Led by the largest one-year increase in girls participation in 16 years, the overall number of participants in high school sports increased for the 28th consecutive year in 2016-17, according to the annual High School Athletics Participation Survey conducted by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS).

Based on figures from the 51 NFHS member state high school associations, which includes the District of Columbia, the number of participants in high school sports reached an all-time high of 7,963,535. The increase of 94,635 participants from 2015-16 is the largest one-year jump in overall participation since the 2008-09 school year.

The top 10 states by participants remained the same; however, Florida moved ahead of Michigan to seventh position this year. Texas and California topped the list again with 834,558 and 800,364 participants, respectively, followed by New York (367,849), Illinois (341,387), Ohio (340,146), Pennsylvania (319,153), Florida (310,567), Michigan (295,647), New Jersey (283,655) and Minnesota (239,289).

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Rich Castellano graduated from Deer Park and made a legacy as the girls’ basketball coach at Northport.

For his efforts he was officially inducted to the NYSPHSAA Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony in late July at the 1000 Island Harbor Hotel in Clayton, NY.

Since starting his coaching career in 1979, Castellano has won 613 games as head coach of the girls basketball team at Northport High School, ranking him top five in New York State.

Furthermore, he won 24 league titles, ten Suffolk County Championships, five Long Island Championships, was a New York State Semi Finalist three times, and a New York State Finalist once in 1992.

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Each year the winner of the Lt. Ray Enners Award is profiled on RayEnnersAwardWinners.com.

Chris Gray did a Q&A about his lacrosse career, his future and the overall meaning of the award in his eyes.

“Receiving the Raymond Enners Award has been a great personal experience. Not because of the individual accolade but because it inspired me to really learn who Ray Enners was,” he said. “Being mentioned in the same sentence as Ray Enners is a great honor. His accomplishments in the class, on the field and in battle inspire me to live my life as Mr. Enners did each and every day.”

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It’s almost that time of year! 7-on-7 football sessions have kicked off around Suffolk County.

Check out some images from recent action at Connetquot including the Thunderbirds, Sayville, Brentwood, Kings Park, William Floyd, Pat-Med and Hills East.

Photo Credit Bob Sorensen

Two student-athletes from Section XI have been selected for the 2017-2018 New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC).

Amanda DiDonato from Mount Sinai High School and Matt Weltmann from Half Follow Hills High School East earned the honor.

This year 13 new members will join the SAAC teaming with the nine returning members who served as juniors last year. Members were chosen based on an academic resume which included GPA, extracurricular activities, and participation in sports. In all, the SAAC is made up of two student-athlete representatives from each of the eleven sections in New York State.

The SAAC was developed to give student-athletes a voice within the NYSPHSAA. Over the course of the school year, the committee will discuss topics relevant to high school student-athletes and develop ways to maintain a positive athletic experience. Each committee member is expected to exemplify leadership while providing feedback of NYSPHSAA special programs including, but not limited to, Scholar-Athlete, Sportsmanship, Life of an Athlete, Student Leadership, and Community Service. A total of 88 student-athletes applied to be members of this years SAAC.

“We are looking forward to working with the new members and returning members of the SAAC this school year,” said Robert Zayas NYSPHSAA Executive Director. “Having student voices in our organization is key to providing feedback to further enhance and improve our programs with our member schools. We congratulate the members of the SAAC on their selection to this committee.”

The SAAC will meet via tele conference during the school year. The first meeting will take place Sunday, September 24.

Lindenhurst native Jeremy Ruckert has committed to play football at Ohio State University.

Ruckert made the biggest splash of the summer in terms of local high school news with his decision that went viral on social media Monday afternoon.

He was choosing between Ohio State, Michigan, Wisconsin and Notre Dame.

“They always were a step ahead of everybody else,” said Ruckert, who had 117 receptions for 1,624 yards and 13 touchdowns in his last two years at Lindenhurst, told Newsday. “All four schools were very similar on the field and education-wise, but the way they were really interactive with my family and all my close friends, they stuck out, and that was one of the main reasons there.

Read the full story on Newsday!

Let’s welcome new Section XI Executive Director, Tom Combs, and Assistant Director, Pete Blieberg, who both officially started July 1!

More to come over the coming months from their perspectives as they dive into their new roles.