The Mineola High School varsity baseball team was going to need a late season rush to get a spot in the Nassau County playoffs. As of early May, coach Helms Bohringer's Mustangs has a record of 4-5 in Conference A-5. "We've played many close games and unfortunately have been on the wrong side of a few," he said.

The coach pointed to the three-game sweep of Roslyn and a 5-4 win over Valley Stream South as highlights of the season. "But we have blown leads in either the sixth or seventh inning," he said.

The Mineola Mustangs need to take four of the remaining six games against Bethpage and Clarke to earn a spot in the playoffs.

In the midst of its series against Clarke, the Mineola JV baseball team owned a record of 5-6 in conference play with a 2-2-1 record in the non-conference schedule. "After sweeping Roslyn in the opening league series with great offensive output, the boys lost some steam in a well fought series against Island Trees," said coach Scott Donnellan. "The boys are working hard so far. The hitting stars have been sophomores Pat Gaffney and Mike Bencivenga. Gaffney has hit four homeruns while Bencivenga has a high average hitting in the three hole. Freshman Tiago Rodrigues and Nelson Lopes have shown by their play that Mineola baseball has a good future. The pitching has been led by Rodrigues. In the field, Bencivenga has made an easy transition from utility man last year to full-time catcher this year. Freshman centerfielder Matt Esnault has done an excellent job anchoring the outfield."

The Mineola Varsity Girls Lacross team completed its season with a record of 4-9-1. First year coach Frank Massaro said, "The team remained competitive to the end of each game and showed improvement."

The Lady Mustangs were led in scoring by Ali Carnabuci (42 goals, 9 assists), Courtney O'Connell (17 goals, 13 assists) and Juliet Barber (24 goals, 3 assists). Center Maryanne Georgeou, who took on offensive and defensive responsibilities, added 25 goals and 5 assists. The defense was led by Theresa Dolan, Leanne Bohack, Amy Kemmler, Jessica Antonison, Liz Kocienda and Jennifer Pirrone. Goalie Ally Murphy averaged more than 12 saves per game. At midfield, Maryanne Georgeou took the bulk of the draws and Joanna Canning led the team in ground balls. Speedsters Margaret Phelan, Katie Steen, Kasey Hughes and Evey Rosales were helped by Katie Keegan and Melissa Dadich in controlling the midfield. "We'll miss four-year starter Theresa Dolan and standout players Maryanne Georgeou, Ally Murphy, Leanne Bohach and Jennifer Pirrone," said Coach Massaro.

When we checked with boys varsity coach Mark Miller, the Mustangs still has a chance to make the playoffs. As of May 7, the team had a record of 5-5 in the Nassau North Conference. The Mustangs were 7-7 overall. The wins have come against Cardoza, Roslyn, Clarke, Great Neck South, North Shore and Sewanhaka. The season has been peppered with close and exciting one and two goal games like wins over Clarke 11-10, 8-7 over Great Neck South, 7-5 over Jericho and 9-8 win over North Shore.

The scoring has been led by junior Tom Grimaldi with 38 goals and 14 assists. Senior Mike Bispo added 20 goals and 9 assists while Junior James Holubowich has scored 13 goals to go with two assists. Senior Chris Williams has 12 goals and 11 assists while senior Steve Ricciardi has 10 goals and 8 assists. The Mustang defense has been led by seniors Danny Mehra and Dan DiCandia plus junior Billy Mills and senior goalie Matt Grilo.