Dreams of Postseason Dancing in Athletes’ Heads
A half-dozen East Hampton High School teams are eyeing the postseason, foremost among them Claude Beudert’s undefeated golfers, though they’ll have to wait until next spring for that sport’s conference and county championships.
The 12-0 golfers finished up last week with an 8.5-.5 win over Shelter Island on the Bonackers’ home course at the South Fork Country Club in Amagansett. Ian Lynch, the junior number-one, led the way with a 35-to-43 win over Jay Card, who had bested Lynch 41-43 when they played on Shelter Island.
Lynch can also boast of having carded East Hampton’s all-time low score, a one-under-par 33, which he shot in a recent crucial match at Southampton, a win that enabled East Hampton to clinch its eighth straight league title and the program’s 12th in the past 14 years.
Beudert said during last Thursday’s outbracket girls tennis match between East Hampton and Mount Sinai (a match that East Hampton was to win 6-1) that his number-two, Cameron Yusko, was a finalist in Channel 12’s student-athlete of the week contest. The six-year varsity veteran was certainly worthy, said Beudert, who nominated him. “He has a 98.7 unweighted grade-point average, he’s a great community-minded kid, and he’s a three-sport athlete. He’s been all-league for us three times and all-conference twice. A quality kid, all around.”
Golf’s all leaguers this season were Yusko, Lynch, and John Pizzo, said Beudert, “though we won’t know about all-conference until the spring. My m.v.p. is Ian, the coach’s award is going to Cameron, and Matt Griffiths is my most-improved. He and Andrew Winthrop really filled in well this year.”
Turning to cross-country, whose girls and boys teams continue on the upswing, boosted by Bill Herzog’s junior high program, Diane O’Donnell has two potential all-state competitors in Ashley West, a senior, and in Dana Cebulski, a ninth grader.
In a recent Northeast invitational meet at Brown University, Cebulski placed fourth among 215 entrants in the 5K varsity race in 19 minutes and 24 seconds, “a very good time,” according to O’Donnell, who added that West could well have finished in the top 10 too, but, because of an aggravated calf muscle strain, had to pull out after having run two thirds of the way.
West, herself, who was seen biking in front of the high school last Thursday, said she was rehabbing the muscle with the school’s trainer, Randi Cherill, and was confident she’d be ready for the state qualifier meet that is to be held Friday, Nov. 4 at Sunken Meadow State Park.
Things continued to go swimmingly, as well, for John McGeehan’s girls swim team, who defeated Hauppauge 96-74 at the Y.M.C.A. East Hampton RECenter last Thursday.
Posting career bests were Bonac’s 200 medley relay team of Marina Preiss, Mikayla Mott, Carly Drew, and Maddie Minetree, who won in 1:57.84, and the 200 freestyle relay team of Preiss, Mott, Morgan German, and Minetree, who won in 1:45.81.
Recording season-bests were Mott, who won the 200 individual medley in 2:21.14; Minetree, who won the 50 free in 25.93; Preiss, who won the 100 free in 55.57, and German, who placed third in the 50 free in 27.32.
Moreover, Lydia Florio ‘pr’d’ in the 100 breaststroke, placing third in 1:19.24, and Caley Serin, who was fifth in the 200 free in 2:49.51, also had a personal record.
In addition, Haley Ryan placed second in the 500 free in 6:41.76.
The 4-1 girls were to have had home meets earlier this week with West Babylon and West Islip. The League III championships are to be held at Hauppauge High School on Nov. 4. The county meet is to be held at Suffolk Community College-Brentwood on Nov. 12.
Getting back to the aforementioned tennis match versus Mount Sinai (East Hampton being the 16th seed, Mount Sinai the 17th), Michelle Kennedy, the first-year coach, reported that Abby Okin, the eighth grader who plays first singles, suffered the sole loss that day, at the hands of Daniella Stefanucci, who won 7-5, 6-3.
Carly Grossman, at two, defeated Rebekah Lester 6-2, 6-0; Phoebe Gianis, at three, defeated Erika Mavi 7-6 (8-6), 6-1, and Margaux Eckert, at four, defeated Alexa Mani 6-1, 6-0.
In doubles, East Hampton’s first team, Jess Bono and Daniella Dunphy, who as a result of placing third in the recent division tournament had been named to the all-county team, won 3-6, 6-4, 6-4; Caitlin Walsh and Sydney Sanicola won 6-1, 2-6, 7-5, and Gillian Neubert and Bryce Slater won 6-2, 3-6, 6-4.
Playing in the county tournament, Bono, a senior, and Dunphy, a sophomore, won a first-round match, defeating a Bay Shore entry 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 before losing to the top seeds in the quarterfinals.
On the volleyball court, East Hampton’s boys team, with Thomas King sitting out, defeated Huntington in four on Oct. 17 to improve to 8-1 in league play.
“It was a big game for Huntington, which needed it to make the playoffs,” said East Hampton’s coach, Dan Weaver.
L.B. Lownes, who usually alternates with Trevor Shea playing opposite the opponent’s setter, moved to outside hitter, King’s position, and “had some big kills,” said Weaver.
King was to have missed Monday’s match at league-leading Eastport-South Manor as well, though Weaver said he thought the team, which he said had been practicing jump pass serve returns and defensive positioning, had a good shot.