deep shot over the left field fence to tally two more RBIs and a run, for a commanding 9-5 lead.
“It was our defense today that won it for us — we didn’t make many errors; we played the cleanest baseball that we’ve played all year,” Lindgren said. “And the key is we followed that with hitting.”
Again Centereach would make a pitching change when A.J. Glass took to the mound to go the rest of the way.
Newfield’s Joe Pepe makes a throw from third to get the runner at first. Photo by Bill Landon
“We struggled with command with our starting pitcher and that was an issue,” Centereach coach Mike Herrschaft said. “So you come in with three other relievers and you’re hoping that they can hold the fort down, but it just didn’t happen.”
With a runner on base, the Wolverines proved they weren’t done when senior Jared Prevete drove one deep into the gap, to score sophomore Jacob Vanessendelft, to edge ahead 10-5.
Centereach threatened in the top of the sixth inning when Corsaro’s shot to left center loaded the bases, and again it was Kostulas’ bat that answered the call as he drove one deep into no man’s land for two RBIs that trimmed the deficit, 10-7.
“We played a great game,” Corsaro said. “We made a few mistakes in the field, but other than that it was solid all around. We did hit the ball, and we pitched pretty well today.”
With a base runner on first, the Cougars defense turned a double play to end the inning.
“We definitely hit the ball better,” Newfield coach Paul Pedersen said. “We played defense, but any time you get into a blue-red matchup in a district game, it’s scary. These kids know each other. They’ve played together their whole lives and it’s a rival. It doesn’t matter what the records are, it’s a game that nobody wants to lose.”
Newfield’s Bobby Vath throws relief. Photo by Bill Landon
Newfield freshman Bobby Vath took over for Alberto on the mound the rest of the way, and with the Cougars’ last at- bat, Kostulas took to the batter’s box with the bases loaded and his team trailing by three.
With two outs, Vath battled the hitter, who protected the plate as the count grew full. Kostulas smacked a deep fly ball to center field, but Newfield tracked it down for the final out.
“We hit the ball hard, and we play them again tomorrow, Pedersen said. “We’ll try to minimize the strikeouts, put the ball in play and stay mistake-free on defense.”
Results of Wednesday’s matchup were not available by press time, but with Tuesday’s result, Newfield improves to 4-9 in League IV, while Centereach dropped to 3-10.
The Cougars begins a new series with Half Hollow Hills West at home on Monday, May 11, with the first pitch scheduled for 4 p.m. Newfield will travel to West Islip on Monday at 4 p.m. for the first game of the Wolverines’ final series of the regular season.
Miller Place's Mike Bodnar maintains possession with a longstick midfielder pressuring to try and force a turnover. Photo by Desirée Keegan
The Panthers pounced early, and despite letting their advantage slip away, the Miller Place boys’ lacrosse team came away with a 7-4 win over Westhampton Beach Monday to improve to 11-2 in League III.
“Westhampton came here and they always play us tough,” Miller Place head coach Keith Lizzi said. “They come in, they run a tough defense and they had us thinking and trying to do different things every possession, but we were able to score in spurts and pull away at the end.”
Miller Place’s Jake Buonaiuto makes his way past a swarm of Westhampton players. Photo by Desirée Keegan
The first spurt came in the opening minutes of the first quarter. Miller Place senior midfielder and co-captain Brendan Callahan stuffed the ball in, less than a minute into the game, off an assist from senior midfielder and co-captain Thomas Liantonio. Just 30 seconds later, the team did it again. This time, sophomore midfielder Kevin Gersbeck scored off an assist from junior attack Chris Nielsen.
Next, it was senior attack and co-captain Jake Buonaiuto’s turn, when he scored unassisted for an early 3-0 lead.
Miller Place’s defense drove Westhampton to take difficult shots as the Panthers surrounded their opponents and forced turnovers, but with 5:56 left in the quarter, Westhampton put its first point on the board.
Liantonio scored a goal of his own next, after Buonaiuto picked up an offensive rebound and passed it out and across the field to the senior midfielder, who whipped it in for the 4-1 advantage to end the first 12 minutes of play.
“The quick goals were definitely a good momentum booster, but we didn’t really take it and run with it,” Liantonio said. “We stalled out.”
Forced turnovers and saves by Westhampton’s goalkeeper, who made 13 during the match, kept Miller Place scoreless in the second, while the Hurricanes tacked on one goal to cut the Panthers’ lead to 4-2, heading into the halftime break.
“In the opening minutes we came out hot and then we kind of settled in,” Lizzi said. “Their defense settled in I think, too, and it was just trying to figure each other out offensively and defensively.”
Westhampton was able to get the ball rolling, and in the opening minutes of the third stanza, the team scored two quick goals to tie the game, 4-4.
Kevin Gersbeck pulls back to fire the ball across the field for Miller Place. Photo by Desirée Keegan
Miller Place won faceoffs and scooped up some ground balls, but bad passes that bounced out of bounds helped the Hurricanes regain possession.
“We got a little complacent,” Buonaiuto said. “We thought we could just score, score, score, but obviously, that didn’t happen. We just needed to relax, find and get back into our rhythm, and find our way, which we did.”
With 5:45 left in the third, Buonaiuto, from behind the cage, passed the ball to Gersbeck in front, whose shot was saved by the goalkeeper, but bounced back behind the net. Buonaiuto scooped it up and again passed it in front to Gersbeck, whose shot hit its mark this time, for a 5-4 advantage.
Miller Place made a few big saves to preserve the lead heading into the fourth, and the Panthers held the Hurricanes scoreless, while Buonaiuto and Liantonio connected for another goal. This time, Liantonio assisted after scooping up a ground ball in the Panthers’ zone and taking it all the way up the field before passing to Buonaiuto, who rocketed his shot into the back of the cage. With 2:51 left to play, Nielsen connected with Gersbeck for the final score of the game, and Gersbeck’s hat trick goal.
Junior goalkeeper Jake Bowrosen finished with seven saves, while classmate Joe Kessler made five.
“Defensively, we really had a good game I thought,” Lizzi said. “Both goalies played excellent and [senior] Christian Stalter played great at the faceoff ‘X.’”
With two regular-season matchups left before the playoffs, the Panthers will first travel to Harborfields Friday at 4:45 p.m. and follow by hosting Elwood-John Glenn on Tuesday, May 12, at 4:30 p.m. Miller Place is looking to take wins and momentum into the postseason.
“Our fundamentals weren’t there — passing and catching, we didn’t clear the ball well, didn’t catch, threw the ball out of bounds a lot and had a lot of turnovers today,” Liantonio said. “Every guy here brings something different to the team. We need to play a full game, cut down the turnovers and try to find a way to win.”
Port Jefferson’s Alden Mohacsi leaps over the high jump bar in the Royals’ 81-60 win over Stony Brook Monday, May 4. Photo by Bill Landon
By Bill Landon
Port Jefferson’s Spencer Cona leaps into the sand pit in the Royals’ 81-60 win over Stony Brook Monday, May 4. Photo by Bill Landon
Although the Port Jefferson boys’ track and field team is fielding 13 freshmen on a roster riddled with injuries, the Royals remain atop the League VII leaderboard with an 81-60 win over Stony Brook Monday.
According to head coach Rod Cawley, the team found itself filling holes in events that the athletes were not unaccustomed to, and the competitors came through for the team on their own home track to improve to 5-0 and tie with Wyandanch for first place in the standings.
Winner of the 800-meter event was Port Jefferson junior Billy Witrock with a time of 2 minutes, 12 seconds, despite the shorter hurdle events being his primary focus.
Port Jefferson junior Justin Julich won the 400-hurdle event in 64 seconds flat. He said he rarely runs the event, and the time became his new personal best. A three-year varsity runner, Julich, who the coach said is a superb athlete and touch competitor, also races in cross country, in the two mile and the 3,000 steeplechase, while also pole vaulting and running in the 400.
The Royals took the longest race of the day, as senior Parker Schoch crossed the finish line first in the 3,200, with a winning time of 12:09. Schoch said the conditions were less than ideal, but that didn’t stop him from also claiming first place in the 1,600 with a time of 5:09.
Port Jefferson’s James Concepcion receives the handoff from Parker Schoch in a relay event during the Royals’ 81-60 win over Stony Brook Monday, May 4. Photo by Bill Landon
“It was windy and it was hot — it was the first warm meet we’ve had this season,” said Schoch, a four-year varsity runner who also competes in the two-mile and high jump.
Cawley said he had to lean on some freshmen to step up and fill the holes left by injured runners, but added he was pleased with their performance.
“We’re a very young team … we had guys who filled rolls today because we have a couple of injuries, and they rose to the occasion,” he said. “We had a couple of sophomores run their personal best today, which was great because our top distance runner in the state, James Burke, is out with a hamstring injury, and our top sprinter couldn’t be here today due to a family obligation.”
Cawley added that his team did well in the relay events, which is something they don’t usually do because of how young his runners are.
Port Jefferson’s Justin Julich and Parker Schoch race around the track in the Royals’ 81-60 win over Stony Brook Monday, May 4. Photo by Bill Landon
“We won three relays, which we don’t usually do because of the ages of the group, so that was a pleasant surprise,” the head coach said.
He was also pleased with sophomore James Concepcion, who competes in the 100, 200 and 400, and 100 and 200 relays.
“He’s an excellent young athlete — rises to the occasion when asked and will be very good one day,” Cawley said.
The Royals will take on top-seeded Wyandanch on Tuesday, May 12, at 4:30 p.m., to settle the dispute for first place in League VIII.
“For right now, we’re just focused on Wyandanch,” Cawley said. “I hope we can get healthy. If not, we’ll have to realign and adjust our strategy.”
Smithtown West’s Jimmy Caddigan dives and shoots the ball past Riverhead’s goalkeeper in the Bulls’ 14-0 win over the Blue Waves on Friday, May 1st. Photo by Bill Landon
By Bill Landon
The Smithtown West boys’ lacrosse team blew the Riverhead Blue Waves out of the water in a dominating performance on its home turf Friday afternoon.
In a tune up game for the playoff-bound Bulls, the team controlled the draw, the clock and the time of possession, and shut out Riverhead, 14-0, to improve to 8-2 with two games left to play in regular season, League II play.
Smithtown West’s Jarrod Wilkom maintains possession with a Riverhead defender at his hip, in the Bulls’ 14-0 win over the Blue Waves on Friday, May 1st. Photo by Bill Landon
Smithtown hit the scoreboard quickly and often, and freshman attack Kyle Zawadzki put away a pair in just over three minutes of play. The first, was off a feed from senior midfielder Jarrod Wilkom.
The Bulls rattled off five more goals to take a 7-0 lead into the second quarter.
Smithtown sophomore attack Jimmy Caddigan got on the scoreboard first, and sophomore midfielder Danny Riley tacked on the next. Senior attack Brennan Laforge found the cage twice — on his second, the ball ricocheted off the pipe and he snagged the rebound and drove his shot home — and Riley struck again for the final goal of the quarter.
“In the second half we took over on offense, but they’re a tough team,” Riley said.
Smithtown junior midfielder Dan Caroussos fed a diving Zawadzki in front of the cage, and while airborne, Zawadzki buried his shot before touching ground, for his hat trick to put his team out front 8-0.
Zawadzki wasn’t finished, and scored his fourth goal of the game off a feed from senior midfielder Garrett Brunsvold, to lead by nine to end the half.
The Bulls opened the second half with possession thanks to junior midfielder Danny Varello’s mastery at the faceoff “X,” and from there, they slowed the tempo of the game. Smithtown’s passing remained solid and deliberate throughout the game, as the team circled the cage looking for any opportunity. Opportunity came knocking three minutes into the third quarter, and Caroussos fired a shot between the pipes to surge ahead 10-0.
“We played very well today, our defense communicated very well and Zach Lamberti, our goalie who’s been playing great all season, had some big stops,” Smithtown West senior defenseman Chris Weider said. “Dan Varello at the ‘X’ won almost all of our face-offs today, and when you do that it means time of possession.”
With the heavy lead, Smithtown went to work on running down the clock. The team’s assistant coach, Tom Rotanz, barked from the sideline: “Zero-zero, get big, get wide,” as the Bull’s offense dropped back, spread out and snapped the ball around the circle, first one way, and then the other, as time bled off the clock.
Smithtown West’s Brett Disalvo passes the ball in the Bulls’ 14-0 win over Riverhead on Friday, May 1st. Photo by Bill Landon
Riverhead’s goalkeeper, fresh off a big stop, looked to clear the ball to a defender at his right, only to have Smithtown junior attack Nick Cascone take flight and snatch the ball from the defender’s waiting stick.
Upon landing, Cascone fed the ball to Caddigan in front of the cage. Caddigan snapped one by the startled keeper and put his team up 11-0.
“One of the things we’ve focused on all year is limiting our turnover,s because when you play the better teams, they’re going to beat you on it,” Caddigan said. “When you have the ball, they don’t, and when you have a face-off guy like Varello, you control the game.”
Rounding out the final three goals for Smithtown was freshman attack Matt Miller, Laforge, for his hat trick, and junior midfielder Brett Disalvo.
Smithtown head coach Bob Moltisanti was pleased with all aspects of his team’s game, and in particular, that of his senior goalkeeper.
“Danny Varello had an excellent game at the ‘X,’ and Zach Lamberti did a nice job in the cage turning away some of their good chances,” he said. “Our defense played close and we were able to shut the door on [Riverhead] a few times. Our attack did an excellent job on the ride — turning them over — and that created scoring chances for us in transition.”
With two games remaining in the regular season, Moltisanti said his strategy is to continue to take the season one game at a time.
“I’m happy if we get better every time we’re on the practice field, and we get better every game we play,” Moltisanti. “And right now, all we’re thinking about is getting ready for Copiague.”
Smithtown West hosted Copiague Wednesday, but results were not available by press time. The Bulls will conclude the regular season with a game at West Islip on Tuesday, May 12, at 5 p.m.
Luis Antonio Fernandez leads the pack for Middle Country. Photo by Bill Landon
By Bill Landon
With twice the number of athletes, Northport’s boys’ track and field team dominated the League II meet on its home track Tuesday to win the meet 105-20.
Sam Augustin leaps over the hurdle for Northport. Photo by Bill Landon
Middle Country head coach George Royce said that most of the districts’ athletes come from Newfield, so a venue change earlier in the year adversely affected his team.
“At the very beginning of the season the athletic director moved us to Centereach, so a lot of our athletes [from Newfield] just didn’t come out for the team,” Royce said. “The Newfield kids didn’t want to take the bus over, and we lost quite a few good athletes, so we’re really short.”
Short or not, finishing fifth for Middle Country in the 3,200-meter run was sophomore Luis Antonio Fernandez, a second-year varsity runner who had never competed in the event before.
“We only had one kid in it and I already ran the 1,600 and I wasn’t feeling that good for the 800,” Fernandez said. “So I wanted to wait a little bit so I could recover.”
Northport freshman Isaih Claiborne was at the head of the pack for the 3,200, and stayed with the leader, making big kicks down the final 200-meter stretch to cross the finish line at 11 minutes, 36.3 seconds.
Crossing the finish line first in the 1,600 was a tie between Northport senior Michael Cossaro and junior Sam Napoli, who both finished in 4:59.03.
Northport head coach Bob Burkley said his team’s victory was due to the number of competitors his team fielded this day. Burkley has been coaching for years and also noted that he coached Middle Country’s head coach back in 1974.
“The team aspect is what won it for us,” Burkley said. “It was a team effort because they ran in groups, and that was the key.”
Denzel Williams competes in the long jump for Middle Country. Photo by Bill Landon
Middle Country standout Denzel Williams, a junior, is a premier sprinter and one of the fastest kids in League II, according to his coach. While he believes Chris Weiner is the best pole-vaulter in the league.
Williams, who won the 100 in 11.6, said that the running conditions weren’t the best, as he ran slower than his personal best of 11.2.
“The wind affected me — it was a long bus ride here and I didn’t get a good warm up,” said Williams, who specializes in the 100, 200 and long jump events.
With the win, Northport improved to 2-1, while Middle Country dropped to 0-3.
Despite the strong athletes Royce has, the coach said his team has a tough time filling the roster to compete against the bigger teams.
“We’re very young, with only one senior and we have talent, but we’re small and have trouble competing against these larger schools,” he said.
Middle Country will host Sachem North on Tuesday at 4 p.m., and Northport will travel to Connetquot Tuesday at 4:30 p.m.
Corey Aviles, after forcing a turnover, races across the field and fires a shot across the net for a Patriots goal. Photo by Desirée Keegan
Being down 3-1 early against championship-caliber boys’ lacrosse program in Chaminade didn’t scare the Ward Melville Patriots.
The host team bounced back to tie the game in the second quarter and eventually edged ahead, holding onto a marginal lead to pull away with a 7-5 nonleague win.
“Chaminade is a great program,” Ward Melville head coach Jay Negus said. “It was a slugfest and our boys took a big step beating a powerhouse like Chaminade and I’m very proud of them. Even though it wasn’t as pretty as I would have liked in terms of execution — we had some breakdowns — we just wanted to put four quarters together and we did that today. We got the result we were looking for.”
Danny Bucaro maintains possession of the ball. Photo by Desirée Keegan
Both teams came out on fire right off the opening faceoff, and Chaminade scored two quick goals before Ward Melville put its first point on the board to cut the deficit in half. The two teams traded possession with some passing miscues, and at the end of the first quarter the score remained 2-1.
The Flyers (now 8-2, 5-0 NSCHSAA AAA) scored again in the opening minutes of the second to edge ahead with a score of 3-1, but the Patriots (now 10-2, 6-2 League I) answered back with two quick goals. The first was a stick-side high left shot by junior midfielder Owen McAvoy to cut the lead to one. The second was a rocket from the right goal post by senior midfielder Corey Aviles after he forced a turnover in the Patriots zone, carrying it all the way down the field for the tying goal at 3-3.
“It’s great to get a big win against a school like Chaminade,” McAvoy said. “It’s the first game we really came out here and went balls to the wall — and put it to them.”
McAvoy added another goal off an offensive rebound that shocked the Chaminade goalkeeper, and Aviles tallied his second point with nine seconds left in the half to give his team a 5-3 advantage heading into halftime.
Negus addressed his team during the break and explained to his athletes that the game was all about seizing the opportunities when they were presented to them.
“You guys are taking that next step to be at that level with this team,” he said. “We got to give the defense a rest. Bury the ball and make this game out of reach.”
Still struggling to win possession at the faceoff, Chaminade capitalized early in the third to make it 5-4, but Ward Melville junior goalkeeper D.J. Kellerman came through with two big saves to preserve the one-goal advantage.
D.J. Kellerman attempts a save. Photo by Desirée Keegan
“I felt confident,” Kellerman said. “A little shaky in the beginning, but my defense really shut it down. I love them — they’re great.”
Ward Melville ripped another crossing shot to bring the advantage back to two, 6-4, and Kellerman caught another save to maintain the lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Senior midfielder Jake McCulloch rocketed a shot from nearly 20 yards early in the final stanza, and Chaminade scored once more a minute later. Kellerman made three big saves in the final minutes to keep the Flyers at bay and seal the Patriots’ 7-5 victory.
“It’s a big win for us as a program,” Kellerman said. “We had a tough loss against Northport [6-7, on April 22] but we bounced back. Coach did a great job getting us ready and we’re a hardworking team.”
What McAvoy said he thinks continues to lead the players to success is that ability to continue to fight, even when the team is down.
“We were fighting for ground balls and hustled all over the field,” he said. “We were fired up in the locker room and thought this could be a big statement make for us. We laid some bodies all over the field and really made them feel our presence.”
Aviles and McAvoy finished with two goals each, and McCulloch and senior attack Danny Bucaro tacked on a goal and an assist apiece, while Kellerman made 13 saves on the evening.
Ward Melville was scheduled to host Brentwood on Wednesday. The Patriots will travel to Patchogue-Medford on Friday, and the opening faceoff is scheduled for 4:30 p.m.
“We’ve been talking about fighting back against adversity and that shows the character of the team,” Negus said. “Today we showed that we can battle back against the best of them.”
Comsewogue's Sarah McKoy and Seaver Lipshie double-team a Deer Park player on the way to the Warriors' 17-7 win on April 27. Photo by Desirée Keegan
Comsewogue hammered out a 17-7 victory on Monday in a girls’ lacrosse matchup against Deer Park, dominating the home team and scoring seven unanswered goals in a nine-minute span alone.
Hannah Dorney, a Comsewogue midfielder, crosses into Deer Park’s zone on her way to a double hat trick and the Warriors’ 17-7 win on April 27. Photo by Desirée Keegan
With the win, the Warriors improved to 9-3 overall, with an 8-3 mark in Division II.
Comsewogue midfielder Jamie Fischer, a sophomore, won the opening draw and with the game not even two minutes old, freshman midfielder Hannah Dorney fired a shot straight up the center for the first goal. Minutes later, Dorney did it again. The score 2-1 after a Deer Park goal, the Warriors regained possession off a Deer Park save and senior attack Haley Lochren’s shot hit its mark.
Dorney bounced another shot in halfway through the first for a hat trick, then made it 5-1 with an over-the-shoulder shot into the left side of the goal before Deer Park managed to get on the scoreboard again. The Falcons scored again with 10:10 left in the half to bring it to 5-3.
Comsewogue rotated midfielders at the draw and continued to win the ball, keeping it away from the competition. Dorney scored her fifth goal of the game at 9:19, blazing the trail for the team to light up the scoreboard six more times, ending with a Fischer buzzer-beater.
Jamie Fischer, a Comsewogue midfielder, collides with a Deer Park player on the first draw of a game the Warriors’ won 17-7 on April 27. Fischer scored a hat trick in the match. Photo by Desirée Keegan
“Today we definitely did great on the draw,” Fischer said. “I think that’s so important because we definitely need to keep possession.”
Lochren opened the second half with two straight goals, the first assisted by sophomore Julia Tuohy. After a Deer Park goal brought the score to 14-4, Tuohy scored a goal of her own off a play that began with Fischer winning the draw and carrying it down the field. Fischer passed to senior midfielder Seaver Lipshie at centerfield, who lobbed the ball over to Tuohy. The sophomore stuffed it into the left side of the goal.
The teams got shots past the keepers a few more times, to give the game its final 17-7 score.
Dorney finished the game with six goals and an assist; Lochren and Fischer each added a hat trick; and Tuohy tacked on two goals and four assists. The win was a team effort, with three other players adding a goal apiece and three more finishing with an assist.
Comsewogue’s Julia Tuohy carries the ball into Deer Park’s zone on the road to the Warriors’ 17-7 win on April 27. Photo by Desirée Keegan
“We have a lot of strong players,” Fischer said. “It’s not just one player, two players; we’re a team and we all work well together and we’re all strong together.”
The sophomore said the girls are “becoming less selfish.”
Comsewogue head coach James Fernandes agreed his team has a nice balance on offense and defense in terms of skill sets, and with a handful of underclassmen on the roster, he’s hoping their help will put the Warriors in a good position to make the playoffs.
“We have a very coachable group — the girls have done a great job and we’re building every week,” he said. “The younger girls are like sparkplugs for us. They do everything; they’re all over the place and it’s awesome. We have a seventh-grader out there and the girls, they thrive off her. When she makes a play, they love it.”
The team has three games left. First, the Warriors will travel to Shoreham-Wading River Friday for a game at 4 p.m., then will finish up the season hosting Islip and Miller Place. Fernandes said the team needs to win two out of the three, and Fischer thinks her team has what it takes.
“Our record is so much better than last year,” she said of the team’s 4-10 overall record last season. “We hope we’ll get into playoffs and I think we will.”
While Dorney thinks the team started off the season a little shaky, the Warriors have outscored their opponents by an average of almost 10 goals in the last three games, and will use that momentum to propel them into the end of the league schedule.
“Now, we realize that we’re good enough to hang with the teams that are usually at the top,” Dorney said. “It’s a good win to come up with, and now we have a big game Friday that we have to get ready for, and I think that we’ll come together.”
Kings Park’s Rachel Slagle looks up the field to make a play in the Kingsmens’ 12-10 win over East Hampton/Bridgehampton/Pierson Monday. Photo by Bill Landon
By Bill Landon
At 3-6, it was a must-win game for the Kings Park girls’ lacrosse team to keep its chances of a postseason appearance alive, with four Division II games remaining before the playoffs. The Bonackers of East Hampton/Bridgehampton/Pierson led by two, but the Kingsmen turned up the heat late in the first half to surge ahead by three and held onto that margin for most of the second half, to pull out a much needed win, 12-10, Monday afternoon.
“Coming in we thought they were a little better than us, but we knew we could beat them,” Kings Park sophomore Shannon Savage said. “We took our time, we worked together and we slowed it down on offense, and we didn’t force anything in the middle.”
The Bonackers struck first, but Kings Park junior Shannon Donovan evened the score early in the half.
Kings Park’s Shannon Savage shoots the ball play in the Kingsmens’ 12-10 win over East Hampton/Bridgehampton/Pierson Monday. Photo by Bill Landon
Again trailing by one, Kings Park junior Alexa Cebulski answered the call six minutes in, to retie the game, and sophomore Jillian Winwood drove her shot home next to give the Kingsmen their first lead of the game, 3-2.
Savage scored next to double the lead, but the Bonackers responded by rattling off four unanswered goals in just over three minutes of play to jump out in front, 6-4.
Cebulski and Winwood both found the cage with 10 minutes left in the half to again tie the game.
Savage, on a penalty shot, found the back of the net to edge ahead 7-6, and from there, Kings Park never looked back.
Kings Park junior Rachel Slagle dished one off to junior Haley Mango, who split the pipes to bring the score to 8-6.
The Bonackers’ goalie looked to clear the ball from the crease after a save, but Slagle leaped in the air and snagged the pass. She drove the ball in past the startled goalkeeper to close the half ahead 9-6.
“We played better in the first half where we scored more goals,” Cebulski said. “And we played really well on both sides of the ball today.”
The Bonackers opened the second half hitting the scoreboard first to trim the deficit.
Kings Park’s Jillian Winwood passes the ball from midfield in the Kingsmens’ 12-10 win over East Hampton/Bridgehampton/Pierson Monday. Photo by Bill Landon
Winwood struck again for her hat trick goal, this time, off an assist from Savage, to get back up by three goals. The Kings Park lead grew to four when Winwood dished one up to Mango for an 11-7 advantage.
“We did well in transition and we slowed the offense down,” Winwood said. “They came out fast, but we came out stronger and we came to play today, so I’m really proud.”
A man up, the Bonackers took advantage of the extra stick and fired another shot home to draw within three goals, and two minutes later, found the net again to trail by two, 11-9.
Kings Park junior Kristin Frizol finished the scoring for the Kingsmen with four minutes to play, and the Bonackers wouldn’t go quietly, as they scored with 30 seconds left to play, but it was too little too late.
“The second half we took control of the game and held them defensively and we stayed calm,” said Kings Park head coach Sally Ayres. ”We kept winning the draw and we kept that three-goal lead through most of the second half.”
After Winwood’s hat trick, Savage, Mango and Cebulski added two goals each, and Slagle, Donovan and Frizol rounded out the scoring with one goal apiece.
With the win, Kings Park improved to 4-6 and needs to win three out of the next four games to ensure a postseason appearance.
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