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Shoreham-Wading River midfielder Melissa Manzello knocks in her penalty stroke in the Wildcats' 2-0 blanking of Port Jefferson on Sept. 28. Photo by Desirée Keegan

A penalty stroke was all the Shoreham-Wading River field hockey team needed to top Port Jefferson Monday.

The Royals came out with more gas, but they were running on fumes by the middle of the first half and couldn’t stop the Wildcats, who ultimately won the game, 2-0.

Although at first the Wildcats had difficult controlling the ball on the lumpy grass field at Port Jefferson, their luck changed with six minutes left in the first.

While Shoreham made a shot at the cage, Port Jefferson freshman goalkeeper Catrina Alvarez fell on the ball, giving junior midfielder Melissa Manzello a penalty stroke.

Manzello wound up and shot straight past Alvarez, who made nine saves on the day, for the 1-0 lead.

“I think today we came together as a team and really worked hard to the end,” the midfielder said. “We worked on our passing and it feels really good to take what we’ve learned in practice to the field.”

Port Jefferson's Phalina Sciara and Shoreham-Wading River's Taylor Flanagan race for the ball. Photo by Desirée Keegan
Port Jefferson’s Phalina Sciara and Shoreham-Wading River’s Taylor Flanagan race for the ball. Photo by Desirée Keegan

Manzello said it helps that the Wildcats have a strong defense to back up the team. Led by co-captain Gabrielle Campo, the defense sent the ball back into Royals territory over and over, leading to fewer shots on goal for Port Jefferson. The Wildcats’ keeper, Megan Daly, only had to make three saves to seal the shutout.

“There is definitely a better team atmosphere and it’s grown since the beginning of the season,” Shoreham-Wading River new head coach Allie Franklin said. “It takes a while to figure out how slow or fast a field is and they figured out that the little passes were working, and that definitely advanced the ball up the field better for us than the big hits today.”

After taking a 1-0 lead into the halftime break, the Wildcats raced out onto the field in the second hungry for more. They dominated the time of possession, rattling off several shots on goal until, with 3:17 left to play, forward Brianna Fischetti received a pass from midfielder Taylor Flanagan and sent the ball crashing into the back of the cage for added insurance.

“We’re still really young, so I’m very proud of how they played today,” Port Jefferson head coach Deb Brown said. “We’ve been having a hard time communicating and I think they came out on fire today — we just got a little too tired in the second half. We need to build up the endurance going forward.”

To Port Jefferson senior midfielder Michelle Bourguignon, the team has already improved since last season and she hopes the Royals can still make a playoff push despite their 1-5 Division III record.

“We’re really good at working together to bring the ball up the field,” she said. “We just need to work on finishing.”

Port Jefferson defender Andreya Harvey fights for possession amid a swarm of players. Photo by Desirée Keegan
Port Jefferson defender Andreya Harvey fights for possession amid a swarm of players. Photo by Desirée Keegan

Shoreham-Wading River senior forward and co-captain Nina Mostaccio likes that her team was able to find the open space on the field and communicate to move the ball toward the goal.

“I think as the game progressed we got more hungry in the circle,” she said, referring to the area around the net. “We wanted more goals, and the speed increased as we moved up the field as the game progressed. When you work as a team and are successful, that’s the greatest feeling.”

The Wildcats, 4-2 in Division III after the win, will travel to Miller Place on Wednesday, while the Royals will travel to Babylon. Port Jefferson will host Sayville on Friday at 4:30 p.m., while Shoreham-Wading River will host Southampton that day at 4 p.m.

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Jimmy Puckey and Kevin Cutinella carry Tom Cutinella’s jersey onto the Stony Brook University field for the Long Island Championship game. File photo by Bill Landon

By Clayton Collier

Following a 2014 season that began in tragedy and ended with the program’s first Long Island Championship, the Shoreham-Wading River football program returns to the field well-prepared to contend for another title.

The Wildcats persevered to complete a perfect 12-0 season while coping with the loss of teammate Tom Cutinella, who died following a collision during a game at John Glenn High School on Oct. 1.

“It is an incredible story, but one I’d never want to live through again,” Shoreham-Wading River head coach Matt Millheiser said. “In the end, we lost Tom, and although the season ended miraculously and kind of storybook, it’s something we wish we didn’t have to go through.”

Millheiser said it was difficult for everyone following the loss of Cutinella, but from a coaching perspective, it was particularly hard to handle.

A sign with Tom Cutinella’s jersey number sits above the press box above the soon-to-be old Wildcats athletic field. File photo by Bill Landon
A sign with Tom Cutinella’s jersey number sits above the press box above the soon-to-be old Wildcats athletic field. File photo by Bill Landon

“It’s not something that you can even find anybody to ask advice on how to handle that as a coach or as a person or a friend,” he said. “So we kind of did our best to be there for each other and get through it.”

To keep his memory alive, Shoreham-Wading River will name its new multipurpose athletic field after Cutinella. While construction takes place, the Wildcats will play home games at Rocky Point High School. Millheiser said he wants future Shoreham-Wading River athletes to know who Cutinella was.

“He lived his life in a certain way that we want our players and our team to live up to that and remember that always,” he said. “And naming the field after him is a constant reminder of how we want to do things and how we want to act. His name and his legacy will carry on.”

The Wildcats picked up right where they left off last year in their season opener Friday night in Riverhead against McGann-Mercy, besting the Monarchs in a 35-0 rout. Cutinella’s brother, Kevin, scored a touchdown in the first quarter.

“They play with a lot of enthusiasm and our kids matched that and were able to make some big plays early then stay in the lead,” Millheiser said. “It was a good game between two good teams, and fortunately we made a few more plays than they did.”

Millheiser said his team’s hard play was a positive but would like to see some improvement on blocking.

The game was also the first test for new quarterback Jason Curran, who replaces All-County quarterback Danny Hughes. Though Hughes was a special player, according to Millheiser, he has the utmost confidence in Curran’s abilities.

“I think he has the ability to do the things that Danny did, but he’s gaining experience,” he said. “He’s still going to have to learn the football side of it. You don’t just walk into a huddle and have the kids follow you. You got to kind of earn that from them. There’s no doubt in my mind that he will, but it’s going to take a little bit of time.”

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Ryan Bray dives and shoots for Shoreham. Photo from Rob Bray

By Clayton Collier

Having the opportunity to participate in college athletics is a rare opportunity all its own. Having your pick of some of your sport’s best collegiate programs in the country? That’s a chance few athletes ever get.

Shoreham-Wading River’s Ryan Bray, who will attend Cornell University this fall, had such an opportunity, with nearly half of the lacrosse programs on this season’s Warrior Division I Men’s Lacrosse Top 20 Poll giving him looks.

“I’m really excited to start at such a prestigious school that has a great lacrosse program,” Bray said. “I chose Cornell because it’s a beautiful area and had everything I wanted in a college, and more.”

Shoreham's Ryan Bray races around a Mount Sinai defender in a previous contest. Photo from Rob Bray
Shoreham’s Ryan Bray races around a Mount Sinai defender in a previous contest. Photo from Rob Bray

His father, Rob, said his family is proud of his son’s accomplishment.

“As a parent, you never expect this from your kid,” he said. “But when it happens, it’s so surreal. It’s remarkable. He got himself into [Cornell] through his work ethic.”

The U.S. Lacrosse and Under Armour All-American attack saw interest from schools such as Georgetown University, Johns Hopkins University, the University of Maryland, Duke University, the University of Notre Dame and Yale University, among others.

Bray had initially verbally committed to Ohio State University as a sophomore, but once his SAT scores reached Ivy League standards, Bray reneged on the Buckeyes’ offer a year later in favor of the Big Red. Bray’s father said the situation was a “growing experience” for his son.

“It was a very stressful time for Ryan,” he said. “But it’s kind of a no-brainer when you go from an Ohio State to an Ivy League school, and he handled it as maturely as possible.”

Cornell head coach Matt Kerwick said his program goes through the recruiting process somewhat slower in comparison to other schools, as he tends to research athletes more in-depth to see who is right for his team.

Although Kerwick said Bray will have a great opportunity to get playing time early, nothing is guaranteed. The two-time All-County selectee will have to earn his minutes; nonetheless, Kerwick said he is pleased to have Bray aboard.

Ryan Bray will be trading in his Shoreham-Wading River Wildcats uniform when he heads to Cornell University this fall. Photo from Rob Bray
Ryan Bray will be trading in his Shoreham-Wading River Wildcats uniform when he heads to Cornell University this fall. Photo from Rob Bray

“We thought he was a heck of a player,” he said. “We liked the way he played, he fit with the way we do things here at Cornell in terms of his intensity level and the way he looks at the game.”

Bray credits much of his development to former Shoreham-Wading River lacrosse coach Tom Rotanz, who he said helped him immensely as an athlete. Rotanz, who Rob Bray described as a phenomenal coach, was at the helm during the 2012 Suffolk County Rookie of the Year’s freshman and sophomore seasons, bringing Bray up to varsity as a ninth grader.

“He just held me to extremely high expectations, which helped me develop,” Bray said. “He stressed teamwork a lot.”

Bray also said his current coach, Mike Taylor, was helpful in understanding different offenses, which he believes will benefit him at the NCAA level.

Bray’s final high school game was a 12-11 overtime loss to Sayville in the Suffolk County B semifinals. Although an upsetting way to end it, Bray said he can look back and appreciate his career as a Wildcat, as he moves on to the next stage of his career.

“It was a little depressing, coming to realization that an era had come to an end,” he said. “But it also made me realize how close-knit I was with the kids I’ve played lacrosse with for so long.”

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Courtney Clasen reaches for the rim. File photo by Bill Landon

By Clayton Collier

Going through the process of choosing a college for a high school senior is tough enough, but for one student-athlete, factoring in both academics and athletics made the decision all the more difficult.

For Shoreham-Wading River’s Courtney Clasen, who committed to play basketball at Coastal Carolina University in South Carolina, the first decision to be made was whether to remain on the court or the soccer pitch.

“It wasn’t an easy decision at all,” said Clasen, who also ran track. “I’m passionate about both sports. However, I saw a future in basketball. It was hard answering coaches when I didn’t know what sport I wanted to pursue.”

Clasen’s father, Craig, said his daughter’s decision was somewhat unexpected as they had long believed she would play soccer in college.

“It was a little surprising because she had been involved with club soccer since like sixth grade,” he said. “But I’m proud of her, she’s an incredible student, she’s an incredible athlete and she worked her tail off.”

Courtney Clasen said the decision between the two sports she loved weighed on her, only becoming more difficult throughout her junior year as her passion for basketball became stronger.

Courtney Clasen races downcourt with the ball. File photo by Bill Landon
Courtney Clasen races downcourt with the ball. File photo by Bill Landon

“I was an emotional basket case and I was extremely overwhelmed,” she said. “I remember breaking down in class several times my junior year because there wasn’t enough time for it all and I couldn’t make a decision.”

Opting to play Athletic Amateur Union basketball last summer, she began receiving interest from Coastal Carolina after seeing her play in a tournament in Washington, D.C.

“She’s a flat out athlete that does great things on both ends of the ball,” said Jaida Williams, the head women’s basketball coach at Coastal Carolina. “I believe her competitive edge is what made Courtney stand out above anyone else.”

Clasen said it was her official visit that convinced her to become a Chanticleer.

She enjoyed the warm weather and said it felt like home to her. Clasen recalled that she was immediately struck by the fact that the university’s mascot coincidentally wore the number 54, the same as her late-classmate Tom Cutinella, who died from a head injury in October following an on-field collision during a football game.

“I kind of stopped right in my tracks and got the chills really bad,” said Clasen of the mascot’s number, which represents 1954, the year of Costal Carolina’s founding. “No one really understood why besides my parents until my parents explained it.”

Clasen, who described herself as friendly with Cutinella, said seeing the number 54 really hit home.

“He was one of those kids that everyone was friends with,” she said.

Clasen verbally committed to Coastal Carolina in January and signed her National Letter of Intent in April. The plan for the forward is to redshirt her academic freshman year.

“It gives me a chance to get stronger and develop my game further,” she said. “It’s actually the option I prefer since I chose to play basketball over soccer in college so late.”

Williams said redshirting a year will give Clasen the opportunity to focus solely on basketball.

“During her entire career she’s been a dual-sport athlete,” Williams said. “I am excited to see the progress that Courtney will make when her focus is primarily on basketball.”

Shoreham-Wading River’s girls’ basketball head coach Adam Lievre said he is pleased to see his star athlete move on to the next phase of her life, though Clasen filled a number of roles on his squad that now need to be filled.

“She did it all,” he said. “We relied on her to be our main scorer, passer, rebounder and to block shots. We have very big shoes to fill going forward.”

As much as he enjoyed coaching the Academic All-County athlete, Lievre said it is the Clasen off the court that he will remember most fondly.

“As a person,” he said. “She is someone I would want my kids to turn out to be like.”

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Shoreham-Wading River’s Isabella Meli pulls back to fire a shot at the cage in the Wildcats’ 12-4 loss at Sayville Friday. Photo by Desirée Keegan

The Shoreham-Wading River girls’ lacrosse team couldn’t keep up with the Golden Flashes on Friday. Despite lighting up the scoreboard early, the Wildcats fell to Sayville, 12-4.

“I don’t really think they played with a lot of heart today,” Shoreham-Wading River head coach Rachel Feirstein said of her team. “They didn’t play the game that I know they can play.”

Sayville scored first but a minute later, Jesse Arline passed the ball to Sophia Triandafils, who tied the game. It didn’t last for long though — by the time another minute had passed, Sayville had edged ahead, 3-1.

Shoreham-Wading River’s Jesse Arline pulls the ball out and away from the crease to try to get an open look at the net in the Wildcats’ 12-4 loss at Sayville Friday. Photo by Desirée Keegan
Shoreham-Wading River’s Jesse Arline pulls the ball out and away from the crease to try to get an open look at the net in the Wildcats’ 12-4 loss at Sayville Friday. Photo by Desirée Keegan

Shortly afterward, following a foul call, Shoreham eighth-grader Isabella Meli, a midfielder and attack, fired a shot straight up the middle from 10 yards out to pull her team within one.

“I think today wasn’t one of our best games but I think we did good on draw controls,” she said. “I think we need to have a more positive attitude while we’re playing — and less turnovers.”

Sayville then scored four straight goals, but it would have been more without Shoreham senior goalkeeper and captain Lauren Daly, who made three big saves to minimize the damage.

The half ended with the Wildcats down 7-2.

“I think we had some moments of greatness, but I think there were times where we could have won a few more 50/50 balls and taken some better shots,” Daly said. “Sayville is a great team. They have some really good players and some really good ball movement, so I think defensively we communicated well with each other.”

At the start of the second half, Shoreham patiently maintained possession of the ball for more than five straight minutes and finally found the back of the net, to bring the score to 7-3.

After another Daly save, Sayville hammered one in net and forced Shoreham to call a timeout. Daly came out of the huddle to make another save, but Sayville squeezed another ball past her to jump out to a 9-3 lead.

“I walk into every game with the same attitude, and every single game I just try to play my best,” Daly said.

After winning the draw, Shoreham-Wading River’s Samantha Higgins maintains possession of the ball as she makes her way into Sayville’s zone with a defender on her hip, in the Wildcats’ 12-4 loss at Sayville Friday. Photo by Desirée Keegan
After winning the draw, Shoreham-Wading River’s Samantha Higgins maintains possession of the ball as she makes her way into Sayville’s zone with a defender on her hip, in the Wildcats’ 12-4 loss at Sayville Friday. Photo by Desirée Keegan

Sayville’s defense continued to pressure, forcing Shoreham outside the crease. Even there, the Wildcats couldn’t find the open looks.

Sayville scored another time before Shoreham scored its final goal of the game.

Samantha Higgins, who won possession off of several draws for the Wildcats, swiped the ball out of the air, took it all the way down the field and passed to Meli in front of the net, who whipped it in for the score.

Daly made her final of nine saves on the day, and Sayville scored twice more to end the game at 12-4.

Feirstein does not believe the game and its result are indicative of the way her team can play.

“I think the negative outweighed the bright spots, but there were some — we had an eighth-grader who scored two goals,” she said of Meli. “I have a lot of confidence in my team; they just need to show it. They need to work together as a team, and they practice it all week long — they just need to put it together in a 50-minute game.”

Daly said to end the regular season strong, the team will need to work on winning more ground balls and capitalizing on turnovers, which the girls hope to do Monday, when they travel to Miller Place at 4 p.m.

“We have some really great players and we’re a young team, but I think we’re a confident team,” she said. ”I think when we play confident and when we play our best, we’re a threat.”

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Mount Sinai’s Dan Keenan maintains possession and changes direction in the Mustangs’ 6-5 win over Shoreham-Wading River Tuesday. Photo by Desirée Keegan

The Mount Sinai boys’ lacrosse team is hoping its proficient experience will pave the way for the Mustangs to race off to a successful season.

With a team full of seniors, Mount Sinai head coach Harold Drumm said his players are comfortable and playing more relaxed this year.

“By doing that, I think they’re starting to get a sense of the ability that the overall team has and I think if we continue to work hard and play physical with the lacrosse ability we have, I think we’ll do really well,” Drumm said.

Mount Sinai’s R.J. Voos tries to control the loose ball as a Shoreham-Wading River defender goes to block him in the Mustangs’ 6-5 win over the Wildcats Tuesday. Photo by Desirée Keegan
Mount Sinai’s R.J. Voos tries to control the loose ball as a Shoreham-Wading River defender goes to block him in the Mustangs’ 6-5 win over the Wildcats Tuesday. Photo by Desirée Keegan

Mount Sinai started off the season with a 6-5 loss to Comsewogue and bounced back with a 12-7 win over Bayport-Blue Point before falling to Miller Place, 11-3, prior to entering Tuesday morning’s game against Shoreham-Wading River.

Although the Mustangs raced ahead to an early lead, the Wildcats battled back to close within one goal twice, but ultimately couldn’t level the score as Mount Sinai walked off the field with a 6-5 victory.

“This is a great win for our program,” Drumm said. “We beat Shoreham one time in the last 11 years I think, so it’s a great win for us.”

After Mount Sinai shot off three goals in the first quarter, Shoreham-Wading River junior Jason Curran put the Wildcats on the board with 2:48 left to play in the second quarter, to bring the score to 3-1.

Coming out of the halftime break, Shoreham-Wading River went into the huddle shouting “Takeover on 3. 1… 2… 3… Takeover!” And the team tried to do just that.

With 10:32 remaining in the third, Shoreham senior Ryan Bray found the back of the net to make it a one-goal game.

Three minutes later, Mount Sinai senior Dan Bullis saw a Shoreham-Wading River defender slide away from the crease and snuck in front of the net, and lobbed the ball in past the goalkeeper for a 4-2 advantage.

Bullis followed up his goal with two assists as he first passed the ball to senior Dan Keenan on the left side of the cage who whipped it in, and then dished the ball to junior R.J. Voos with 9:50 left to play for a 6-2 advantage.

“We played pretty good, it was a quality game,” said Mount Sinai senior goalkeeper Charlie Faughnan, who made seven big saves. “I just wanted to stop the ball. I don’t really think about it and just make the saves. I felt good [between the pipes] and the defense played [well].”

Shoreham-Wading River sophomore Chris Gray scored the next two goals to pull his team within two points, and Bray added his second goal of the morning with 52.6 seconds left to play to make it a one-goal game for the second time.

Mount Sinai’s Dan Bullis, who scored a goal and added three assists, makes his way around the cage while Shoreham-Wading River’s Bobby Puckey waits prepared to make a save. The Mustangs topped the Wildcats Tuesday, 6-5. Photo by Desirée Keegan
Mount Sinai’s Dan Bullis, who scored a goal and added three assists, makes his way around the cage while Shoreham-Wading River’s Bobby Puckey waits prepared to make a save. The Mustangs topped the Wildcats Tuesday, 6-5. Photo by Desirée Keegan

“We turned the ball over to them four or five times in the last 10 minutes very unnecessarily, and against teams like Shoreham, it could have very easily come back and the next thing you know we lose the game by a goal,” Drumm said. “So we have to learn from all of those mental mistakes.”

Junior Shane Walker’s multiple wins in a row at faceoff kept the team in the game.

“The beginning of the game was a little rough,” Walker said. “I was a little slow, but toward the end of the game I had some big wins that helped get us the ‘W.’ I think our offense is shooting well. A few of the shots were over the pipes so I think we need to show lower a couple times, but overall it was a good game.”

Bray and Gray finished with two goals and an assist each for Shoreham-Wading River, while Curran finished with a goal and an assist. Senior goalkeeper Bobby Puckey made nine saves in the game.

For the Wildcats, Bullis scored a game-high four points off one goal and three assists, Keenan added a hat trick, senior Zack Rudolf tacked on a goal and senior Tony DiMonti rounded out the scoring with an assist, as Mount Sinai improved to 2-2 in League III. The Mustangs handed the Wildcats their first loss of the season, as Shoreham-Wading River dropped to 2-1.

“I want to look at the season game by game, and just try to play comfortable and play hard,” Drumm said. “We want to keep going and keep winning.”

This version corrects Shane Walker’s grade level and the spelling of Tony DiMonti’s name.

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