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SBU Sports: Back with a vengeance! Men’s Lax storms past Sacred Heart in opener Feb. 13

by Press Release - February 17, 2021

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DylanPallonetti1 — Dylan Pallonetti paced the Seawolves with six goals in his collegiate debut. Photo from Stony Brook Athletics

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Smithtown East Bulls outlast Centereach Cougars

by Bill Landon - February 16, 2021

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

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

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

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

Northport Lady Tigers basketball team, new stars open season with huge win

by TBR Staff - February 16, 2021

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By Steven Zaitz

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Comsewogue Warriors go against Tbirds

by Bill Landon - February 15, 2021

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

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

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

Patriots pick off Central Islip

by Bill Landon - February 14, 2021

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

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

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

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

Ice the game they did.

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

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

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

Panthers go against East Hampton

by Bill Landon - February 12, 2021

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

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

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

East Hampton Bonackers unable to tame Mount Sinai Mustangs

by TBR Staff - February 11, 2021

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mount sinai basketball — Photo by Andrew Zucker

By Andrew Zucker

After over a year off due to COVID-19 —371 days to be exact — the Mount Sinai Mustangs varsity basketball team brushed the dust off their jerseys on Tuesday night, as they easily defeated the East Hampton Bonackers 66-41.

“Kids missed it, we missed it, we love being in the gym. We weren’t able to be in the gym during the offseason,” Mount Sinai head coach Ryan McNeely said postgame. “From the first day after tryouts where we were back in the gym, you could feel the energy and excitement of the kids. This was great for them.”

For the first half, the Bonackers were one step behind the Mustangs, as Mount Sinai led 27-22 at the half.

In the third quarter, the Mustangs unleashed an offensive barrage that East Hampton could not contain as the deficit grew from five to 21 points.

“In the first half, you could see we were a little rusty to start off the game,” McNeely said. “All of the sudden, we started getting things clicking at once.”

Thomas Frycek and Mitchell Cumings led Mount Sinai’s high-powered offense.

Frycek scored 25 points while hitting seven shots from beyond the three-point line, and Cumings chipped in 13.

The Bonackers were led in scoring by Topher Cullen and Luke Reese, who scored 13 points apiece.

The Mustangs have a practice scheduled Wednesday before they head to Sayville for a game on Feb. 11, while East Hampton heads home for a bout with Miller Place the same day.

Smithtown East Bulls beat Huntington in opener of shortened season

by TBR Staff - February 11, 2021

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By Steven Zaitz

It has been almost a full 12 months since Tristan Davis, and the Smithtown East boys varsity basketball team, have taken to the hardwood in a game that actually counted.

Despite the layoff, Davis showed not one bit of rust.

The 6’5” junior forward led all scorers with 16 points in the Red Bulls 49-43 victory over the Huntington High School Blue Devils on Wednesday, Feb. 10 at home. He also dominated on the glass and around the rim with 12 rebounds and 7 blocked shots.

“It feels great to be out here again,” Davis said. “It was great to start the season with a win.”

Two of his points came on a monster slam dunk in the second quarter.

“That dunk was fun,” Davis said. “I hope it’s the first of many.”

Smithtown East Coach Al Chandler was pleased with Davis’ offensive output. But he was even more impressed with how active he was in disrupting Huntington’s attack.

“Tristan has worked really hard to get where he is,” said Coach Chandler, who has been part of the Smithtown East program for close to three decades. “His timing is great when it comes to blocking shots. He took them (Huntington) out of what they wanted to do on offense, and he stayed out of foul trouble. I was really happy with how he played today.”

Senior Forward Tom Berdon chipped in 12 points, shooting 55% from the field and guards Ethan Cain and Jack Melore each sunk a pair of three pointers, both finishing with 6 points. Melore is a freshman. The Bulls opened up a double-digit lead early in the second half and held that lead until the final two minutes. The Blue Devils made a late run by forcing turnovers to cut the lead to six but got no closer.

“We need to protect the ball better there and finish,” Chandler said. “We have some work to do, but we’ll get there.”

Kevin Drake led Huntington with 14 points and was 3 for 5 from three-point range. Point guard Adrian Brooks had 13.

The Bulls go on the road to take on Copiague Friday, Feb 12, then play host to William Floyd Feb 14 and rival Smithtown West Feb 16. Unfortunately, no fans are allowed to attend games at this time.

As per the Section XI website, “Due to safety concerns outlined by the Suffolk County Department of Health and physicians on our safety committee, having no spectators at contests will give us the best chance for schools to complete their upcoming seasons,” said Tom Combs, executive director of Section XI. “The health and safety of our student-athletes, coaches and support staff are paramount in this endeavor of returning to play.”

SBU Sports: Men’s hoops edged by UMBC as Seawolves begin crucial stretch

by Press Release - February 10, 2021

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SBU Sports Mouhamadou Gueye — Mouhamadou Gueye (#2) produced a career-high scoring output last Sunday against UMBC.

The Stony Brook men’s basketball team is now in the midst of crunch time as it aims to maximize its seeding in the America East Tournament.

Unfortunately for the Seawolves, they dropped the first of four straight games against the conference’s top placeholders, falling to UMBC, 71-65, on Feb. 7 at Island Federal Arena.

Stony Brook (8-9, 6-5 AE) slipped two games in the loss column behind UMBC (12-4, 8-3) and Vermont (7-3, 7-3) for the conference’s leading positions. The top two finishers earn byes into the America East semifinals, while the third and fourth seeds will host opening-round pods in the 10-team tourney.

UMBC shot 46.7 percent from three-point range before intermission (7-for-15) and built a 16-point advantage early in the second half.

“I think the experience factor was enormous,” Stony Brook coach Geno Ford said. “They came out at the start of the game, understood the intensity level when you’re playing for first place, and we played like an inexperienced bunch of new guys, who would like to win, but aren’t necessarily playing hard enough early.”

Mouhamadou Gueye paced Stony Brook with 17 points and eight blocks — both career highs, and the latter figure one shy of matching Jameel Warney’s program record, set in 2015 against Princeton. The scoring total supplanted a 16-point performance against Binghamton on Jan. 22, 2020 for his career high. Gueye now has 120 career blocks, matching Greg Angrum (1980-84) for fifth on the program’s all-time list.

Juan Felix Rodriguez (17 points) and Tykei Greene (11) also scored in double-figures.

A pair of free throws from Gueye and a driving layup from Rodriguez pulled the Seawolves within 49-45 and prompted a timeout from UMBC with 12 minutes remaining in the game.

When play resumed, Jordan McKenzie produced a steal and Greene converted a driving layup at the other end to continue Stony Brook’s 16-2 run.

LJ Owens stopped UMBC’s hemorrhaging with a three-point play and the Retrievers managed to hold off Stony Brook the rest of the way.

“I’ll give our guys a lot of credit,” Ford said. “In the first half, I thought we played on our heels. And at halftime we really challenged them hard about their effort and energy level. And in the second half I thought we were fantastic. We played well enough to win for 20 minutes, but they played well enough to win for 40.”

The Seawolves played without leading perimeter threat Frankie Policelli.

Policelli, who is averaging 11.3 points per game and a team-leading .348 shooting percentage from three-point range, had aggravated a nagging hip issue late in in last Sunday’s 63-49 win against Hartford.

Still, Ford noted the Seawolves shot 13-for-34 inside the paint on Sunday.

“That is, to me, what sputtered the offense,” Ford said. “They pack the paint so hard that they force you to shoot threes. We have two or three guys out there that they’re just blatantly not guarding. They’re just standing in the lane, off of them.”

Stony Brook and UMBC met again on Feb. 8 but the Seawolves fell again 60-48. The team heads to Vermont next weekend for a critical two-game showdown against the second-place Catamounts.

Photo courtesy of Stony Brook Athletics

Port Jeff opens season with a blowout

by Bill Landon - February 10, 2021

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By Bill Landon

The Lady Royals of Port Jefferson opened their 2021 season with their core starting lineup intact from last year’s Long Island Championship run with seniors Hailey Hearney, Brooke Zamek and Evelyn Walker — but that’s not the whole story. Returning sophomore Lola Idir, who was injured last year, made her presence known along with teammate Abigail Rolfe, a junior, to make short work of visiting Shelter Island sinking the Islanders 77-20 in League VIII action Feb. 9.

The Royals led by 25 points after 8 minutes, 34 points by the half as coaches Jesse Rosen and Keith Buehler spelled their starters and flushed their bench the rest of the way.

The Royals are back in action when they hit the road against Greenport/Southold Feb. 11 with a 6:15 p.m. start and again on Feb. 15 at Babylon for a non-league match up at 1:15 p.m.

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