Smithtown Sports Notebook: Baseball, Lacrosse Pick Up Wins

Baseball: East takes two of three from Half Hollow Hills East

A home run by Alex Indelicato and a two-run single by Matt Ginobbi helped East win the rubber game of its three-game League III series against Half Hollow Hills East on Saturday, 5-2. Indelicato’s two-run shot in the third gave the Bulls the lead, and Ginobbi’s hit broke a 2-2 tie in the fourth. Chris Rubin earned the win in relief. East improved to 2-4 in league play.

East won game one of the series Thursday, 5-1, for its first league win of the season. Tim Kopiske gave East a 4-0 lead in the third with a grand slam, and later struck out two batters in the seventh to close out the win. Dan Walsh got the win, allowing just four hits over six innings. Hills East won game two on Friday, 4-1.

Boys Lacrosse: East and West each split a pair

West and Ward Melville are considered favorites to contend for the Suffolk County championship this season, and their Division I showdown Wednesday did not disappoint, as Ward Melville won a 10-9 overtime decision at High School West.

Sean Cleary’s fourth goal of the game was the winner, just 31 seconds into the OT. Kyle Keenan led West with three goals and two assists, while James Pannell added a pair of goals. Ryan Adler made 13 saves. West bounced back a day later to defeat Bay Shore at home, 12-8. Keenan paced West with four goals and two assists, Matt Schultz had three goals, and Ryan Joseph had one goal and three assists.

East defeated Half Hollow Hills East on Tuesday, 12-8, getting a career-best five goals and an assist from Vinny Ferraro. Garry Watson had three goals and two assists, and Ryan Desimone had two goals and three assists for East, which led 8-3 at halftime and put the game away with four goals in the third quarter. Brian Balkam made 14 saves.

Softball: West beats East, wins two of three

A four-run rally in the bottom of the sixth inning gave Smithtown West a 4-2 victory over Smithtown East on Wednesday. A bases-clearing double by Teresa Staiano followed a run-scoring hit by Emily Horman as West came back from a 2-0 deficit. Freshman Gianna Gatto had two hits for West, helping Catherine Heacox pick up the win. Corinne Vazac took the loss for East.

West dropped a 6-0 decision to Hills West the following day but bounced back on Friday for a 5-1 victory over West Babylon. Heacox was the winning pitcher, allowing just five hits with four strikeouts in a complete game effort. She helped her own cause by hitting a two-run homer in the third. Sam Morganelli added a two-run double in the sixth for West, which improved to 4-2.

East followed its loss to West with a 10-5 loss to Riverhead on Thursday, but rallied to beat North Babylon on Friday, 9-1. Vazac got the win and had plenty of offensive support. Francesa Busa and Stephanie Aplin each went 3-for-3, with Aplin driving in two runs. Madison Provencher and Maggie Engellener each went 2-for-4 with two RBI.

Boys Track: West beats Copiague, excels with East at Red Raider meet

Smithtown West edged Copiague on Tuesday, 75.5-65.5, clinching the victory by winning the 4 x 800 and 4 x 200 relays. Chris Ingram and Pat Harty won their sprints, Mike McCann cleared 6-2 in the high jump, and Devin Mirenda excelled in the high hurdles (16.5 seconds) and triple jump (39-6). Fred Walter, Matt Morganelli and Mike Kehrer won 12 of 18 points in the shot put and discus events.

West continued its success at the Red Raider Relays Friday and Saturday in North Rockland. The sprint medley relay team of Harty, Ingram, Anthony Aprile and Kevin Harty set a new school record of 3:51.56. Karl Nilsen won the freshman/sophomore pole vault with a mark of 12 feet, and McCann won the freshman/sophomore high jump at 6 feet. Mike Catalano placed eighth in the 3,200 in a PR of 9:45. Pat McGuire was sixth in the 1,600 in 4:29.7, a personal best by 13 seconds. Mark Valentino also posted a PR, finishing 12th in 4:33. Fred Walter was fourth in the shot put at 44-5.5, and placed 12th in the discus at 120-9.

Smithtown East also ran well at Rockland. The distance medley team of Don Bradshaw, Rob Calamia, Gavin Shulock and Pat Ginty finished second in 10:59.04. Bradshaw was ninth in the 200 in 23.9 seconds, and Ginty was seventh in the 1,600 in 4:30.08, followed by Shulock in 20th in 4:39.19. Calamia placed 11th in the 3,200 in 9:49.57. Tom Bubb was eighth in the high jump at 5-8.

Girls Track: Red Raider Relays

Smithtown East had several top performances at the Red Raider Relays this weekend, led by Emily Kappelmier, who was fourth in the 400 hurdles in 1:10.76. Kelsey Amarosa placed fifth in the 400 meters in 60.14 seconds, and Deirdre Connor took sixth in the 1,600 in 5:13.37. Paige Koenig was 12th in the 200 in 27.79 seconds, and the distance medley relay team finished fourth in 13:08.

The freshman/sophomore sprint medley team was second in 4:31.17. Tristan Bevans placed second in the freshman/sophomore triple jump at 32-0.25; Christy Baars was sixth at 28-6.75.