After a terrific regular season which resulted in a bye for the first round of the playoffs, St. Mary’s 5th grade team 7 was back in action this past weekend against a tough St. Patrick’s team from Huntington.
St. Mary’s started the game with the active man-to-man defense it has employed all year. Tommy Tsongas, Hunter Panzik and Dillon Magee spearheaded the pressure defense early in the game resulting in several turnovers by St. Patrick’s. However, St. Mary’s could not take advantage as St. Patrick’s hustled back on defense and responded with a frenetic zone press of its own.
The boys from St. Mary’s settled down in the second quarter and crisp ball movement by Matt Perfetto and Michael LaSalle enabled St. Mary’s to take a three-point lead into halftime.
In the second half, the boys from St. Mary’s turned up the pressure on defense and were very active on the boards, led by Brendan Trotta and Alex Cozzi. St. Mary’s was also aggressive on the offensive end with Joey Terenzi, Chris Diskin and Peter Vorillas attacking St. Patrick’s zone and pushing the pace in transition.
St. Mary’s pressure on defense and ball movement on offense enabled the 5th graders to pull away in the second half and secure the victory with a final score of 24-14.
St. Mary’s 5th grade team 1 ended a great season with a hard-fought quarter-final playoff loss to an unbeaten St. Agnes in Rockville Centre. St. Mary’s offense was led by Ryan Kolin (nine points), Michael Mastando (four points ), and Patrick Leder (four points). Charles Balsamo, Brendan Conniff and William Cargiulo added important free throws. St. Mary’s swarming defense caused numerous turnovers and was anchored by Christian Alacqua, Donovan Barcelona, Nicholas Ras and Brendan Sargent.
St. Mary’s had advanced to the playoff quarterfinals after an opening round playoff win against St. Raphael of East Meadow. Throughout the season, the St. Mary’s team played hard, always supported their teammates, and exhibited great sportsmanship. St. Mary’s finished the season with an overall 10-4 record, and the team was coached by Michael Kolin, Kevin Conniff, James Leder and John Mastando.
The Church of St. Mary 8th grade team 7 began its playoff defense. The Gaels won 53-40 against the St. James, East Setauket on Saturday with the help of Noah Semple, who scored 19 points and grabbed 18 rebounds. The Gaels clinched their lead in the third quarter on a two-pointer from Semple. The Gaels trailed early and were losing 25-24 by the half only to come back with a vengeance in the final two quarters. The Gaels had a solid finish, adding 15 points in the final quarter.
Semple scored the most points for the Gaels during the first period with eight. Also helping the effort for the Gaels were Timmy Kiggins (eight points, three rebounds), Joe Locurto (six points, two rebounds), Charlie Young (five points, two rebounds), Joseph Mulholland (five points, four rebounds), Chris Themelis (three points, two rebounds), Steven Salerno (three points), Steven Vlahakis (two points, two rebounds) and Louis Perfetto (two points, two rebounds). The Gaels played an all around game with outstanding contributions from Patrick Weber and Duncan Barcelona.
