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Smithtown East Bulls trample Centereach Cougars

by Bill Landon - March 31, 2023

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The Cougars of Centereach softball took on the Bulls of Smithtown East in their season opener at home on a cold and windy afternoon under brilliant sunshine Thursday, March 30.

Smithtown East took the lead in the top of the second inning, but the Cougars mounted a rally in the bottom of the third, looking to stay within striking distance. It would be the Bulls’ bats that did the talking the rest of the way, putting together a scoring frenzy that Centereach was unable to counter winning the game, 27-8, in the League IV contest.

Smithtown East senior pitcher Gabby Amicizia was credited with the win.

Centereach will look for their first win of this early season with a road game against crosstown rival Newfield April 5. Game time is 11 a.m.

The Bulls are back in action with a non-league road game against William Floyd April 1 at 10 a.m. before resuming league play at home April 3 against Bellport. First pitch is scheduled at 4:30 p.m.

Old Field resident scores big during college basketball career

by TBR Staff - March 31, 2023

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Alex-Sobel_Middlebury-College-Athletics2 — Old Field’s Alex Sobel in action playing basketball for Middlebury College. Photo from Middlebury College Athletics

By Thomas Cullen

Old Field’s Alex Sobel has made quite a name for himself on the basketball court.

Old Field’s Alex Sobel in action playing basketball for Middlebury College. Photo from Middlebury College Athletics

Playing for the Division III Middlebury College Panthers of Vermont in the New England Small College Athletic Conference, Sobel became the first player in conference history to be selected as both NESCAC Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year in the same season.

Sobel also was named D3hoops.com’s Men’s All-America Teams, Player of the Year for 2022-23.

The 6-foot-8-inch, 230-pound forward credits his success to all of the people he has played for throughout his career.

“The coaches on Long Island put a lot of time and effort into teaching the fundamentals of basketball,” Sobel said. “Chris Agostino my CYO/AAU coach, Alex Piccirillo, my high school coach at Ward Melville and Krissy Foley, my summer league coach on Long Island, were all involved in making me the player I am.”

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Sobel took a year and a half off of school between 2020 and 2021. That didn’t seem to slow him down at all. When he returned to the court as a junior, he was rewarded with a starting role. This led to more minutes which resulted in a higher scoring average. His list of accomplishments are as impressive as they are long. He dominated both ends of the floor with a fantastic scoring touch and superb defensive ability.

This season, Sobel eclipsed the 1,000-point mark in a January victory over Bowdoin, 80-60. He ended his Panthers career with 1,227 points, placing him 11th in the school’s record book. He averaged 19.4 points per game and netted 20 or more points in 11 games this season. In addition, the forward rang up double-figure point totals in all 26 games this year and 36 straight going back to last season.

For his career, Sobel had 39 double-doubles, placing him ninth among active Division III players. He posted 17 of those this season, placing him 12th nationally. On the defensive side of the ledger, he blocked 101 shots, which was good for second place in Division III this season. His nod for the All-NESCAC First-Team honorees was the second year in a row he was selected.

“Alex Sobel was a special player for us to coach,” said Panthers head coach Jeff Brown. “His skill set allowed us to use him in so many different ways. His ability to affect the game on both offense and defense energized our team throughout the season. He provided so much excitement with his play in games and practices.”

“His skill set allowed us to use him in so many different ways. His ability to affect the game on both offense and defense energized our team throughout the season.”

—Jeff Brown

When Sobel was asked about the proudest moment of his career so far, he said it was the game against Keene State on Jan. 16.

“They were ranked number four in the country, and we beat them [86-82],” he said. In that game Sobel tallied a double-double with a career-best 31 points and 16 rebounds. He also dished out six assists and he blocked five shots.

Unfortunately, his Middlebury career ended on a down note when the Panthers were ousted from the NCAA Division III Tournament by Nichols College, 73-66, in a second-round game in early March. Even in that loss, Sobel led both teams in scoring (29 points) and rebounds (15).

With a computer science and American studies double major, Sobel is unsure of what he wants to do for a career when he finishes school. However, he does have his basketball future mapped out. Currently he is working through his last year of basketball eligibility due to the year and a half he lost because of COVID. He would like his next stop to be with a Division I school, with either Stony Brook, Sacred Heart or Fairfield as potential landing sites.

“Next season I would like to be with a winning team and compete for a championship,” Sobel said. “After that I would consider playing professionally overseas in either Israel or France.”

Ward Melville Patriots prevail

by Bill Landon - March 30, 2023

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Ward Melville jumped out to a 4-1 lead to begin the second quarter in the Patriots home opener against Half Hollow Hills, but the Thunderbirds clawed their way back to tie the game at six all in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter.

Both teams traded goals to make it 7-7 two minutes later when the Patriots found the back of the net at the 5:30 mark to retake the lead. With two minutes left in regulation, senior midfielder AJ Folkman scored the insurance goal, his second of the game, to put the Patriots out front 9-7. Ward Melville lacrosse was able to stave off a Hills late-game surge for the victory.

Seniors Nik Barbero and Andrew Belli both had two goals and one assist, Brody Morgan and AJ Folkman had two goals each, and Trevor Murray scored the opening goal to break the ice.

At 1-1 in the early going, Ward Melville retakes the field with a home game Friday, March 31 at 4:15 p.m. against Sachem East and host Garden City the following day in a non-league matchup Saturday, April 1 at 1 p.m.

Hauppauge Eagles flag football ready to fly

by Steven Zaitz - March 30, 2023

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The Hauppauge Lady Eagles Flag Football opened their regular season on Wednesday, March 29, but not before they had a rainy scrimmage against Sachem North on Monday, March 27.

Hauppauge is led by Steve Mileti, who is the boys head football coach for the storied West Islip Lions. They dominated this scrimmage, scoring numerous touchdowns and enjoying long gains, all the while not allowing the Flaming Arrows much of anything on this cold, damp afternoon.

Hauppauge running back Meredith Terracciano had a long touchdown gallop, and wide receiver Sarah Dukofsky caught a bomb from quarterback Taylor Mileti, the coach’s daughter, for another score. Sachem never managed to reach the end zone.

Hauppauge’s season started officially Wednesday evening on the road vs. Harborfields. The result was unavailable at press time.

First League Win for Tiger lax team

by Steven Zaitz - March 30, 2023

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The Long Island Champion Northport Tiger boys lacrosse program notched its first league win,
outlasting Bay Shore, 13-11, on March 28.

Junior Timothy McLam had four goals and an assist, and sophomore Jack Deliberti added three goals. Both are attackers. Senior long pole Andrew Miller controlled both ends of the field admirably, and he had two goals and assist and his teammate on the football team, senior midfielder Macklin O’Brien,was omnipresent
with two goals and three assists.

Goalkeeper Michael Tittman, who is the younger brother of 2021 Tiger goalkeeper and Long Island
champion Andrew Tittman, recorded six saves and was active in orchestrating his men around the cage, as
his brother was. He made several key saves early on, as the Tigers raced out to 7-2 lead by halftime.

But the Marauders hung tough, scoring four goals in a five-minute span in the third quarter and in doing so,
slicing the Tiger lead to 10-7.

But O’Brien scored off a nifty pass from Miller with less than a minute to go in the third to restore a four
goal lead for Northport.

Bay Shore Attacker Peter Urso would score two goals in the fourth quarter, but it was not enough, as
Northport held on to win by two. Tiger face-off specialist Dylan Baumgarth won 14 out of 22 at the ‘X’,
as he has big shoes to fill in that area with the graduation of two-time Long Island Finals M.V.P. Tyler
Kuprianchick. A 64%-win rate is a great place to start for Baumgarth.

Northport is now 2-0 overall and takes on Sachem North on the road on Friday, March 31. Bay Shore is 1-2 and will face Lindenhurst also on Friday.

SBU Sports: Nine Seawolves tally goals for women’s lacrosse en route to victory at Elon

by Press Release - March 30, 2023

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SBU Sports women's lacrosse — Photo from Stony Brook Athletics

The Stony Brook women’s lacrosse team (6-2, 2-0 CAA) featured nine different goal scorers en route to the dominant 17-5 victory over Elon (4-7, 0-2 CAA) on March 25.

Junior midfielder Ellie Masera paced the Seawolves’ offense with six goals. Senior attackers Kailyn Hart and Morgan Mitchell followed behind Masera recoding a hattrick and a pair of goals, respectively.

Stony Brook wasted no time attacking the cage as graduate attacker Jolie Creo struck first for the squad within the first minute of the contest. One minute later, Masera found the back of the net twice for back-to-back goals off assists from Hart and Mitchell which gave the Seawolves an early 3-0 lead.

The first quarter belonged to the team from Long Island as the squad saw four more goals from senior midfielder Charlotte Verhulst (1), Hart (2) and Mitchell (1) to increase their lead to 7-0 heading into the quarter break.

Just like the first, the second quarter was dominated by the hot-scoring Seawolves offense. Masera recorded her third goal on the day for her seventh hattrick of the season off an assist from Creo with 13:43 left to play in the second quarter. Stony Brook held a 12-0 lead, its largest lead of the day, until Elon’s Anna Hackett found the back of the net for the Phoenix’s first goal of the game.

The Seawolves went on to add four more goals in the second half to ultimately runway with the 17-5 win and secure their second conference win.

“The team stepped up and played inspired. It’s always good to get up early and we were very happy with the way our entire roster played. It started with the draw, that was the difference today,” said head coach Joe Spallina.

The team returns home to Kenneth P. LaValle stadium to host the Drexel Dragons on April 2 at 1 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on FloLive.

SBU Sports: Men’s lacrosse takes down Monmouth Hawks to move to 2-0 in CAA play

by Press Release - March 30, 2023

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Men’s Lacrosse Monmouth vs. Stony Brook 3-25-2023 — Photo from Stony Brook Athletics

After falling behind 5-0 in the first quarter, the Stony Brook men’s lacrosse team went on to outscore Monmouth, 15-7, en route to its third win in a row to improve to 2-0 in CAA play in West Long Branch, N.J. on March 25. The Seawolves were paced by senior attackman Dylan Pallonetti who recorded seven points (six goals, one assist) and his 100th career goal in the victory.

Pallonetti ended Monmouth’s early 5-0 run when he scored back-to-back goals for the Seawolves over the final three minutes of the first quarter to make it 5-2 in favor of the Hawks after the first 15 minutes of play. From there, the Seawolves and Hawks played a back-and-forth second quarter, which saw Stony Brook outscore Monmouth, 6-3, in the frame and the teams were knotted up at 8-8 at the break.

Leading the attack in the first half was Pallonetti and senior attackman Blake Behlen. Pallonetti finished the first half with a hat trick and an assist, while Behlen got on the board twice with a pair of goals.

Stony Brook’s offense continued to click in the second half with Pallonetti at the helm of the attack. The senior scored another three goals over the final 30 minutes as he finished the game with his second six-goal performance of the season.

With the game tied up at 11-11 with 10:31 to play in the fourth quarter, Pallonetti rattled the cage for the fourth time in the game and it was the 100th goal of his career. The crucial goal put Stony Brook up 12-11 and it never looked back as it went on to outscore Monmouth, 4-1, down the stretch as it held on to win, 15-12.

Defensively, the Seawolves stifled the Hawks as they held them to just four goals on 16 shots in the second half. Sophomore goalie Jamison MacLachlan and senior defenseman Michael Sabella anchored a strong effort on the defensive end for the Seawolves.

MacLachlan made nine saves in the cage, six of which came in the second half. Sabella made big plays for the Seawolves time and time again as he was blanketed all over Monmouth’s top scorer Cade Stratton who scored just two goals in the game and none of which came while Sabella was guarding him man-to-man.

The three-game winning streak is the longest of the season for the Seawolves as they improved to 2-0 in conference play. It is the first time since 2018 that Stony Brook has started conference play 2-0.

“I am proud of the team for sticking to the plan and not panicking after going down 5-0 to start the game. The bench was electric and helped us bring the juice as we chipped away at the lead,” said head coach Anthony Gilardi.

“I thought Dylan was fantastic again and I am so pumped for him on getting his 100th career goal in a big moment when we needed it. Every game in this league is a battle and we look forward to getting back to work on Monday as we prep for our first CAA home game against Towson,” he added.

The team returns to LaValle Stadium on April 1 to take on Towson in its first-ever home CAA game.

SBU Sports: Seawolves softball sweeps Drexel to earn first-ever CAA victories

by Press Release - March 29, 2023

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ajm230311sb_elon_sb0356 — Photo from Stony Brook Athletics

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – The Stony Brook softball team (10-14, 2-6 CAA) swept the Drexel Dragons (5-15, 2-3 CAA) on March 26 to secure its first CAA wins in program history. The Seawolves shutout the Dragons 4-0 in game one and the squad’s hot hitting powered them to a 9-4 victory in game two.

The Seawolves were led by an outstanding performance from senior pitcher Ashton Melaas who tossed a complete game shutout. The 7.0 inning shutout marked the second outing this season and third in her career that the senior has tossed a complete game shutout.

Stony Brook’s offense was paced by freshman infielder Naiah Ackerman and junior infielder Ashley Jacobson. Ackerman smashed her first career home run to give the squad a 3-0 lead in the top of the fourth. Jacobson went 3-3 at the plate with a solo home run which gave the Seawolves a 4-0 lead in the top of the sixth.

The bats were on fire for the Seawolves in game two. The squad’s hot hitting propelled them to a 9-4 victory over Drexel. Sophomore outfielder Alyssa Costello led the offensive attack with a two RBI double and a three RBI home run, totaling five RBI on the day.

Junior utility Catherine Anne Kupinski got Stony Brook on the board first with a solo homer in the top of the second. Ackerman followed behind Kupinski and added to her standout performance with a RBI single to give the Seawolves an early 2-0 lead. Costello brough in five more runs and Sanzone plated Jacobson to help the squad run away with the 9-4 win.
GAME 1: STONY BROOK – 4, DREXEL – 0

Melaas went the distance to toss a complete game shutout, marking her second of the season and third in her career. The senior recorded five punchouts and only allowed five hits.
Ackerman went 2-3 at the plate and got the Seawolves on the board first with a three-run home run in the top of the fourth. The home run marked the freshman’s first career homer.
Jacobson hit a perfect 3-3 at the dish including a solo home run to give Stony Brook a 4-0 lead at the top of the sixth inning. The outing marked the junior’s second perfect appearance at the plate this season (3-3 vs. Loyola Chicago on Feb. 12) and fifth in her career.
Junior outfielder Julianna Sanzone registered a hit and a run scored in the contest.

GAME 2: STONY BROOK – 9, DREXEL – 4

Costello went 2-4 and led the offensive attack with a two RBI double and a three RBI home run, totaling five RBI on the day. The sophomore also added a run scored.
Kupinski also went 2-4 at the plate with two RBI and three runs scored, including a solo homer in the second inning to get Stony Brook on the board first. The solo home run marked the junior’s fourth homer of the season.
Ackerman followed behind Kupinski and added to her standout performance with a RBI single to give the Seawolves an early 2-0 lead in the second.
Sanzone tallied her second RBI on the day with a SAC fly in the fifth to bring home Jacobson and give Stony Brook a 6-0 lead.
Junior outfielder Alicia Orosco went 2-4 at the dish with a run scored while senior catcher Corinne Badger went 1-4 and also added a run scored.
Jacobson added a hit and two runs scored in the second contest.

“We came out today with a great mindset and approach, and wanted to be strong in all three facets of our game. Ashton and Mia were tough in the circle, we had offensive contributions from so many hitters and for most of the afternoon played outstanding defense, coming up with big plays. We competed at a high level and came away with two important conference wins,” said head coach Megan T. Bryant.

NEXT UP
The Seawolves return home to University Field to host Seton Hall for a mid-week matchup on Wednesday, March 29. First pitch is set for 3 p.m.

Mount Sinai Mustangs outpace Comsewogue Warriors, 8-6

by Bill Landon - March 29, 2023

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Mount Sinai senior attack Taylor Cline broke the ice for the Mustangs when her shot on goal split the pipes two minutes in, followed up with a goal from teammate Alexa Spallina at the 16-minute mark. Then Cline stretched the net again, putting the Mustangs out front 3-0.

Comsewogue answered back, however, as senior midfielder Gabby Constant scored twice in three minutes, followed by freshman attack Gianna McNulty’s shot on goal assisted by Jackie Riviezzo, tying the game at 3-3 with just under eight minutes left in the half.

Spallina scored again, capped with a pair of goals by senior Lea Flobeck to lead it 6-3. The Warriors fought their way back to make it a one-score game when McNulty’s shot once again found its mark with just under seven minutes left in this Div. II matchup on Monday, March 27.

Spallina would score the insurance goal, firing at the cage while falling to seal the deal for the Mustangs, who won 8-6. Mount Sinai goalie Sara Flobeck had six saves in net.

Both teams are back in action this Friday, March 31, when the Mustangs host Bayport-Blue Point at 4:30 p.m. and the Warriors host Shoreham-Wading River at 5 p.m.

— Photos by Bill Landon

Northport Tigers get ready for opener

by Steven Zaitz - March 28, 2023

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The Northport Tigers baseball team scrimmaged against the Walt Whitman Wildcats on Friday, March 24, at the John DeMartini Baseball Complex at Northport High School.

The game was unscored as the Tigers continued to tune up their pitchers as they steam toward Opening Day for league play, which will be at home against West Islip on April 3.

Aiden Bisson, a senior and the ace of the staff in 2022, pitched three innings and gave up four runs but they were unearned. Senior pitchers Jayden Paranandi and Tyler Mulligan also got work in and were effective.

Senior outfielder Stephen Blazevich smacked a three-run homer over the left-center field fence in the fourth inning, when the Tiger scored four runs.

The Tigers played to a 0-0 tie in their final tune-up against St. John’s the Baptist High School in West Islip on Tuesday. Max Donecea and Bisson held the Cougars scoreless. The Tiger starting pitcher for the opener is yet to be determined.

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