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Record

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By Bill Landon

Ward Melville’s girls tennis team’s unbeaten, 14-0, regular season record is unmatched by any of the 52 varsity squads in Suffolk County. Add to that four playoff victories, the last one leading to a Suffolk County championship title, and the Patriots are in rarefied air.

Head coach Erick Sussin said the remarkable winning streak is a once-in-a-lifetime achievement.

“No other team in Suffolk County has gone undefeated, in all leagues — all the others have at least one loss,” he said. “Now every team plays different schedules and sometimes you’re comparing apples and oranges, but we did have a tough schedule and not to drop a match.”

The Patriots tasted defeat for the first time when they fell to Port Washington, 5-2, in a rain delayed Long Island championship finale at Half Hollow Hills West Nov. 1.

Ward Melville junior Denise Lai had her hands full at first singles, but ultimately prevailed against seventh-grader Thea Rabman 6-3, 4-6, 6-3. Section XI had a surprise in store for the three-year varsity player after the match. Lai, who was been name All-State the last two seasons, learned she had captured the sportsmanship award for the season, as voted by Suffolk County coaches.

“There’s no doubt about, its humbling,” Lai said, overwhelmed. “I’m just happy I’m acknowledged for how nice I am.”

Sussin was quick to point out what his junior standout has meant to the team.

“Denise is not just our captain, she’s the team leader at the highest position,” the coach said. “She’s been top notch all year and she plays well under pressure. She represents our team at first singles.”

Ward Melville junior Anna Ma, a three-year varsity player who usually competes in first doubles, found herself competing in fourth singles and won her match 7-5, 6-3.

Sussin said his strategy for the match was to get to four wins as soon as possible. To try to do this, he continued to move some of his star doubles players to singles spots, like Keren Collins, who ultimately won the county championship for her team.

The senior, who usually pairs with Ma, competed in third singles throughout the postseason.

“We know that in our [matchups] we can get four points in other ways,” Sussin said. “They prefer doubles, and in doubles their hands get better, their volleys get better, and you can use that in singles play.”

Collins said she had confidence in her team throughout the playoffs no matter where her teammates were slotted.

“It didn’t matter who we were playing, everyone in every position had the ability to get it done —we all did our part we just kept pushing through,” Collins said. “We had confidence going out there each time, knowing we could do it. And every time we won, we’d have a quick 10-second celebration and move on to the next match. We set our goals and we conquered them.”

Julia Hu attributed her team’s remarkable season and its rise to Long Island level to the depth of Ward Melville’s roster.

“Reaching this game says so much about how deeply talented our team is from our first singles to our third doubles,” Hu said. “Our girls are so disciplined with their training throughout the year, and with their effort and support of the entire team — we all contributed to that 18-0 record.”

Mikey Brannigan proudly displays the United States Flag as he races down the London track during the 2017 World Para Athletes Championships. File photo

By Desirée Keegan

Mikey Brannigan didn’t roam the halls of Northport High School, he ran down them. He’d dash through the doors as others raced behind him, saying “catch me if you can.”

“Stop that kid,” Brannigan said they would shout, laughing.

Mikey Brannigan received a proclamation from New York State Assemblyman Chad Lupinacci. Photo from Assemblyman Lupinacci’s office

Brannigan battled his way to a successful high school career, and beyond after graduating in 2015. The runner is continuing to exceed expectations — being the only Paralympic athlete in history to hold simultaneous records in the 1,500-, one-mile, 3,000- and 5,000-meter events. He brought home two gold medals — in the 1,500 and 800 — and silver in the 5,000 at the London 2017 World Para Athletics Championships at the end of last month.

“Make no mistake about it Mikey wants to be the best,” his New York Athletic Club coach of two years, Sonja Robinson said. “His drive — it shines out. You see it. He loves running.”

Brannigan was diagnosed with autism at 3 years old, and began running at 8. Fast-forward 11 years, when as a 19-year-old he became the first individual with autism to win a gold medal in the 1,500. He also became the first athlete with a T-20 Paralympic classification to shatter the 4-minute mile threshold in August 2016 with a 3 minute, 57 second finish at the Sir Walter Miler meet in Raleigh, North Carolina. A month later, he competed in the Special Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, where he took home the gold after a dominating 3:51 in the 1,5000.

Mikey Brannigan, at center, is surrounded by politicians and coaches as he shows off his new proclamations and gold and silver medals. Photo from Assemblyman Lupinacci’s office

Now at 20, he’s training to compete in the 2020 Paralympics in Tokyo.

“I’m taking it little by little and want to show everyone that if you take even little steps you can achieve your dreams,” Brannigan said. “Look at all you can achieve. Work hard and you can achieve your dreams. You can achieve anything.”

Brannigan was honored by local government officials at Northport High School Aug. 9, receiving accolades for his accomplishments, while the members also dubbed Aug. 9 Mikey Brannigan Day in New York.

“He’s truly our hometown hero,” state assemblyman Chad Lupinacci (R-Huntington Station) said. “Mikey’s story is nothing short of amazing. What he has accomplished at his age is unheard of. His achievements are a true testament of his hard work, dedication, perseverance, sweat and tears.”

State Sen. John Flanagan (R-East Northport), whose kids graduated from and played sports in Northport, said he was in awe, and pointed to the back of the room — the local kids that were in attendance at the press conference — as the “cool” part of the event.

“He’s truly our hometown hero. Mikey’s story is nothing short of amazing. What he has accomplished at his age is unheard of.”

—Chad Lupinacci

“What we do when we go to Albany is we brag,” he said, putting his hands on Brannigan’s shoulders. “We tell everyone how cool our districts are, we tell everyone about the Northport school district, and we’re very proud of where we live and where we represent. There’s nothing, in my opinion, nothing better than dealing with young adults, no matter what they may be doing, because they’re the future.”

Brannigan grinned as he was invited to Albany in January to be recognized by the entire state legislature. State Sen. Carl Marcellino (R-Syosset) also presented him with a proclamation.

“We’re going to bring you up to Albany, but the bad news is, you have to run there and it’s 200 miles,” Flanagan joked.

“That’s a long, cold trip,” Brannigan responded, waiving his arms no.

Flanagan said he was humbled and proud to be in Brannigan’s presence.

“These are the stories people should know about and want to hear about,” he said. “I went from a stage where I used to run, then I jogged and now I walk. On my best day, I couldn’t even come close to the accomplishments of this young man, who really is a role model.”

State Assemblyman Andrew Raia (R-East Northport) agreed the barriers Brannigan has broken are unbelievable feats.

Mikey Brannigan smiles as he shakes New York State Assemblyman Andrew Raia’s hand during a press conference at Northport High School. Photo from Facebook

“Every day you turn on the television and something bad is happening,” he said. “I want to turn on the television to see this young man. It’s a big responsibility to carry, but in just the few moments I’ve had to talk with him, I know he’s up to the challenge.”

Raia proceeded to tell Brannigan he was going to embarrass him, to which he responded: “Do it.”

The assemblyman pointed out the runner’s red, white and blue Sperry top-siders, and said he needed to find out where he got them.

“He’s such a proud American,” Raia said, to which Brannigan smiled and shook his hand. “We wish nothing but the best. Keep running, my friend.”

Lupinacci shared a similar sentiment during the conference that was broadcasted on Facebook live and viewed by nearly 3,000 people.

“Your family and friends and all of us here today are proud of you,” he said as he gave Brannigan a hug. “Younger generations will follow in your footsteps. You’re not only our hometown hero, you’re an inspiration to all New Yorkers and all Americans. You’re an inspiration to people around the world.”

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Five Panthers take home league titles, win school's first team title

Eric Schreck controls his opponent. Photo by Ray Nelson

Suffolk County rivals may have written off Miller Place wrestling after the Panthers graduated several key competitors last season, but the boys came back to make a statement: they’re only getting better.

After going 21-2 this season, the team won the League VI dual meet title for the second straight season, with a 7-0 record, and took it a step further this season — winning the League VI team championship for the first time in school history.

“We did a lot of work in the offseason,” Miller Place head coach Matt Kaszubski said. “We went a full year, 12 months, 52 weeks of wrestling. I don’t think a lot of people expected us to be as good as we are, but we knew we were. We knew we were going to be competitive this year, but the kids exceeded our expectations.”

Joe Bartolotto following a win. Photo by Ray Nelson

The Panthers, who also served as the host team, were in third place heading into the quarterfinals of the League VI championship, but in the semifinals, the grapplers caught fire. Ten Panthers went through to the finals, with eight getting bonus points and five claiming the top spot. Miller Place, at 241. 5 points, pulled ahead of Islip (230.5) and Elwood-John Glenn (205).

“Our biggest thing was wrestling for each other,” the head coach said. “We preach hard work and the kids really bought in, they committed on the mat, they committed in the weight room, running on their own, we went to camps, and it all came together this season.”

Redemption was on the minds of James Alamia and Joe Bartolotto III, who each placed second in last season’s championship.

“I definitely didn’t want to go out second,” Bartolotto said. “I wanted to end on a good note and get the title my senior year.”

“Good” may be an understatement for the tournament’s Most Outstanding Wrestler, who pinned his quarterfinal and semifinal opponents.

“They were pretty quick,” he said. “I just wanted to get those out of the way and focus on the big one — the finals.”

The 160-pounder said he knew it was going to be a good matchup because he’d wrestled his challenger in the dual meet season. He said he prepared for the matchup all week, and it paid off. He won by a 5-1 decision.

Kaszubski said he always knows he can count on his senior standout and team leader in pins.

“He’s one of the best athletes we’ve ever had — he’s a total package kind of kid,” he said of his player, who’s headed to Cornell University to play lacrosse. “His commitment to wrestling has been second to none.”

At 120 pounds, Alamia won all three of his matches by pins. He had a different experience last season. He said he was disappointed in his finals loss after he’d outscored his opponent earlier that season.

“Ever since last year ended we said, ‘starting now, next season starts,’ and we just never stopped working.”

—James Alamia

“The motivation and the will to win helped me,” he said of his finals match, where he was up by 12 points before getting the pin. “Not that the pins were easy, but most of the kids I’d wrestled before and I did a lot better this time around. Ever since last year ended we said, ‘starting now, next season starts,’ and we just never stopped working.”

At 138 pounds, Eric Schreck also had a pin, taking down his first opponent in 1 minute, 40 seconds before a 15-0 technical fall and 11-3 major decision in the finals.

“I had a good day,” he said. “There were tough kids, but I do whatever it takes to win.

I take ‘em down quick in the first and stay on top, try to turn as much as I can.”

The head coach said the handful of disappointments last season fueled the fire for his grapplers to come back strong.

“It was a blessing in disguise having them fall a little short last year,” he said. “They were hungrier than ever, and we have a lot of prolific pinners. We preach putting guys on their back and getting pins and getting bonus points. That’s something that we work on ever day.”

Kyle Klein Jr. also took home a title at 99 pounds, as did James Rado at 126 pounds.

Bartolotto and his teammates agreed that although placing first was the icing on the cake, winning the team title was what mattered most.

“Winning the Most Outstanding Wrestler title felt good as recognition for working hard, but winning the team championship felt better because this was the last team thing we can do this season,” he said. “We’ve been doing things that people didn’t think we’d be able to do.”

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Billy Witrock competes in the 400-meter intermediate hurdles during the Eddy Games. Photo from Andrew Witrock
Billy Witrock holds up his first-place trophy. Photo from Andrew Witrock
Billy Witrock holds up his first-place trophy. Photo from Andrew Witrock

Port Jefferson senior Billy Witrock came home from the Eddy Games track and field competition in Schenectady a star.

During the meet, the athlete not only took first place in the 400-meter intermediate hurdles, but also set a new Port Jefferson record in the event, with his time of 55.27 seconds.

“I am really happy about it,” said Witrock, who runs on the cross country, winter and spring track teams.

The previous school record of 55.49 seconds was held by Danny Gross and set in 2014.

“He really did an excellent job in a difficult race,” head coach Rod Cawley said.

Aside from being a student-athlete, Witrock also serves as class president. He will be attending Tufts University.

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Dana Husband leaps over the high-jump bar. Photo from SBU

Junior Dana Husband broke a 27-year-old outdoor program record in the women’s high jump as the Stony Brook track and field teams swept the Wolfie Invitational Saturday.

Husband cleared 5-8/1.73 meters to surpass the mark of 5-8/1.68 set by Sara Lechner in 1989. Her jump also achieved the ECAC standard in the event. Husband broke the indoor record earlier in 2016 at 5-8/1.70.

Sophomore Kaylyn Gordon also recorded an ECAC standard, as she won the women’s triple jump at 39-10.5/12.15. Gordon also finished second in the long jump with a mark of 17-11.0/5.46.

The Seawolves took the women’s team title with 226 points, 86 points ahead of second-place Quinnipiac University. The men’s squad finished first with 199 points, 62 clear of second-place Sacred Heart University.

“We asked everyone to come with a competitive attitude to this meet, and for the most part that is what we got,” Stony Brook head coach Andy Ronan said. “Overall, on a decent weather day, we got a lot done individually and team wise.”

Senior Kate Pouder won the women’s 1,500 in 4 minutes, 34.97 seconds, and sophomore Jane Clark captured the women’s 800 in 2:13.69.

“Dana’s and Kaylyn’s performances were backed up by good runs from Kate Pouder and Jane Clark,” Ronan said.

Senior Gabe Vazquez won the men’s 1,500 in 4:00.12, and sophomore Michael Watts took the men’s 3,000 in 8:38.97.

The quartet of Gordon and freshmen Sarah Militano, Chinque Thompson and Nikki Fogarty won the women’s 4×100 relay in 47.36 seconds.

Thompson (25.15) and freshman Nailah Jones  (25.19) grabbed the top two spots in the women’s 200.

Seniors Raven Dorsey  (18:01.99) and Tara Peck (18:11.87) took the top two spots in the women’s 5,000.

The Seawolves took the top five spots in the women’s 100, led by Thompson (12.04), Fogarty (12.31),  Gordon (12.33) and freshman McKyla Brooks (12.33). Brooks (18-10.0/5.74), Gordon (17-11.0/5.46) and Jones (17-10.25/5.44) took the top three spots in the women’s long jump.

Senior Mitchell Kun and sophomore Dan Galford finished first and second in the men’s 5,000, respectively. Kun won the event in 15:05.84, with Galford behind at 15:19.58. Freshman Wayne Williams won the  400 in 49.25. Sophomore Darian Sorouri took the 3,000 steeplechase in 9:52.96.

The Seawolves captured the top three spots in the men’s triple jump, with freshman Izzy Matthew at 43-3.0/13.18, freshman Bradley Pierre at 42-11.75/13.10 and freshman Brendon Alerte at 41-11.50/12.79.

Freshman Yanik Martin won the men’s long jump with a leap of 21-11.75/6.70, while Pierre took third with 21-1.50/6.44.

The Seawolves are Philadelphia through Saturday for the Penn Relays at the University of Pennsylvania.

Miller Place's Kristin Roberto and Comsewogue's Brooke Cespites fight for possession in a semifinal game. Photo by Desirée Keegan

Comsewogue field hockey has come far this season.

After making it to the playoffs with a 9-5 overall record, the No. 4-ranked Comsewogue Warriors made it past the first round of playoffs for the first time in school history, topping No. 5 Bayport-Blue Point, 1-0.

Unfortunately for the girls, their undefeated semifinal opponent, No. 1-seeded Miller Place, wanted to stay that way, and eliminated the team from the postseason with a 4-0 shutout Monday.

Comsewogue's Brooke Cespites and Miller Place's Arianna Esposito fight for possession in a semifinal match. Photo by Desirée Keegan
Comsewogue’s Brooke Cespites and Miller Place’s Arianna Esposito fight for possession in a semifinal match. Photo by Desirée Keegan

“It’s awesome to make history — I’m really proud of our team,” Comsewogue junior defender Megan Turner said through tears. “It’s awesome. I really love these girls.”

Both teams stormed the field, playing with intensity and pressing for possession.

“I think they came out really, really strong,” Comsewogue head coach Katy Dornicik said. “We didn’t have a lot of scoring opportunities, but I feel like in the middle of the field we were evenly matched, we just didn’t come out strong at the end.”

With 26:42 left to play in the first half, Miller Place senior forward Danielle Powers broke the ice when she scored off a corner with an assist from junior Arianna Esposito.

“A lot of their passes were connecting, they were looking up, which was great,” Miller Place head coach Alana LaMorte said. “That’s what we want to do, and their corners were phenomenal today.”

Comsewogue came through with some big blocks off more corners to stay in the game, but after the Panthers called for a timeout, the team kicked it into high gear, leading to another goal off a corner, this time by senior forward Alyssa Parrella, off an assist from sophomore Crystal Esposito.

Miller Place's Emily Contrelli catches a loose ball in a semifinal game against Comsewogue. Photo by Desirée Keegan
Miller Place’s Emily Contrelli catches a loose ball in a semifinal game against Comsewogue. Photo by Desirée Keegan

Coming out of the halftime break with a 2-0 lead, Miller Place cheered and shouted to build up the intensity as the team took the field. That strategy worked — the last two goals for Miller Place were again scored off of corners. With 13:59 left to play, Parrella found the right corner of the box from the far left side, off an assist from junior Julia Burns, and rounding out the scoring with less than five minutes left to play was Powers, off an assist from the younger Esposito.

“It feels great, but we’re looking forward to the next one,” LaMorte said of the win. “I think they both came out really intense. I do think that Comsewogue really put up a very big fight. It was not easy for us even though the score differential says otherwise. I think both teams came out tight, we just were able to put it in.”

Miller Place moves on to face Rocky Point in the Class B finals on Thursday at Dowling College at 4 p.m., while Dornicik is forced to say goodbye to some of the girls she’s coached since they were in seventh and eighth grade.

“It’s rewarding to see how far they’ve come now that I’m the varsity coach,” she said. “I’m very proud of them.”

Turner said her Warriors team had a lot of confidence coming into the game and believed it could overthrow its No. 1-seeded opponent. She said the team, the coaches and the fans have been nothing but supportive throughout this season’s journey.

“We were all there for each other, we really tried our hardest and this is definitely one of the best teams I’ve ever been on,” she said. “I think it’s a very big self-esteem booster considering how far we made it.”