Sal Nastasi Wins Police Appreciation Run

Other Massapequa runners take top honors

Massapequa runners continue to excel in local races. On June 14, Sal Nastasi was the overall winner of the 21st annual David Lerner Associates Long Island Police Appreciation Run, a 5K race held at Eisenhower Park.

Nastasi crossed the finish line in 16 minutes, 49 seconds, a pace of 5:25 per mile that brought him to the finish line 21 seconds in front of runner-up Bradley Raxenberg of Woodbury.

Honors For Local Scholar Athletes

Kelsey O’Brien of Massapequa High School and Daniel Reilly Jr. of Wantagh High School are among the Long Island students who have been named as Scholar Athletes by News 12 Long Island and Capital One Bank. Katherine Paolano of Cold Spring Harbor and Kasey Stolba of Harborfields High School are the 2011 – 2012 high school Scholar Athlete Scholarship recipients.

Additionally, each of the 30 students received $1,000 scholarships from Capital One Bank. The scholarships were presented at the 25th Annual News 12 Long Island Scholar Athlete awards dinner at the Woodbury Country Club on Monday, June 11.

‘America’s Boating Course’ In Wantagh To Be Held On July 10

Hempstead Bay Power Squadron, a unit of the United States Power Squadrons, will present the new “America’s Boating Course” Version 3 at Wantagh Park beginning Tuesday, July 10 at 7:30 p.m. The class will be held in the community room at the south end of the marina.

“America’s Boating Course,” a boating safety course, incorporates the newest material, including CDs for home use on your computer, and covers boat terms and types, personal watercraft, boat handling, required equipment, safety standards, federal, state and local regulations, aids to navigation, navigation rules, emergencies and marine radiotelephone.

Another Big Win For Howard Kestenbaum

Congratulations to 80-year-old Massapequa Park runner Howard Kestenbaum, who took first place in the 80-84 age group in the inaugural Belmont Stakes Blue Ribbon 5 Kilometer Run to Fight Prostate Cancer, held at Belmont Park on Sunday evening, June 3. Kestenbaum finished the 3.107 mile course in 43 minutes, 15 seconds.

The run was held at Belmont Park as the kickoff event for the 144th running of the Belmont Stakes on June 9 with the last 400 meters of the race being on the track, and the finish of the race being at the finish line where the four legged runners do their stuff at the Belmont Stakes.

Lacrosse Squads Fall Short In Title Games

Star players rewarded with athletic scholarships

Both the Massapequa High School boys and girls lacrosse squads enjoyed terrific regular seasons, finishing, respectively, first and second in conference play.

However, the postseason turned out to be a different story, as both teams suffered disappointment in the final round of the Nassau County playoffs.

Will Manny A Finalist For Tewaaraton Award

MHS star named CAA Player of the Year

The Massapequa High School lacrosse squads enjoyed another great season. One of their alumni, Will Manny, has enjoyed success on the national level. Manny, a star for the University of Massachusetts lacrosse team, has led the Minutemen to the NCAA Tournament, a No. 1 national ranking, a CAA Championship, and an undefeated record.

Now he is one of the five finalists for the 2012 Tewaaraton Award, which goes to the nation’s most outstanding college lacrosse player. Manny is the first Minuteman since Sean Morris in 2006 to be named as a finalist for the award. He has already been named the 2012 CAA Player of the Year. For this year, Manny also made the All-CAA squad for the third consecutive year.

Lacrosse Squads Bid For County Titles

Boys team falls short; Lady Chiefs in county finals

A great season for the Massapequa High School boys lacrosse squad has ended in disappointment.

All season the Chiefs dominated Conference I play. The postseason has proved to be no exception as the Chiefs sailed through playoff action, defeating Hicksville and Port Washington to make Conference I finals, where they lost a heartbreaker to Syosset, 14-13.

In the championship game, the Chiefs held a 12-9 lead going into the fourth and final frame. However, Syosset rallied for five goals to outscore Massapequa, 5-1 and win the game.

Islanders Hosting Draft Party June 22

The New York Islanders recently announced that passes for the 2012 draft party are now available to the general public through Ticketmaster or by visiting the Nassau Coliseum box office. The draft party is scheduled for Friday, June 22, at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

Passes to this fan fest are free, but each individual can only reserve up to eight. Doors for the draft party open at 5:30 p.m. and the live stream of the NHL entry draft in Pittsburgh begins at 7 p.m.

Athletic Scholarships For MHS Seniors

Sixty-one graduates to play sports at universities nationwide

Once again, a significant number of senior athletes from Massapequa High School have committed to playing sports at colleges and universities throughout the United States.

So far, 61 student athletes have signed such letters of intent. Included among them are such Ivy League universities as Brown and Cornell, the prestigious United States Naval Academy and numerous other selective schools, including the University of Chicago, St. John’s University, Seton Hall, Adelphi and Catholic University of America.

Driving Towards County Titles

More wins for baseball, lacrosse squads

As playoff action moves into the final rounds, both the Massapequa High School boys’ baseball squad, boys’ lacrosse and girls’ lacrosse teams are aiming for Nassau County titles.

After enduring a rainout in their game against Baldwin, the Massapequa boys’ baseball squad took to the field on May 17 where they defeated Baldwin, 13-0. Jon Mulford pitched five shutout innings and James Ott drove in four runs to pace the Chiefs. However, a semifinal game was rained out. The Chiefs played again on Wednesday, May 23.