Winter Sports: The Y’s Pool Is Full
Winter Sports: The Y’s Pool Is Full

Last Thursday, with its mix of rain and snow, seemed a good time to talk with the East Hampton School District’s athletic director, Joe Vas, about winter sports.
To begin with, bowling, after an absence of four or so years, is back, thanks in large part, Vas said, to Scott Rubenstein, who is letting the team practice at the Clubhouse at East Hampton Indoor Tennis. Mike Vitulli is coaching the coed team, along with Anthony Roza.
Because the string pinsetting system the Clubhouse uses has yet to be officially sanctioned nationwide, the team’s home matches will be played at the All Star bowling lanes in Riverhead.
Vitulli, who’s overseeing a squad of about 15 boys and girls, said of Scott and Holly Rubenstein, “They’ve been fantastic . . . great.”
“Scott is amazing,” Vas said, “and not only for what he’s done for us, by letting our tennis teams, and now our bowling team, practice at his club, but he’s a true Bonacker who really loves this place. . . . We’re thrilled that bowling is back. It’s one of those lifetime activities, like tennis and golf, that we’re happy to promote.”
Speaking of golf, the A.D. said that Turner Foster, East Hampton’s number-one player, who won the county championship as a sophomore and was the runner-up last year and this, was to sign on Tuesday a letter of intent to attend Loyola University in Maryland. The golf team shared the league championship this fall.
That feat was noted, Vas said, at a fall athletic awards ceremony on Nov. 13, as were the facts that the girls swimming and girls volleyball teams had gone through league seasons undefeated.
The following won M.V.P., most improved, and coach’s awards that night: Ryan Fowkes, Luke Tyrell, and Avery Martinsen, boys cross-country; Ava
Engstrom, Bella Tarbet, and Sydney Salamy, girls cross-country; Catherine Wicker, Tia Weiss, and Rorey Murphy, field hockey; Turner Foster, Trevor Stachecki, and Nate Wright, golf.
Kurt Matthews, Matthew McGovern, and Anthony Quito Huanga, boys soccer; Lucy Short, Lillian Minskoff, and Valeria Marin Suarez, girls soccer; Sophia Swanson, Oona Foulser, and Emma Wiltshire, girls swimming; Rebecca Kuperschmid, Kaylee Mendelman, and Annelise Mendelman, girls tennis; Logan Gurney, Luc Campbell, and Henry Garneau, boys volleyball, and Elle Johnson, Erin Decker, and Ella Gurney, girls volleyball.
Dan White will be in his third year as the varsity boys basketball coach, and, as was the case year, he’s being assisted by Marcus Edwards. Joe McKee and Howard Wood, an S.E.C. “Legend” who played at the University of Tennessee before turning pro, are again coaching the junior varsity.
Krista Brooks, who coached the girls basketball team some years ago, has returned as that team’s coach, replacing Kelly McKee. Nicole Fierro is her assistant.
“Thirty-two are trying out,” Vas said when asked how the girls team’s numbers were. He had heard, he added, that there were some good young players in the pipeline.
Kaelyn Ward, inarguably one of the best female players ever to come out of East Hampton, is coaching now at St. John the Baptist.
The boys finished at 8-8 in league play and 10-10 over all last winter, and made the playoffs, losing 92-89 in triple overtime to John Glenn in a Class A outbracket game, a game in which Jack Reese, East Hampton’s senior point guard, who’s now playing at Baruch, scored a team-leading 24 points.
That team, which had on it a half-dozen juniors and sophomores, was “one step away from being a legitimate playoff contender,” White said following the riveting outbracket loss, adding that he expected Malachi Miller, Max Proctor, Turner Foster, Jeremy Vizcaino, and Bladimir Rodriguez Garces all to return for the 2018-19 season.
As for boys swimming, Craig Brierley, the coach, told Vas on the first day of practice (Nov. 13) that “the pool is full.”
“I think he’s pushing 40 kids,” the athletic director said.
Meanwhile, Brierley left here last Thursday for the Nov. 16 and 17 state girls swimming meet in Ithaca with four qualifiers — Swanson, Foulser, Julia Brierley, and Jane Brierley — as well as an alternate, Darcy McFarland.
The numbers in boys and girls winter track were good too, Vas added — “about 20 in each.” Ben Turnbull and Yani Cuesta have returned as the coaches.
Wrestling, whose numbers have been rather low lately, is to have 16 to 17 on the varsity, “about the same as last year.” Anthony Piscitello, the head coach, will have Bryan Mott and Jim Stewart, the varsity’s former longtime coach, as his assistants.
East Hampton’s Frank (Sprig) Gardner wrestling tournament is to be held here on Saturday, Dec. 1. The Kendall Madison Foundation boys basketball tournament, with varsity teams from East Hampton, Southampton, Bridgehampton, and Mattituck, is to be contested here on Dec. 7 and 8.
Bridgehampton and Southampton are to play at 5:30 on the 7th, followed by East Hampton and Mattituck. Bridgehampton is to play Mattituck at 5:30 the next night, with East Hampton and Southampton to follow.
Because Bridgehampton doesn’t have a junior varsity, that tournament, to be played on Dec. 6, 7, and 8 at the East Hampton Middle School, will include Greenport with the above-mentioned schools.