Three Mineola Mustang teams earned playoff berths. However, the trio got no further than the appetizer at the postseason feast. The girls varsity lacrosse team dropped a first round decision to Lynbrook 11-6. The baseball team fell to Roslyn 3-1. The softball team dropped a 6-5 nine-inning heartbreaker to Island Trees.

The Lady Mustangs lacrosse team earned a playoff berth for the third year in a row. But, disappointment awaited. The 11-6 loss to Lynbrook kept Mineola from notching a postseason win for the third straight year as well. The Owls sidelined the Mustangs for the second consecutive year after beating the Lady Laxers 10-8 during the regular season. Lynbrook built an 8-2 halftime lead that proved too much to overcome. Mineola outscored the Owls 4-3 in the second half, but couldn't overcome the big deficit. Senior Jamie Carter led Mineola with three goals in her final game. Sophomore Nicole Tsabasis added two goals while senior Mary Warren had one. Mineola's all-time scoring leader, senior Katherine Hock, was double and triple-teamed much of the game and was held to one assist. Sophomore Maryanne Georgeou also had an assist. Sophomore goaltender Allyson Murphy completed her first varsity season by making 17 saves.

The baseball team's playoff-earning regular season was completed by splitting its last six games. Mineola dropped two of three to Clarke, but came back to take two of three from Roslyn. In the series opener, Mineola got in front of Clarke 2-0. Jon Debrich doubled and scored on Adam Tuthill's single. Tuthill then stole second and scored when the Clarke infielder mishandled John Sullivan's ground ball. From there, though, the game belonged to Clarke. A third-inning three-run homer and later a six-run inning was the difference. Debrich, Tuthill, Steve Bruno, Rob Campagna and Rickie Medlock each had two hits.

Mineola got even with a 10-6 win in game two of the series. The Mustangs used four-run innings in the first and third to take an 8-0 lead. Pitcher Bryan Gallucci got it started in the first with a first-inning RBI triple and scored on a Jon Debrich single. Debrich then scored on Adam Tuthill's hit. Adam then scored on the front end of a double steal attempt. In the fourth inning, Gallucci doubled over the centerfielder's head. The Mustangs loaded the bases and Steve Bruno singled in two runs while Tom McPartland sent two more across the plate with a single. Gallucci pitched into the sixth inning. He tired and Pat Leung came in from the bullpen to finish off Mineola's first win over Clarke since 1996. Game three of the series took another direction. It was a pitchers' duel that saw Clarke edge the Mustangs 2-1. Steve Bruno and Tom Aupied combined to hold Clarke to three hits. But, Mineola couldn't come up with the offense it needed either in the regular season finale.

The Mustang nine faced arguably the top pitcher in Nassau County in dropping that 3-1 decision to Roslyn. Adam Balkan, the conference most valuable player, held Mineola to two hits and crushed a solo homer. The long Mustang run scored when Rob Campagna tripled and scored on an error. The last chance to get to Balkan came in the fourth inning. Bryan Gallucci was hit by a pitch. Pat Leung walked. But, the Roslyn hurler induced a 4-6-3 double play followed by a strikeout. Coach Helms Bohringer thanked his seniors for a great run into the semifinals last season and another chance this year.

* * * *

The Mineola softball team's nine-inning playoff loss to Island Trees was pretty much a microcosm of the season. The Lady Mustangs had several opportunities to grab a victory. But things just didn't work out. Mineola held a 5-2 lead at one point in the game. It was the final game for seniors Tara Georges, Karrin Hughes and Sue Farrell.

* * * *

The boys varsity lacrosse team completed its best season in several years, but still fell short of making the playoffs. Mineola played its most exciting game of the season, according to coach Mark Miller, in a 6-5 win over Glen Cove. Going scoreless in the first half, the Mustang defense of Rick DiCandia, Danny Mehra and John Murphy protecting goaltender Pedro Oliveira kept the team in the game by holding Glen Cove to two scores. By the end of the third quarter, Mineola had clawed back, making the score 3-2. The Mustangs tied the score at three only to have Glen Cove grab another goal. But, Mineola then put in three unanswered goals to take a lead it never relinquished. The last couple of minutes in the game were frantic. Pedro Oliveira came up with a big save in goal while the Mineola offense was able to hang onto the ball and run out the clock. Drew Wachter scored two goals as did Paul Bispo. Steve Ricciardi and Joe Cerulli each scored as well.

The Mustangs played the home finale two days later and dropped an 8-4 decision to North Shore. A rash of second half penalties cost Mineola dearly. North Shore scored three goals with the advantage. Paul Bispo scored twice for Mineola, while Steve Ricciardi and Drew Wachter found the net as well. Mineola then concluded its season with an 8-6 win over Sewanhaka. The Mustangs scored three first quarter goals and never trailed. It as a 5-2 at the half and 8-3 in the third quarter. Drew Wachter scored three goals and assisted on three others. Joe Cerulli had a pair of goals and assists. Matt Bispo had one and one while Paul Bispo and Dan Bailey each scored once. Pedro Oliveira made 11 saves in the victory. Coach Miller was disappointed his team did not earn a playoff berth even though a 7-9 record (3-7 in league) was the best in a number of years. Miller said, "Missed opportunities against friends, Clarke and North Shore were the downfall." But, he also said that playing well against Glen Cove, Jericho, Roslyn, and Cold Spring Harbor were highlights of the season. Senior Drew Wachter was the team's leading scorer with 35 goals and 29 assists. Junior captain Joe Cerulli added 16 goals and 13 assists. The rest of the attack unit was made up of sophomore Chris Williams (12 G, 4 A), senior Chris Gillece and junior Marcos Mendes. The Mustangs got some valuable scoring from its midfield. Senior Paul Bispo ended up with 13 goals and nine assists. Sophomore Steve Ricciardi added eight goals and assisted on two others. Senior Andre Mendes was good for three goals and three assists. Senior Dan Bailey had four goals and two assists. Junior Peter Wain had five goals and senior Anil Pamnani also had a goal. Seniors Billy Mastoras and Hernando Gauto also made up the midfield unit. The Mineola defensive unit was made up of seniors Rick DiCandia, John Murphy and Charles Culpepper with sophomore starter Danny Mehra and junior Ben Lee in the defensive middle. Senior goaltender Pedro Oliveira saved 57 percent of the shots he faced (189 of 330) in 16 games.

* * * *

The Mineola junior varsity baseball team played the last third of its season 5-3. After Mineola won the series opener, Bethpage scored all of its runs in its last at bat to beat the Mustangs 8-3. Mike Kondraciuk held the Eagles to five hits. But, Coach Barry Silverstein said the defense failed Mineola. "We weren't very good today," he said. "Mike pitched well enough to win."

Mineola bounced back, though, with a 12-10 win in the rubber game of the series. The Mustangs sent 12 men to the plate in the first inning, scoring seven times. Bethpage came back with five in the top of the second. Mineola got homers from Joe Wissler, George Harrison and Edward Kaiser. Coach Silverstein said, "A good team reponds. Today we responded every chance we had. I am very proud of our team today."

Always rough Clarke opened a series by beating Mineola 14-8. Clarke scored seven runs in the seventh inning to break the game open. The Mustang junior varsity team came back to shutout Clarke in game two of the series, 5-0. Freshman Mike Kondraciuk went the distance on a five-hitter and struck out four while walking none. Clarke had previously beaten Mineola four straight times. Coach Silverstein said, "Mike is only a freshman and will only get better. But how much better could he have been than he was today?"

Back to the same old stuff in game three of the series. Clarke took a 10-3 decision. Mineola then completed the season by sweeping a three-game series against Roslyn. In the opener, the Mustangs scored multiple runs in each of the first four innings to back the six-hit pitching of George Harrison. In game two, Mineola blanked Roslyn 3-0 as Mike Kondraciuk tossed his second straight shutout. He allowed six hits and struck out five in bringing his consecutive scoreless innings streak to 14. Shon Philip drove in two runs with a two-out single and stole home on the front end of a double steal with Dan Guido. Mineola then took game three of the series by forfeit. Mineola completed its season with an 11-6 record.

* * * *

The Mineola junior varsity softball team notched win number nine of the season by outscoring Clarke 14-12. Denise Fitzpatrick went 4-5 with a triple and scored three runs. Rachel Cohen had a 3-4 day. Kristen Raffetto pitched the entire game and struck out six batters. The Lady Mustangs completed their 10-6 season with an 18-3 win over Roslyn. Cohen was the Mustangs leading hitter this season with a .458 average. Fitzpatrick's average was .423 while Alexandra Vega hit .400. Coach Rory Block said, "Kristen Raffetto was probably the most improved player. She demonstrated her pitching ability, which allowed the Mustangs to finish the season with such an impressive record."

Coach Block also pointed to centerfielder Alexandra Vega, shortstop Ali Rodriguez, catcher Denise Fitzpatrick and Kris Nuzzi at first base for their strong defensive play this season. The Lady Mustangs finished the season strongly, having won six of seven games.

Mineola Athletic Honor Roll

The spring high school sports season has brought post-season honors to 17 Mineola High School athletes in four sports. Here is the list of Mustang athletes honored by the coaches in their various sports:

Baseball: Steve Bruno, SR, All-Division

Jon Debrich, SR, All-Division

Bryan Gallucci, JR, All-County

Brian Sallie, SR, All-Conference

Adam Tuthill, SR, All-Conference

Boys Lacrosse: Paul Bispo, SR, Academic All-Conference

Drew Wachter, SR, All-Conference

Girls Lacrosse: Lauren Anderson, JR, All-Conference

Jamie Carter, SR, Honorable Mention All-County

Katherine Hock, SR, All-County

Vanessa Papadimitrios, SR, Unsung Hero Award

Deena Vezo, SR, National Academic All-American and Scholar Athlete

Mary Warren, SR, All-Conference

Softball: Sue Farrell, SR, All-Division

Tara Georges, SR, All-County

Kerrin Hughes, SR, All-Conference

Liz Terezo, FR, All-Divison