Daily Sports Digest: Oct. 29, Weekend Football and Playoff Results

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Kennedy 

Football: It has been a tale of two seasons for Kennedy, regrouping from an 0-3 start this season to win its next five games. The latest victory came last Saturday with a 21-6 victory over New Hyde Park. Tom Ferner and Matt Delbianco both had rushing touchdowns on 130 combined yards and Michael McCormick returned an interception, one of five turnovers forced by the defense, 49 yards in the fourth quarter to put the game out of reach. The win results in the best Cougar football season in almost 40 years. Kennedy will likely receive a No. 4-6 seed in the Conference II playoffs.

Girls Volleyball: No. 3 Kennedy swept aside No. 14 New Hyde Park in its first round matchup of the Class A playoffs, 25-9, 25-15 and 25-11. Sophomore Lauren Sustad and senior Heather Hulkower each had 10 kills in the win. Geana Bruno contributed to the offense with 30 total assists. Kennedy will meet against No. 6 Herricks at home on Tuesday in the quarterfinals.

Mepham

Football: Mepham lost to visiting Garden City this weekend by an 18-0 score. Despite the limited scoring, the Trojan defense was the key difference as they kept the Pirate offense at bay. Mepham gained just 34 total yards, 24 by running back Kevin Tauriello. Mepham figures to make the playoffs as the eighth seed at 4-4, meaning a rematch with Garden City could be in store.

Clarke

Football: Clarke defeated visiting North Shore on Saturday by a convincing 40-12 final. Michael Martiello had three passing touchdowns to go along with two rushing touchdowns on 285 total yards. Justin DiFilippi had a rushing touchdown to cap off the scoring. Joe Livermore led the defense for 5-3 Clarke with eight tackles and a sack, and Kyle Wenzel added nine tackles. The Rams are expected to receive a No. 5 or 6 seed in Conference IV.

East Meadow

Football: East Meadow finished in a three-way tie for first place in Conference I after a 45-6 win at Syosset. This one was over early, as the Jets scored 39 points in the first quarter. Robbie Healy, who has 23 total touchdowns in eight games, scored three times in the win, along with a rushing touchdown from Dylan Curry. Andrew Lynch led the defense with a 54-yard interception return for a touchdown, one of three total turnovers forced on the day.

Hewlett

Football: Hewlett was shut out by visiting Plainedge, 13-0, in the regular season finale on Saturday. The two teams battled to a scoreless tie by halftime, but a pair of two-yard touchdown runs by Ralph Caccavale in the second half was enough to win. A 24-0 win over Floral Park in the season opener may be the deciding factor to get the Bulldogs into the playoffs, as both are 4-4 on the season.

Lawrence

Football: Lawrence wrapped up a second seed in Conference III after defeating Sewanhaka on the road, 33-6, to move to 7-1. Ryan Fredericks has accounted for 11 total touchdowns in the last three games after catching and running for touchdowns, as well as returning the opening kickoff to the end zone on Saturday. He had 163 total yards on the ground, as well as an interception on defense. Quarterback Joey Capobianco threw three touchdown passes on just six total attempts, including a 10-yarder to Eddie Robinson and a 65-yarder to Tyler Fredericks. Kenny Perez and Matt Leone have been the leaders on defense since Chris Hercules was out due to injury, as the pair combined for 16 tackles, two forced fumbles and a sack. 

Football: Garden City shut Mepham out on Saturday by an 18-0 final to finish the regular season undefeated at 8-0. Scott D’Antonio shined through on the day, racking up 113 yards and two touchdowns. Mark Ellis had 36 yards on 11 carries. The defense allowed just 34 yards and a trio of first downs for the game, also creating two turnovers and a safety on special teams.

Girls Volleyball: No. 5 Garden City defeated No. 12 Great Neck South in four sets on Saturday, 25-15, 25-18, 21-25 and 25-10. Emily LaCourte had a great game with 20 kills and Jackie Jahelka helped the offense with 16 assists. Morgan Taylor led in the serving game with seven assists. The Lady Trojans will now meet with No. 4 Manhasset on Tuesday.

Middle School: Salk's eighth grade football battled cross-town rival Wisdom Lane on Saturday in abysmal weather conditions. Salk was able to hold off a late Wisdom rally and win 12-6. Carlos Correia and Jeremy Hughes were able to find the end zone to give Salk a 12-0 lead entering the final quarter. Peter D’Angelo, Pat McAllister and Noah Weisberg played terrific defense. Salk wraps up its season next Saturday at Seaford Middle School. The game kicks off at 9:30 a.m.

Division

Football: Division blew away Roslyn on the road on Saturday 43-6 to finish the regular season at 6-2. Jon Muller had his biggest day thus far with 214 yards and four touchdowns. Ryan Coleman added another rushing touchdown. Dylan Cardno threw just two passes in the rough weather, but one went for a 34-yard touchdown to Jake Smithwick. Petey Greene, who had eight tackles, led the defense, which had three forced turnovers. Division will likely receive a No. 3 seed in the Conference III playoffs.

Girls Soccer: No. 1 Division came to play in its Class A first-round meeting against No. 16 Glen Cove, winning 8-0. Ari Weingrad and Susan Ballantyne each scored twice and Krista Fitzpatrick scored once and assisted twice in the win.

Island Trees

Football: Island Trees took an early 7-0 lead on Friday night against visiting Seaford, but was shutout the rest of the way to fall 35-7. Kyle Nigro threw a touchdown pass in the first quarter for the Bulldogs. Island Trees closes out a tough season in Conference IV, finishing with a 1-7 overall record.

Boys Soccer: No. 2 Island Trees defeated No. 15 Manhasset on Friday by a 2-0 final score in the first round of the Class A playoffs. J.T. Famularo found Anthony Leonick twice for the Bulldogs’ two goals. Andrew Barbine made three saves in the big shutout. Island Trees will play No. 10 Garden City, which recently defeated No. 7 Plainedge, on Tuesday.

MacArthur

Football: MacArthur finished the regular season in a three-way tie with Freeport and East Meadow atop Conference I, all at 7-1, after a 50-6 drubbing at Port Washington on Saturday. Brett Ellers led the way with 147 yards and four touchdowns on the ground. Tyler Eppich, Brendan Smith and Ryan Scarano all adding to the scoring with a touchdown each. The defense forced three total turnovers, including an interception by Mike Rotundo.

Football: Long Beach won again last weekend, defeating Herricks at home by a 22-14 score. Dealing with dismal weather, the Marines turned to the running game led by Peter Amabile and quarterback Tom Rowley. Amabile finished with 189 yards and a score and Rowley tacked on 98 yards and a score. Long Beach trailed 14-8 at the half, but a 32-yard interception return for a touchdown by Jake Brown, who had two total, tied it at 14-14 before Amabile scored the eventual game-winner. Long Beach will likely receive a No. 5 or 6 seed in the Conference III playoffs.

Girls Volleyball: No. 7 Long Beach defeated its Class A first round opponent, No. 10 Hewlett in three sets on Saturday, 25-21, 25-21 and 25-11. Patricia Murphy led the way on offense with 10 kills and nine aces. Haley Crane added 24 assists in the win. Despite the regular season struggles for the Lady Marines, they advance to play No. 2 South Side on Tuesday.

Football: It has been a rough ending to the regular season for Lynbrook, as it suffered a second shutout in a row, this time a 35-0 route at Bethpage. Last week, the Owls lost 36-0 to Lawrence, finishing at 5-3. Matt Trotta, Matt Mott and the Owls defense struggled to stop a high-powered Golden Eagles rushing attack, which finished in first place at 8-0. Lynbrook will likely receive a No. 4 or 5 seed in the upcoming Conference III playoffs.

Girls Volleyball: No. 9 Lynbrook, a team that finished the regular season at 15-1, lost a Class A first-round match up against No. 8 Roslyn on Saturday in four sets. Nicolette Franco, Kasey Keller, Sydney Sullivan and the Lady Owls gave it their best effort, but the team could not overcome a dominant Roslyn offense, led by 49 assists from Kayla Simms. Lynbrook finishes at 15-2 overall.

Girls Volleyball: Malverne prepares for its Class C first round meeting with Carle Place on Saturday, Nov. 5. The game will be hosted at South Side High School at 4:30 p.m.

Football: Calhoun led much of the way against visiting Carey on Saturday, but a late touchdown gave the Seahawks the win over the Colts, 8-6. Quarterback Matt Brennan scored on a one-yard run in the first quarter. However, on the first play in the final quarter, Rob Zorn ran 27 yards around the Calhoun defense gave his team the lead. Julian Lee and company had a tough time on the ground as the Colts close out their season at 3-5 overall. 

Boys Soccer: The Colts boys soccer team clinched an 11th seed in the Class AA playoffs when Harry Davis scored the game's lone goal in the 30th minute of the Oct. 24 1-0 road victory over Port Washington  Unfortunately, the first round was as far as the Colts could advance, as a powerful Hempstead team rolled to a 6-2 decision on Oct. 28, despite a seven-save effort by Matt Donnelly.

Girls Volleyball: No. 11 Calhoun fell in its first-round matchup of the Class A playoffs against No. 6 Herricks in four sets. Kelly Gallo and Jess Ruggiero led the team in the effort in what was a great season for the Lady Colts, who finish at 10-7 overall.

**The Calhoun Sports Boosters recently honored the following Calhoun students as Athletes of the Month for September 2011**

FEMALE ATHLETE OF THE MONTH FOR SEPTEMBER, 2011 - MARY HIJAZI

Sweeper Mary Hijazi has been a starter on the Calhoun girls varsity soccer team since her freshman year and a captain the last two. Hijazi received the All-Class Award her sophomore year.  She is a composed and skillful player who has great control over the field. Next year, Hijazi will play Division I soccer at Manhattan College on an academic and athletic scholarship. Also a lacrosse player, Hijazi is a member of Athletes Helping Athletes and the Yorker Club for social studies.

MALE ATHLETE OF THE MONTH FOR SEPTEMBER, 2011 - MATTHEW DONNELLY

Matthew Donnelly is the goalkeeper for the Calhoun boys varsity soccer team. In September, Donnelly registered three shutouts and made more than 70 saves in various games. His outstanding goalkeeping has been a bright spot for the team all season, and Donnelly is also a leader on the field and in the classroom. Only a junior, Donnelly also played basketball as a freshman and participates in Athletes Helping Athletes. After his senior season, Donnelly hopes to continue his soccer career in college.    

Boys Soccer: No. 5 Mineola will travel to No. 4 Roslyn on Tuesday for a Class A quarterfinal game. The Mustangs previously defeated No. 12 West Hempstead by a 5-1 final on Friday.

Football: South Side was recently shut out on the road by Floral Park, 22-0, with all points scored coming in the first half. Brendan Jackson and the Cyclone running game couldn’t get much going against the tough Floral Park defense, as Saturday didn’t spell for a repeat performance of the team's 40-6 win on Oct. 22. South Side finishes the regular season at 2-6 overall.

Girls Volleyball: No. 2 South Side swept No. 15 Plainedge in the Class A first round on Saturday, 25-15, 25-17 and 25-15. Grace Healy led the way on offense with 10 kills, as well as four blocks on defense. Emma Paris helped the offense with 14 assists to allow the Lady Cyclones to move on to Tuesday's matchup with
No. 7 Long Beach.

Football: Seaford handily defeated Island Trees on the road Friday night, 35-7 to clinch a playoff berth in Conference IV. Alex Rodriguez had two touchdowns for the second week in a row, as he did so on 125 yards rushing. Joe Richards had a touchdown on 89 yards rushing and Luis Marzo also scored. In all, the Vikings had 360 yards on the ground between five players. Richards also led the defense with nine tackles for a 5-3 Seaford team.

Football: Wantagh defeated Elmont 21-8 on the road by way of a second-half comeback. Down 8-0 after halftime, Joe Giardina scored a touchdown followed by a pair of fourth-quarter touchdown runs by Brian von Bargen, who finished with 61 total yards. Wantagh, which is 7-1, should receive a No. 2 seed in the upcoming Conference II playoffs behind undefeated Garden City.

Girls Volleyball: No. 1 Wantagh remained undefeated on the season with a sweep in its Class A first-round matchup with No. 16 Great Neck North. Anna Paulik had 10 kills and 10 digs on defense. Carly Simeone, who had 30 assists, has been the essential “glue” that has held this dominant offense together all season long as the Lady Warriors prepare for No. 8 Roslyn on Tuesday.

Girls Volleyball: The No. 5 Lady Rams prepare for a first-round matchup with No. 4 Clarke on Thursday at 4:30 p.m. The winner will play at Roslyn High School against No. 1 Seaford on Saturday at 6:30 p.m.