Three Mineola High School varsity sports teams are doing themselves proud this fall season. The boys soccer, girls volleyball and girls cross country teams have all been in the post-season.

The varsity soccer team earned its way to the county semifinals with two victories.

The Mustangs opened the post-season with a 4-0 victory over Great Neck North. Gustavo Dias scored a natural hat trick and assisted on Oswaldo Hernandez's goal. Goalkeeper Claudio De Matos pitched the shutout with six saves. The win marked the first playoff victory for the boys soccer program since 1984.

The Mustangs then had a feel-good win in the next round that many alumni hailed as a great victory. The Mustangs notched an overtime 3-2 win at Garden City. Oswaldo Hernandez scored the game winner off a rebound from a Gustavo Dias shot in the eighth minute of sudden-death overtime to send the top-seeded Trojans to defeat. The victory was a cause for celebration throughout Mineola.

The goal was the second for Hernandez in the game. He had scored the first goal of the game. Helder Cancelinha had tied the score at 2 early in the second half when he rebounded a Dias shot. Claudio De Matos made five saves to get the win in net.

"Our guys played outstanding defense in the second half to shut down Garden City's forwards," said coach Paul Pereira.

The Mustangs earned a berth in the county semifinals for the first time in more than 30 years. They were scheduled to play Lawrence on Sunday, Nov. 6 at Hofstra University. Coverage of that game will be in next week's edition.

The girls varsity volleyball team made the playoffs. The Lady Mustangs were seeded fourth in the Class-B tournament. Unfortunately, after splitting the first two games with fifth-seeded Valley Stream South at Mineola's gym, the Rebels grabbed the final two games for a 3-1 victory. South won the first game 25-18. Mineola took the next 29-27 to even the match. But South put it away with 25-20 and 25-14 victories in the final two games. It was a strong season for the Lady Mustangs and their coach Diana Nick. The girls cross country team earned a berth in the Nassau County finals. The race was Saturday, Nov. 5 at Bethpage State Park. Coverage will be in next week's edition.