The Island Trees Wrestling team defended its title at the Knight Classic. The team placed 13 wrestlers on the way to a 60-point victory over both Seaford and host Uniondale. The Bulldogs had six wrestlers reach the finals, including Nick DeVecchis (96), Ralph Mirabella (103), Matt Eberlein (119), Mike Molino (140), Ever Reyes (189) and Billy Caldarera (215). Other place winners were Mike Alavanja (96), Stephan Barea (119), Peter Molino (160), Chris Martinez (145), Nic Roa (140), Dan Nicolino (215) and Robert Nickel (275). In the final, freshman phenom Nick DeVecchis used a variety of lightning quick takedowns to build a commanding lead on the way to a 13-5 victory. At 119, returning All-County grappler, sophomore Matt Eberlein showed the Island why he is one of the favorites to contend for a title come February. Matt had three takedowns and a near fall of his opponent in his 8-3 victory. At 189, Ever Reyes used a late takedown in the third period to defeat highly touted Harrison Rowner 3-1. In the semifinals, Ever scored a 1-0 victory over Harrison's brother Isaac. The win was sweet for Ever as it was the first time he defeated Isaac in four tries. Although the Bulldogs are a young team, the balance and overall work ethic they have should make them a formidable bunch come February. The team will wrestle at the Baldwin Tournament on Dec. 9 and the Valley Stream North Tournament on Dec. 16. For schedules and information, contact Coach Damian Garcia at 520-1235.

This year's Island Trees Boys Varsity Basketball team has a lot of excitement around it. Built around senior captains Will Lopez, Dan Hart and Jon Bartlett, the boys are looking forward to a very exciting season. However, their senior leadership doesn't stop there. With returning seniors Rob Fragoletti, who was selected as this year's first game captain, Ralph Garcia and Chris Caragher round off a group who should greatly contribute. They also have Paul Fontana who has returned for his senior season after not being able to play for two years due to injury. While Island Trees Junior Varsity Basketball team went undefeated for the league season (12-0) and 16-1 overall, these underclassmen quickly realized this is nothing like the junior varsity, as the game moves faster and the opponents are much bigger. Juniors, led by Ronnie Modik, who is coming off a great football season, point guard Frank Baglivo, who as a junior received some votes from his teammates to be a captain and Justin Heisig, who at 6'2", should prove to be a force both offensively and defensively. Their junior guards are rounded off by Shawn Fenton who has proven that he could hit shots from just about anywhere on the court. However, because of his tremendously hard work during the off-season, his contributions will not end with his shooting. Their junior big men are rounded off by Bryan Valinoti and John Bruno, who are both very versatile players who can play the 2, 3, 4 and 5 and Eric O'Reilly who will get his chance to show what he can do at center. Ryan Tolan, the team's sole sophomore, earned his way onto varsity because of his hard play and could prove to be quite a force in the post. Their first scrimmage this year was a four-way against the two Smithtown teams and Richmond Hill from Queens. Overall, the team performed well, but most importantly, they got to see what they needed to work on. Confidently, they went into their next scrimmage with Holy Trinity, a Catholic School with players who have played on AAU teams and St. Bernard's teams with their players. They started out okay, but things started to fall apart in the middle of the second quarter. It gave them the "kick" we needed considering the next two days of practice were probably the best that they have had. They then came out for their third scrimmage against Herricks and started slow, but after the first quarter, they played much better. They play their fourth scrimmage against Hicksville and hope to do well against another AA school. Their schedule is posted at eteamz.active.com/boysbulldogsbasketball.

The Junior Varsity Girls Basketball team played their first non-league game versus Syosset. The team lost, but played well and they are looking forward to a successful season. Scoring for the team was Angelina DeLardi, 10 points; Renee Balvin, 6 points; and Rebecca Burleson, Anne Badolato and Catherine Bruno with 2 points each. Excellent defense was played by Meghan Carey, Michelle Giordano and Lisa Barenzano.

The Junior Varsity and Varsity Girls Bowling teams are off to a great start to the season both with a 2-1 record. Their last match-up against Plainedge had some real standouts. On Varsity there were Amy Strickland and Samantha Rooks and on junior varsity there were Alissa Ambrosio and Tara Ludewig.

The boys bowling team started off this season with an 8-3 win over Division. They had some really nice games bowled by Ed Noblesala with a 225, Nick Marchelos with a 220 and Mike Pellegrino with a 198. Their second match was against Wantagh and they defeated them 8-3 too. Nick Muccio had a nice game with a 234 and Ed Noblesala had a great day with a 752 series and a high game of 268.

The eighth grade Volleyball team started off the season on the right foot by defeating Salk 4-1. The ladies dominated on serve the entire match. Justine Abramowski had seven aces. Michelle Fabis, Taylor Tedeschi and Cory Scher added three aces as well. Whitney Dobladillo had the only kill of the match in game one.

Congratulations to the seventh grade girls volleyball team on itsr 3-2 win over Howitt. The Lady Dogs played an amazing match using unparalleled skill and communication to secure the win in game 5. Bridget Vilbig, Maggie Milonakis, Kelly Durkin, Megan Acton and Emily Cranmer made notable defensive plays, while Katie Steinwall, Caitlin Collins, Theresa Ambrosio, Emily Lucas and Allie Merrill led the team in offensive attacks.

The eighth grade boys basketball team lost a tough game at Grand Avenue. Joe Esposito led the team in scoring with 8 points. John Duffy and Matt Handel added 4, Casey Hastings had 3 and Aidan Meehan, Andrew Willoughby, Tyler Walsh and Mike Esposito each added 2 points. Charlie Bours and Jawad Tassawer provided some great passing, rebounding and defense.

The seventh grade boys basketball team suffered a tough defeat to Berner, 50-47. Jason Oder provided an offensive spark with 26 points. Joe Howard and Matt Castillo each had 5 points, while Matt Bowen and Alex Milack each provided baskets at crucial times.