Daily Sports Digest: Oct. 26

In addition to receiving regular updates from parents, coaches and schools, the Daily Sports Digest is designed for you to add your best photo and/or video to share (instructions here). If you see anything in our scores, standings or schedules that requires updating, please email Alex Oppenheimer at alexopp87@aol.com or call 516-448-7006.

**PLAYOFF PREVIEWS WILL BE POSTED THIS WEEK FOR TEAMS THAT HAVE QUALIFIED IN THE FALL SEASON.**

Kennedy

Boys Volleyball: Kennedy will host Jericho on Thursday in its final regular season match. The Cougars have won their last four matches and currently have an 8-3 overall record in Conference IV. The match is set to start at 4:45 p.m.

Mepham

Girls Volleyball: Mepham lost in five sets to Lawrence for the second time this season. After winning the first two sets at home, 25-21, 26-24, the Lady Pirates dropped the final three sets to the Golden Tornadoes. Paige Laupheimer and Jessica Montesserato led the team in the effort in the final match of the season. Mepham finishes at 5-10 in Conference A-III.

Clarke

Boys Volleyball: Clarke will host Valley Stream North on Thursday at 4:30 p.m. The Lady Rams currently have a 7-1 record in Conference VI. The boys varsity and junior varsity teams will also participate in the “Dig Pink” exhibition match with East Meadow on Saturday at Woodland Middle School.

Girls Volleyball: Clarke will host West Hempstead on Thursday at 4:30 p.m. Clarke currently has a 7-7 record in Conference BC-I. The girls varsity and junior varsity teams will also participate in the “Dig Pink” exhibition match with East Meadow on Saturday at Woodland Middle School. 

East Meadow

Boys Volleyball: On Wednesday, East Meadow defeated Calhoun in four sets, 21-25, 25-10, 25-20 and 25-14. The Jets came back after losing the first set to the Colts, giving up just 44 total points the rest of the way. Dennis Caramante led the way with 10 kills on offense and nine blocks on defense. Chris Lutrario added 14 kills and Matt Jones controlled the offensive flow with 26 assists. East Meadow moves to 3-11 in Conference I and will play at Plainview JFK on Friday night at 7 p.m.

For the first time, the boys varsity and junior varsity teams will be participating in the efforts to raise funds for Breast Cancer Research in the “Dig Pink” exhibition. The junior varsity will play at 9 a.m. and the varsity will play at 1 p.m. at Woodland Middle School.

Girls Volleyball: East Meadow will travel to Hicksville on Thursday evening for a match at 6:15 p.m. The team is currently 6-6 in Conference AA-I on the season. The team also hosted a car wash on Oct. 22 at East Meadow High School to raise funds for the “Side Out Foundation”. The girls team will also be playing their “Dig Pink” exhibition match on Saturday, Oct. 29 against Clarke at 3 p.m. at Woodland Middle School. The girls junior varsity team will play a match at 11 a.m. on the same day. 

Hewlett

Girls Volleyball: Hewlett defeated visiting Calhoun in five dramatic sets on Wednesday, 25-23, 20-25, 22-25, 25-23 and 25-16. After falling behind by a set, the Lady Bulldogs narrowly won the fourth game with their backs against the wall and took over in the decisive fifth set. Vanessa Collins led the offense with 25 assists and Sam DiSalvo recorded a team-high 11 kills, as well as four blocks on offense. Hewlett finished the regular season in second place in Conference A-III at 12-4 and will look to continue its run in the playoffs. 

Lawrence

Girls Volleyball: Lawrence was not on its top game at in the first two sets against Mepham on Wednesday, but head coach David Mayerson got her team together and urged the girls to win the next three sets for the epic comeback. Natalie Leger had a season-high 27 kills, along with six aces. Michelle Vainblat added 16 kills and 12 digs. Lawrence finishes the regular season at 12-4 in Conference A-III and will look for a mid-range seed in the Class A playoffs.

Boys Volleyball: Garden City will play at Mepham on Thursday. The team has improved in the second half of the season, winning at least one game in each of the last nine matches. Both sides will look to end the season on a positive note as the Trojans currently stand at 1-12 in Conference V.

Middle School: The 8th grade boys soccer team from Salk M.S. defeated Grand Avenue 2-1 to improve its record to 5-1-1. Matt Haenal led the Seahawks to victory with a goal early in the second quarter. The defense, led by Joe Branciforte, Matt Imbrogno, Carter Hurley, Brian Kennedy, Vin Albano, Gian Barsallo, Dolan Jones and Brian Kennedy added another scoreless three quarters to their impressive season as goalkeepers Alex Dempsey and Giusseppe Barsallo held off a furious attack by Grand Avenue in the closing moments. Matt Gino, Dan Mehryari, Tom Epp and Alessandro Guerrero did a fantastic job controlling the midfield to propel the Seahawks to victory.

Division 

Girls Volleyball: Division was swept by Bethpage on the road on Wednesday, 25-13, 25-14 and 25-16. Kristen Aquilla, Kim Pepe and Julie Weidler led the Blue Dragons in the effort on the day. Division finishes the season at 2-13 in Conference A-II. The highlight of their season was an exciting clean sweep win against Calhoun (8-5) on Oct. 5.

Island Trees

Girls Volleyball: Island Trees will host Roosevelt on Thursday afternoon at 4:30 p.m. Despite a current three-game losing skid against the top three teams in the league, the Lady Dawgs are 8-5 in Conference BC-II. Island Trees swept Roosevelt on the road on Oct. 4.

MacArthur

The MacArthur athletic teams were off on Wednesday. Check back for updates on future games including upcoming playoff matchup previews for soccer and the girls volleyball team.

Boys Volleyball: Long Beach swept aside Great Neck South on the road on Wednesday, 25-21, 25-20 and 25-21. The win, their second in a row and fourth sweep in their last five games, moves the Marines to 10-6 overall in Conference I. Andrew Still led the offense with a season-high 39 assists, many of which went to Josh Ayzenberg, who finished with 13 kills. Long Beach will host Herricks on Friday afternoon.

Girls Volleyball: Lynbrook defeated Great Neck South on Wednesday in four sets, 25-22, 19-25, 25-13 and 25-21. Kasey Keller was dominant on both sides of the net with 10 kills and 10 blocks. Nicolette Franco also had 10 kills and added eight aces. Caitlin Christy had a team-high 18 assists and Nicole Milillo had a team-high 30 assists in the win. Lynbrook is now 15-1 on the season and will be preparing for the upcoming Class A playoffs.

Girls Volleyball: Malverne will travel to North Shore on Thursday afternoon for its final regular season match of the fall. With Malverne coming in at 11-2 overall record and North Shore boasting 12-1 record in Conference BC-II, the winner will determine the league champion. The match is scheduled to start at 4:30 p.m.

Boys Volleyball: Calhoun defeated Herricks at home on Oct. 24 in straight sets, 25-19, 25-22 and 25-19, but could not follow it up with a second consecutive win at East Meadow Wednesday. The Colts lost in four sets to the Jets, 25-21, 10-25, 20-25 and 14-25. Joseph Hernandez and Kevin King led in a solid effort all-around as the Calhoun drops to 2-11 in Conference I.

Girls Volleyball: Calhoun dropped a tough five-set match at Hewlett on Wednesday. The girls fell behind after losing the fifth set, but came back strong to win the next two. However, it was not the Lady Colts’ day as the Lady Bulldogs came out on top in the final two sets. Lauren Streznec and Jess Ruggiero led the team up front in the courageous effort. Calhoun drops to 8-6, but should have a legitimate shot at making the Class A playoffs.

Girls Volleyball: Mineola will host Carle Place on Thursday afternoon at 4:30 p.m. The Lady Mustangs, who are currently 9-4, will end up finishing in second place in Conference BC-I this season and look forward to a potential playoff run.

The South Side athletic teams were off on Wednesday. Check back for updates on future games including upcoming playoff matchups for boys and girls soccer, as well as the girls volleyball team.

Boys Volleyball: Seaford will make the short trip to Wantagh on Thursday afternoon for its final league match of the season. The Vikings and Warriors are set to start the match at 4:30 p.m.

Girls Volleyball: Seaford will look to continue its undefeated season in Conference BC-I with a home match against Floral Park on Thursday at 4:30 p.m. The Lady Vikings are currently 13-0 and have won 39 total sets this season, while losing just six. Seaford won the Conference championship on Oct. 20 with a win over Mineola.

Boys Volleyball: Wantagh will host Seaford on Thursday afternoon at 4:30 p.m. The Warriors have been playing well as of late, winning a match at Valley Stream South on Oct. 17 and dropping a five-set match at Clarke on Oct. 19.

Boys Volleyball: West Hempstead will travel to Clarke on Thursday afternoon at 4:30 p.m. The Rams are currently 5-8 this season in Conference BC-I and have won their last two matches.

Girls Volleyball: West Hempstead will host Roslyn in its regular season finale on Thursday night at 6 p.m. The Lady Rams are currently 5-6 in Conference IV and are coming off of a four-set win against visiting Jericho on Tuesday.