A Newsday special report on how Long Island's high school athletes are dealing with the uncertainty of the spring season and how it's affecting some in the college recruiting or pursuit of notable records and national prominence in their sport.

Sports

High School

Jim Baumbach

High school athletes across Long Island are in limbo as they await word whether the spring season will be salvaged amid the COVID-19 pandemic. 
Nassau and Suffolk athletic officials said plans for an abbreviated season are in a holding pattern as they wait for word from Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo on when schools will reopen. Schools throughout the state are closed through at least April 1. 
“It all comes down to when can schools be allowed to open again,” said Pat Pizzarelli, executive director of Section VIII, Nassau school sports' governing body. “If schools are open, we will right away go ahead with the spring sports season.” 
Two weeks ago, Nassau and Suffolk officials postponed the start of baseball, softball and lacrosse games until next month. Now, they say they can only hope at least some of the games can be played. 
"We're hoping to give the kids as much opportunity as possible,” said Tom Combs, executive director of Section XI, Suffolk school sports' governing body. “Nothing is out of the question, but it is all speculation because we have to abide by whatever the governor says.” 
State athletic officials said they will decide by April 27 whether to hold state championships for all spring sports. Even if the state championships are canceled, Pizzarelli said, Long Island schools could still hold an abbreviated spring sports schedule. 
<h3>'I just want to play'</h3> 
High school athletes are trying to stay upbeat and motivated to keep working out. 
Emma Ward, a three-sport star at Babylon High School who signed to play lacrosse at Syracuse next year, said she is staying in shape by throwing a lacrosse ball against a wall and exercising in her driveway with a medicine ball. 
"I'm trying to be as optimistic as I can be," Ward said. "Yes, I know it's possible there's no season. But I also know everyone else is in the same situation as I am. 
"If they told me all I'm going to get is one more practice, or one more scrimmage, I'll sign up for that in a heartbeat. I'll be out there with no notice. I just want to play." 
Gabrielle Gordon, a ninth-grader on the Plainview JFK softball team, shares that hope. 
"I am praying for a breakthrough, for a change, maybe a miracle," she said. 
Commack senior Shannon Smith, who plays lacrosse, said: “It feels like every day I’m losing hope that we’ll get back out there.” 
Teams are prohibited from officially practicing. Nassau and Suffolk officials also are restricting players from running their own unofficial practices. 
“Honestly, I haven’t been doing anything recently to keep in shape,” said Uniondale senior Jadan Hanson, a nationally ranked triple jumper. “It seems like, at this point, that the season is eventually going to get shut down.” 
Those who are working out are doing it on their own or in small groups. On social media, baseball and softball players are posting videos of themselves hitting off a tee and lacrosse players are posting clips of themselves shooting into an empty net. 
<h3>Last hurrah for some</h3> 
For seniors who are not going to play in college, they could be missing out on their last athletic season. 
Although some Division II and Division III schools were interested in her, Smith, who has been on varsity ,since her freshman year,&nbsp; chose to attend Penn State for academics. 
“There’s nine seniors and I’ve been playing with all of them since third grade,” she said. “And I was looking forward to having one last time to play the sport I fell in love with with them. So it’s just upsetting that I may not be able to do that one more time.” 
For seniors who are <a href="https://projects.newsday.com/databases/long-island/high-school-college-commitments/?where=class_of=2020&amp;offset=0">committed to playing sports in college</a>, they are now faced with new concerns. 
The NCAA canceled the spring season and afforded all college seniors an extra year of eligibility to make up for it. The NCAA has yet to say how it will go about relaxing scholarship limits. This means high school seniors will face additional competition for playing time in college. 
Longtime Northport girls lacrosse coach and prominent girls lacrosse club coach Carol Rose said “the entire [high school] senior class will be impacted” by college seniors receiving an additional year of eligibility. 
Jaqui Ward, Emma's mother, said the NCAA rules will definitely have an impact on incoming college freshmen. 
"We would be silly to think otherwise," said Jaqui Ward, a kindergarten teacher in Brentwood. "What impact it will have is still unknown at this time. I think that a lot of different pieces will play into it and we are in a 'wait and see' mode." 
<h3>Chance to be recruited</h3> 
For high school juniors, it's a time when many with ambitions of playing in college are looking to make strong impressions on the field to get recruited. 
“I look at the juniors as having the most to think about because they’re already trying to figure out where to go, and now they’re faced with this,” Whitman athletic director Jim Wright said. “How many colleges will change their recruiting strategies because of a sudden logjam of players at a position? We don’t know the answers to this." 
The NCAA has announced a recruiting “dead period” until at least April 15 for Division I and II schools, which means no in-person recruiting on or off campus for coaches. The NCAA, however, is allowing written correspondence and telephone calls in Division I and II through the dead period. 
All eyes remain on Cuomo for what happens next with the schools. 
"It's like, where do we go from here?" Gordon said. "It's been a very big adjustment coming to terms with the fact that we're probably not going to have a varsity season. 
"I pray that there is one, hopefully, but it's not looking great." 
With Laura Albanese and Gregg Sarra

spHS200325

Long Island's high school athletes coping with the possibility of canceled season

High school athletes coping with possibility of canceled season

SPSCHOLARXXXXXX

Gregg Sarra

Sayville senior Brock Murtha turned 18 on Saturday. The coronavirus outbreak forced his party to be rescheduled for the summer, and, instead about 30 people got together on Skype to sing “Happy Birthday” to him. 
Murtha said he doesn’t mind putting his birthday celebration on hold, but there are a few other goals he’s been hoping to celebrate this year — breaking Long Island’s all-time home run record and getting a chance to win the state championship. “Baseball has to happen at some point this spring, it really does,” said Murtha, who has 28 career home runs. “I am so excited to try and get out there and break that record. It’s been my goal for years. It would be awful if we don’t play.” Murtha is 13 home runs shy of the mark held by former East Hampton star Ross Gload, who played in the major leagues for 10 years. Gload’s record of 41 homers was set from 1991-94 and has stood for 26 years. Gload also holds the Long Island single-season record of 20, set in his senior year when he led the Bonackers to the Suffolk Class A championship. Murtha, 6-foot and 195 pounds, is a Newsday All-Long Island first team selection in football and baseball. He was the first freshman to earn first-team All-Long Island in baseball. Murtha did get some good news this week. The day before his birthday, he received his letter of acceptance to Notre Dame. “He had already accepted his baseball scholarship but was waiting on his letter to be accepted academically,” said his father, Chris. “We got the email at 6:42 p.m., March 20. It was a big day and a silver lining in the world that we live in right now. The best moment in my life.” Murtha has been trying to stay in shape while at home with his parents and younger brother, Mack. “I’m going crazy stuck in the house,” Murtha said. “I can’t go to the gym, so I have to lift in the basement. It’s really frustrating.” Murtha hit two homers as an eighth-grader, 10 as a freshman, six as a sophomore and 10 more last year. The righthanded pitcher/shortstop threw a no-hitter in a 1-0 win over Clarke as Sayville captured the Long Island Class A title a year ago. “That feels like a long time ago,” Murtha said. “I want another shot at the state title, but who knows what’s going to happen.”

News

spMURTHA200325

Sayville's Brock Murtha could set Long Island career record for home runs, if there's a season

Sayville's Murtha wants his shot at HR record

SKRPSayBaseball09

Roger Rubin

School closings and the postponement of the spring sports seasons have affected high school athletes all across Long Island. All of them hope for this season in limbo to happen because they want to play. Braden Clark hopes it happens because he needs to play. 
Clark will be the starting catcher at Plainedge if and when the season commences. Like a number of Island athletes, the senior has been banking on this season to help shape his college future. Across the nation, most of the Division I-caliber baseball players – which Clark is – played their junior seasons, received&nbsp;scholarship offers based on their performance and made college commitments. 
That didn’t happen for Clark, who also is a top linebacker for Plainedge’s 2019 Long Island championship football team. He did not play high school or summer travel team baseball last year after having biceps tendon surgery to repair a football injury. 
“I had been thinking scholarship and now I might have to consider [junior college], but I was banking on this season to see what all my options really could be,” Clark said. “This season is important, very important.” 
“When people talk to him about the subject of this season, he acts like it is no big deal,” said Mike Clark, Braden’s father. “But I know he’s sweating it out some. He wants to be on that field showing people how good he is.” 
During his sophomore season, Clark batted .389 for the Red Devils. On his summer team, Beast MVP 2020, he impressed on the travel circuit. According to Beast coach Pete Kritikos, Longwood University from the Big South Conference was on the cusp of offering a scholarship that fall before Clark got injured. 
“He would have been one of our Division I commits. With his abilities, he can play college baseball at a high level,” Kritikos said. “Behind the plate, he is tough, smart about what to do in any situation and has a cannon for an arm. At the plate, he is one of our best hitters. The issue now is timing.” 
It may not be the only issue for high school athletes that could elicit a college scholarship offer this late in the recruiting game. The NCAA, after canceling all spring sports because of the coronavirus outbreak, is offering seniors who play Division I spring sports an extra year of eligibility. Depending on how it would implement that, it, too, could shape the landscape.
<figure class="image2 image" data-attr-f="default" data-attr-img-credits="" data-attr-img-height="" data-attr-img-width="" data-attr-show-caption="true" data-href="#/content/contentid/image.1.43419958" data-onecms-id="contentid/image.1.43419958" data-onecms-type="image">
 <img alt="" src="/image-service/alias/contentid/image.1.43419958/1.43419958.jpg?f=default"> 
 <figcaption></figcaption> 
</figure>
 
Clark was injured on a kickoff during the first half of the 2018 season. He said he fielded the ball, turned to lateral it to teammate Luke Lombardi and “when I turned back upfield I got blasted.” He didn’t feel limited enough by the injury to stop playing football and, as a junior, had an important role in the Red Devils winning the 2018 county title. But in the first days of December – after Plainedge lost in the LIC – he attended a catching clinic and felt discomfort using the added range of motion to throw. 
What ensued was six fraught weeks. Clark saw an orthopedist that week, had an MRI and was delivered the devastating diagnosis of a rotator cuff tear. “When we heard that we both started crying,” said Mike Clark, who played college baseball in the late 1980s for LIU Post. “It was the one thing we couldn’t bear to hear.” 
They sought a second opinion at Manhattan’s Hospital for Special Surgery and got the more favorable diagnosis of a partial rupture of the biceps tendon. He had surgery in late January. 2019.&nbsp;After months of physical therapy, Clark attempted a comeback with Beast MVP 2020 at a tournament in Georgia and pulled the plug soon after beginning to warm up. 
“It hurt,” Clark said. “I knew there I’d jumped back in too quick. . . . I wasn’t going to play ball again until this year.” 
In January, Clark visited upstate Ulster Community College and, after hitting for the coaches in the Senators' batting cage, could have made a commitment. But Clark and his father wanted to see what this spring season might bring. 
Could Clark apply to schools with Division I programs, walk on and possibly earn a scholarship for the last three years? Maybe, but&nbsp;as Kritikos says “you want the security that comes with knowing the coach wants you there and you are one of his guys – that’s more the sure thing. Then you kill it for a year and end up on scholarship where you should have been all along." 
“If there is a [Division I]&nbsp;scholarship, I’d say I’ll definitely go. If not, maybe it’s the JUCO&nbsp;route,” Clark said. “I am 100 percent and feel perfect when I throw now. I just hope there is a season, even if they have to make it a shorter one. I just want to play some ball.”

spCLARK200325

Plainedge's Braden Clark hopes to show colleges what he can do

Plainedge's Clark hopes to show colleges what he can do

spCLARK200325_photos

Johnny Castagnozzi has always enjoyed watching the television coverage of Major League Baseball’s draft. It became especially interesting to Massapequa’s senior shortstop last season as a number of people he’s played with were selected. 
This time, it could be his turn. 
MLB has suspended spring training, announced that Opening Day will be delayed and suggested that players not gather to work out. It has not as of yet changed the dates of its first-year player draft from June 10-12. 
“I always like watching it. It’s pretty cool,” he said. “Have I thought about what it would be like if my name was in it? Not a lot, but maybe a little.” 
Castagnozzi has been looking forward to his final high school&nbsp;season for so many reasons, though now it seems in limbo with Nassau County schools closed and all athletics postponed until at least the end of this month because of the coronavirus pandemic. 
He’s been a starting infielder for the Chiefs as they’ve won the past three Long Island Class AA championships and, as he says, “Who wouldn’t want to go 4-for-4?” Massapequa won the 2018 state title, was a semifinalist a year ago and he’d like to help fit the Chiefs for another state crown. He’s seen how seniors on the Massapequa team emerge as leaders and he wants to do that for this team. 
And he hopes his play – improved after so much offseason training – improves his draft stock to the point where it becomes a tough call between signing and going to play at the University of North Carolina. 
“It would all depend on the draft in June and how I’ve played this season,” Castagnozzi said. “I don’t think it’s something you can focus on though. You try to be the best player you can be for your team and whatever happens happens.” 
There is definitely interest. Gina Castagnozzi, his mother, said that more than a half a dozen MLB teams have done in-home visits with her son after evaluating him on the field. She said that more than half of the 30 teams have done measurements and testing on him – everything from vision and range of motion to reaction time. 
“Scouts watch you over the course of a bunch of years to track your development,” he said. “They have video of you from when you’re 15 or 16 and they look at video of you now to see what areas you’ve improved and how much you’ve improved. Last summer, I was hearing they liked my progressions from the year before. 
“I want this season for me and my team and win another state championship, but I’d also like the chance for [scouts]&nbsp;to see my game today. I didn’t play basketball this year so I could focus entirely on baseball. I’ve never felt so prepared for a season.” 
Some scouts last summer made suggestions about improving one or another facets in his game. 
"You listen but you don’t gear your training to one scout’s advice or another’s,"&nbsp;Castagnozzi said. 
He wanted to improve his speed this offseason, so he combined work strengthening his legs with agility drills. 
Regardless of what happens with Castagnozzi and the draft, he has essentially had a plan for the coming summer. He would go to North Carolina to take summer classes and begin baseball workouts for the Tar Heels, or&nbsp;depending on where he might get drafted and negotiations with a team, go play minor league baseball. But with the coronavirus pandemic, he’s not even certain about that. 
“I don’t know how long school will be closed, if we’re going to do classes online or if we’ll have to stay in school into the summer,” he said. “You have to finish school and graduate if you want to go to college.”

spCAST200325

Season in limbo could affect MLB draft status for Massapequa's Johnny Castagnozzi

Season in limbo could affect his MLB draft status

skMASS190501_gallery

This was&nbsp;supposed to be the spring they took their backyard game to the Baldwin varsity field. This was&nbsp;supposed to be the first time the three Bell brothers would take all those lacrosse memories from Eastern Boulevard to the turf fields across Nassau County. 
The Bell boys of Baldwin Harbor —&nbsp;Isaiah, Elijah and Aaron —&nbsp;are excited to play together this spring. But the opportunity may never come. 
“It is our dream to play together,” said Isaiah Bell, a junior defender. “We can’t wait to play together for Coach [Tim] Clancy on the varsity. It’s so exciting just to have my brothers with me on the team. There’s nothing better than family.” 
The spring high school season has been delayed during the coronavirus outbreak and many athletes are worried it could be canceled. 
“It would be crushing if the season is canceled,” Isaiah said. “I’ve been taking the possibility of no season really hard because this is my season — the one to shine and get college opportunities.” 
Bell, a 5-11, 165-pound lockdown defender, was looking at this season as a key for his college recruitment. It also is a&nbsp;chance to finally play with Elijah, a 5-10, 150-pound sophomore goalkeeper, and Aaron, a 5-9, 140-pound eighth-grade attackman. 
The oldest of the four brothers —&nbsp;Malcolm Bell II, a sophomore&nbsp;defender at the University of Hartford who also played for Baldwin —&nbsp;is home training with his younger brothers. 
Their&nbsp;parents —&nbsp;mother,&nbsp;Kimberly, a social worker, and father Malcolm, an NYPD detective for 27 years — said their&nbsp;children are very close and have remained upbeat through the uncertainity. 
“We’re blessed in that our boys truly care for one another and were really looking forward to the spring and playing together,” Kimberly Bell said. “It’s been really hard, very challenging. It’s a totally different world right now. I went up to get my [eldest] son Malcolm from college in Hartford. It’s good we’re all under the same roof. 
"This is important family time," she added, "and we encourage each other. I’m thankful my boys are generous to each other and share their knowledge and love. We are a family of faith and ultimately we trust in God.”
<figure class="image2 image" data-attr-f="default" data-attr-img-credits="" data-attr-img-height="" data-attr-img-width="" data-attr-show-caption="true" data-href="#/content/contentid/image.1.43419968" data-onecms-id="contentid/image.1.43419968" data-onecms-type="image">
 <img alt="" src="/image-service/alias/contentid/image.1.43419968/1.43419968.jpg?f=default"> 
 <figcaption></figcaption> 
</figure>
 
The Bell brothers hope to join talented juniors Nick Metzguer-Schiro and Juan Ventura and begin a rebirth of Baldwin lacrosse, which finished 2-12 last season. 
“We’re rebuilding Baldwin lacrosse from the bottom up, starting with our youth program,” Clancy said. “We had a tough schedule for the talent level here last year. We learned, we grew as a team and we’re young. Our best is right in front of us. And now we wait.” 
Clancy, a second-year coach,&nbsp;pointed to Metzguer-Schiro, a midfielder who was injured in mid-February during winter workouts, as a player who could have had a breakout season. Metzguer-Schiro tore his right anterior cruciate ligament and had surgery a month ago.
<figure class="image2 image" data-attr-f="default" data-attr-img-credits="" data-attr-img-height="" data-attr-img-width="" data-attr-show-caption="true" data-href="#/content/contentid/image.1.43423815" data-onecms-id="contentid/image.1.43423815" data-onecms-type="image">
 <img alt="" src="/image-service/alias/contentid/image.1.43423815/1.43423815.jpg?f=default"> 
 <figcaption></figcaption> 
</figure>
 
Despite the injury, Metzguer-Schiro is optimistic for&nbsp;a full recovery. His diversion from the COVID-19 outbreak is to concentrate on his rehabilitation. 
“There are better days ahead for Nick Metzguer-Schiro and better days for everyone,” he said. “I have to stay positive in my situation. But everyone is in a difficult situation now with the coronavirus.” 
Ventura, a righthanded shooter who&nbsp;is expected to lead the Bruins' offense, said everyone is adjusting to the situation, including taking classes from home. 
"Online schooling is much harder than being in person and face-to-face with teachers,"&nbsp;Ventura said. "There’s a lot of work and it takes a lot of discipline to do your schoolwork on your own, not be distracted, and keep on track."

SPBALD200327

Bell brothers' dream of playing lacrosse together at Baldwin on hold

Bell brothers' dream of playing lacrosse together on hold

spBALD200325_photos

Every sport has its own rhythm when it comes to recruiting. College programs in some sports start offering scholarships and getting verbal commitments from high schoolers as early as ninth or 10th grade. In track and field, the beat really picks up during junior year in the outdoor season. 
Freeport’s Christian Quinn was hoping to be front and center for that crescendo. 
Quinn, a&nbsp;junior long jump specialist, made his first appearance on the national scene during the indoor season. During the winter, he hit his personal best of 23 feet, 5 inches – the 13th best distance in the nation in the 2019-20 season – and also captured the New York State championship in the event. Though the national championships were canceled&nbsp;because of the COVID-19 outbreak, a handful of power conference programs made initial overtures. 
A strong outdoor season likely would turn him into a top recruit nationally. However, the school closings and postponement of the spring sports seasons on Long Island have thrust that possibility into limbo. 
“He went 23-5 this season and most of his jumps came in competition because we don’t have facilities to practice jumps indoors,” Freeport coach Charles Gilreath said. “He would improve on that number outdoors because he can train now. If he can go 24-to-25 feet, he can write his ticket to almost any top college program in the country.” 
“I have been looking forward to the recruiting that might come from the coming season,” Quinn said. “After the indoor [season], I had a few colleges hit me up, had me fill out questionnaires and there was some small talk between us. They can’t do that now [because of NCAA rules], but I want to see what it looks like if I can meet my goals for the outdoor season.” 
The Red Devils’ Jaden Mason, a junior who competes in the 55-, 100- and 200-meter dashes, faces similar circumstances. After transferring from West Hempstead to Freeport, he hoped that competing at the upper level and against better competition might bring out his best and put him in a position to get a scholarship offer from a major Division I program. 
“A scholarship is going to be important to me and this is when things usually happen in track and field,” he said. “I am hoping to get the kind of school I want to go to – the ACC or SEC – to see me. This season is when I can make an impression.” 
Quinn also plays cornerback and wideout on Freeport’s Long Island Class A champion football team. A preference for one sport over the other hasn’t emerged, but that could turn out to&nbsp;be another shot at earning a scholarship. A sizeable percentage of football recruits commit during their senior year. 
In the meantime, Quinn will walk the mile to Freeport, where the outdoor track is still open, to train. Given the recent edicts from Albany, he sees himself working out on a treadmill at home more often. He really wants the chance to surpass 24 feet in the long jump, he said, “because 24 is a great number for [college]&nbsp;coaches.” 
“It’s not just me. Everyone on our team is working out,” Quinn said. “Whenever we can play our season, we want to be just as good as if we’d been practicing as a team all this time.”

spQUINN200325

Freeport's Christian Quinn is one of the top track recruits in the country

Freeport's Quinn is one of the top recruits in nation

spQUINN200325_photos

Alissa Braxton’s dream of a national championship hangs in the balance. 
One year ago, the Commack senior capped her junior season by finishing third in the country at the New Balance Nationals Outdoor with a distance of 41 feet, 8.75 inches. First and second place went to a pair of seniors. As the top returning performer this spring, she is one of the favorites to claim the 2020 title. 
Now it’s unclear if she will get that chance. School cancellations and the postponement of the spring seasons for athletics on Long Island because of the nationwide COVID-19 outbreak mean nothing is a certainty – not the Suffolk County, New York State or national championships. 
“They were the seniors and they finished ahead of me last year. Now I am the senior,” Braxton said. “Over the summer and fall, I have trained to be the best I can be. That not only meant getting stronger, but working on every aspect of my technique. You put lots of little things together and it can add up to something big. 
“Now no one knows what will happen with this season.” 
The chance at a national championship would be motivation enough for Braxton, who will go to the University of Florida on scholarship next year. But she looks to the spring season with an added dose. After winning state titles in both the indoor and outdoor triple jump as a junior, she didn’t repeat in the indoor season. 
Braxton’s best distance during the winter season was 41-10, but at the state meet she went only 40-4 on what she called “a rough day” where she encountered an ankle issue and finished second by one-half inch. 
“Indoor didn’t go the way I wanted so I am very motivated for this spring season,” she said. “I am physically 100 percent. I am not over-confident, now what I am capable of. I should have a chance at [nationals] outdoor.” 
Her dream in a&nbsp;holding pattern, Braxton holds close her hope for a spring season. She has weight training equipment, a treadmill and an elliptical trainer at home and tries not to let bad scenarios – like the chance there will be no spring season – blur her focus. 
“A national championship would be a huge achievement,” Braxton said. “I’d like to get [the] chance for it.”

spBRAXTON200325

Commack's Alissa Braxton wants a chance at a national championship

Commack's Braxton wants a shot at national title

spBRAXTON200325_photos

It’s been several years since the Hempstead girls lacrosse team won a game. So long, in fact, that neither the coach nor the players know precisely how long. They acknowledge that they don’t know if it's realistic to think they might win a game this season. 
But here is what everyone around the team is certain about: this season is supposed to be about making progress, with an eye on the future.&nbsp;With a junior-laden team and a second-year coach with a strong background in lacrosse, Hempstead was focused on building a program that would begin reaping benefits in a year. 
Now, however, everything is in flux as the coronavirus pandemic has closed schools across Long Island until at least April 1 and there's no definitive answer as to when -- or if -- sports will return. 
“These girls just need the opportunity to play and develop their skills,” coach Ray Mills said. “Last year we spent so much time on the basics, like learning how to catch and throw. This year we were focused on playing as many games as possible.” 
Mills is a retired Wyandanch teacher who lives in Islip. His three children all played the game collegiately. And a decade ago, he was inducted into the Long Island Metropolitan Lacrosse Foundation Hall of Fame. So he knows the game. 
Twice a week in the summer he held open practices, then every Saturday in the fall. He was in talks with Copiague, Brentwood and North Babylon about scheduling scrimmages this season. He also planned to take the team to a four-team, round-robin scrimmage at Center Moriches.&nbsp; 
All of this was being done, Mills said, with an eye on preparing the team of about 20 for next year when the majority of the returning players are seniors.&nbsp; 
“I could already see a difference when we started practicing this year, even though it was only for a week,” he said. “Most of them already played together last year, so they knew what to do. That’s big.”&nbsp; 
With the season now in limbo, the players are disappointed. 
“I’ve been talking to my teammates, they’re all real bummed,”&nbsp;junior attack Natalia Romero said. “I get that this is something we can’t control. But we were even planning to go to the park on our own and play, but they also canceled that too. We’re all just disappointed.” 
Romero said the difference she saw in the team in just five days of practice this month compared with last year was significant. 
“Last year was kind of weird for the first time playing because this game takes a lot of practice,” junior attack Jennifer Guevara said. “I was looking forward to playing the game for fun this year. I hope the girls don’t give up on lacrosse because of this situation that has nothing to do with it.” 
Mills said he is trying to keep them engaged by sending group text messages telling them how sports is about overcoming obstacles, and this is one of them. He’s even floated the idea of joining a summer league program to get them additional game time. 
“Certainly there are girls on the team that I believe have the ability to play lacrosse in&nbsp;college, and have the grades to do so,” he said. “They just need to play more. 
“This team is back next year, everyone. Usually you have one or two or five seniors graduating. But this? This is ideal. Two years of doing something together, that’s what you want. So we’re just sitting here hoping, staying positive about the future.”

spHEMP200325

Hempstead girls lacrosse may lose key development season

spHEMP200325_photos

Laura Albanese

Morgan Tesser’s softball season is getting plenty of spectators. 
Sure, it’s taking place on empty&nbsp;fields, or in her pool, where she takes big, smooth swings underwater, her quick bat moving in slow motion. There’s a video of her taking hacks in her driveway, or in an empty batting cage, and, at one point, her opponent is a rubber tire anchored on a long, metal tee. That exercise is good for hand strength, she said. Frustration, too. 
All the while, the Bellmore JFK junior is being watched by hundreds, and sometimes thousands of people on Twitter. College players have contacted her, she said, as have college coaches. And though she got exposure from her 18-under&nbsp;national travel team, Jersey Intensity, and has been on varsity since eighth grade, junior year is often pivotal for softball players looking to get recruited by major programs. 
Tesser is trying to swing and longtoss her way to a shaky sense of normalcy during these uncertain times as the coronavirus pandemic has led to school closures and a spring sports season that remains up in the air. She is texting with her teammates and shooting her videos with her dad, Lawrence. She hits while her boyfriend fields those hits in the outfield – the couple-hundred feet are social-distance acceptable. She practices constantly. 
“It’s just been a way for me to get myself out there,” said the third baseman, who dreams of playing in a Division I school in the south. “I feel like more people will start to do it. The first day of this whole thing [when they postponed the spring season], we put out a video and it got 8,000 views. People are just sitting on their phones. I think everyone will start to, now.” 
Lawrence Tesser actually started shooting the videos sometime last year, he said. His daughter is talented, but with her height – 5-foot-3 – he wanted to make sure recruiters saw she played bigger than she was. Morgan has stayed positive, he said, but he knows that the postponement – and possible cancelation – of this season&nbsp;is difficult. 
“It’s been really disappointing to her,” he said, noting that Bellmore has no junior varsity, and only about a dozen kids on the varsity team. “They were really looking forward to this year because next year, we don’t even know if we’ll have enough kids to field a team. 
"My heart really goes out to these kids because some of them, the seniors and juniors, this may be their last chance." 
As for Morgan, she’ll keep trying, keep practicing, keep posting, and keep getting those eyes on her swing. After all, as her Twitter feed says: “Social distance = 60 ft.”

spTESSER200325

Bellmore JFK's Morgan Tesser takes her softball recruitment to Twitter

Bellmore JFK's Tesser takes her recruitment to Twitter

spTESSER

Ruby Comeau waited four years for this. It may have ended after just two practices. 
The Eastport-South Manor senior gave up softball in eighth grade&nbsp;after her travel team disbanded and financial constraints meant she couldn’t join another one, she said. 
She had jobs and personal expenses to concentrate on, and high school softball was a luxury her time would not abide. She instead decided to get a job, working in retail, bussing tables, at times working two jobs while attending school full-time. 
Comeau, 18, saved up everything she could in the hopes that she could return to the sport she loved and to be part of a team again. 
“I always wanted to go to college for softball but then I couldn’t get that because I started working and had to start taking on some responsibilities,” she said. “But I thought that maybe my senior year, maybe I would get the chance to just feel free in a way.” 
“Honestly, it would mean the world to me” to just play once. 
With spring sports postponed – and in danger of cancelation – due to the coronavirus pandemic, Comeau is slowly coming to terms with the fact that she may not be able to live out this dream. 
"It's heartbreaking," said Ruby's mother, Kristin. "As soon as I found out she made the team, I was like, 'Give me a list of all your home games. I want to go.' " 
Kristin Comeau said Ruby bought her own car,&nbsp;paid for the insurance and saved enough to cover life expenses, freeing her up to take the time she needed to dedicate herself to softball one last time. 
"It's hard," Kristin Comeau said. "I don't know --&nbsp;it's all kind of surreal, everything that's happening." 
Ruby Comeau was thrilled to make the team and said she knew she might not be able to start at her old position – shortstop – but she was willing to play wherever, just as long as she could play. Her coach, Laura Ward, did tell her starting could be a possibility, but first she had to shake off the rust. Two practices later, everything stopped. 
“I would be really upset” if the whole thing was canceled, she said. “We’re trying to be positive about it." 
Her teammates are in constant contact and often FaceTime, she said, trying to encourage each other as the long days get longer. 
“My teammates are honestly so nice,” she said. “They’re totally accepting of you. I did have a hard time in high school fitting in, so it’s nice to have these girls just be your friends. ... It took only took a week to feel like I was part of a family.”

spRUBY200325

Ruby Comeau's last chance to play high school softball may not happen

Ruby's last chance to play

spRUBY

How high school athletes are coping with season in limbo

Newsday

spHS200325_photos

More High Schools

hs article rail

Frederick also went 1-for-2 at the plate with an RBI and a walk.

St. Dominic's Frederick fans eight in win over Chaminade

Mepham's Avery Betancourt had a week to savor.

Diamond Stars: Top baseball and softball performers this week

Catch up on action from across Long Island.

HS roundup: Basil walks off for Glen Cove; more baseball, softball, lacrosse, flag football

Team, community honor player lacrosse fanatic who died last August after a nearly year-long battle against Acute myeloid leukemia.

Ava's Army: Salonia forever a part of Oceanside

Senior is hitting .500 with a 1.230 OPS, eight RBIs and five runs to start the season.

Athlete of the Week is Roslyn's Weisser

Subscribe to Newsday's high school sports newsletter.

High School Sports Newsletter Widget

HS roundup: Catania stars for Smithtown West; more baseball, softball, lacrosse, flag football

HS Trending Bar

High school scores

All-Long Island teams

College commitments

High school history

High School - megaslot

Follow your favorite local High School sports team. Full coverage of Long Island High School Sports including football, basketball, baseball, plus many other sports.