Alex Luongo leads Half Hollow Hills’ upset of Ward Melville
Arianna Ferritetti of Ward Melville goes up against Alex Luongo of Half Hollow Hills during the fencing match between Ward Melville and Half Hollow Hills on Monday, Dec. 14, 2015 at Half Hollow Hills East. Credit: Bob Sorensen
While Alex Luongo said her final touch was a “blur” Monday, the victory that point earned will be a memorable one.
Luongo went 3-0 in epee, including a win in the match-clinching bout, to lead Half Hollow Hills over visiting Ward Melville in a Suffolk I fencing meet. Crystal Chen went 3-0 in sabre for Hills, which dealt the Patriots only their second loss since the 2000-01 season.
“I was freaking out!” Luongo said of her final bout against Julia Duffy, which was tied at 4 before Luongo got the winning touch. “She’s one of the top fencers in the league and I’m ecstatic I got the win.
“I’m very proud of my team. My coach is amazing and we have such a nice group of girls,” added Luongo, a junior at Hills East.
“Alex was very patient, and there have been some specific things she’s been working hard on since the summer,” Hills coach Dennis Daly said. “She is a great, strong young lady. We’re very proud of her.”
Hills (2-0) trailed 10-8 after the first two rounds but went 3-0 in sabre and 2-1 in both foil and epee to close the match.
Lara Obedin went 3-0 in foil for the Patriots (2-1), including a win that cut Hills’ lead to 13-11.
Ward Melville, the 13-time reigning Long Island champion, has won 205 of its last 207 matches, and had a 195-match streak broken by Commack last season.
“They’re a great team to go up against and we had to put in a lot of effort,” said Chen, a junior at Hills West.
“Ward Melville is a great team. We’re lucky to be fencing on the same strip as them,” Daly said. “This was somewhat of a rebuilding year for us — we graduated a lot — so I’m very happy for our girls.”
“Every team in this league is so strong,” Daly added. “We have Huntington, Brentwood and Commack coming up, so this win is a great confidence builder, but we still have to go back to work.”
Jaklitsch, LaTourrette, Jackson lead WM boys. Mike Jaklitsch (epee), Peyton LaTourrette and Stephen Jackson (foil) all went 3-0 to lead the Ward Melville boys team over Half Hollow Hills, 15-12. Jack Rohan, Dan Deto and Mike Schwartz went 2-1 in sabre for the Patriots (3-0), while Kenneth Meserole went 3-0 in in sabre for Hills (1-1).
Updated now Newsday travel writer Scott Vogel took the ferry over to Block Island for a weekend of fun.
Updated now Newsday travel writer Scott Vogel took the ferry over to Block Island for a weekend of fun.
