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The Executive Director's Desk

Farewell Column from Section XI Director, Don Webster

The end of the spring sports season brings to conclusion another great year of interscholastic athletics in Suffolk County.

We wish to congratulate the 62 member schools, coaches and 85,000-plus student-athletes for their outstanding achievements in the athletic venues, classrooms and communities. Your honors, awards and contributions continues to amaze us all. You have left us with so many great memories and we only hope that you will look back on your experiences as fondly as we do.

To the graduating seniors we wish you the best of luck in the next chapter in your lives and thank you for your leadership.  To our returning student-athletes we look forward to a great 2017-2018 and can’t wait to see what lies ahead.

Special thanks goes out to all of the athletic directors in our schools.  It is through their dedication, leadership and commitment that all of this is possible. Kudos to each of them and their office staff for pulling it all together.

I would also like to recognize and thank the Section XI office staff for all that they do behind the scenes. Chris, Beth, Leigh, Carla, Kathy, Lisa, Taryn and Nick work diligently with the member schools, officials/coaches associations and athletic directors to organize and implement 25,000-plus athletic contests per year.   I can’t say enough about their dedication and commitment to their role in the interscholastic process. They are to be commended.

On a personal note I will be retiring from Section XI on June 30.  I have been fortunate to have been a part of this great organization for the past 36 years.  I can’t thank the athletic directors, past and present, for their support, cooperation, assistance and friendship.    It has truly been my honor to have been a part of the best section in New York State.

New Executive Director, Tom Combs, and Assistant Director, Pete Blieberg, are outstanding professionals who will step in and provide great leadership to the section. I wish them the best of luck and hope they enjoy their experiences in the section office as much as I have.

Thank you to everyone who makes Section XI so great!

Section XI News

Suffolk County Natives Drafted by MLB Teams

Suffolk County faired very well during the 2017 Major League Baseball draft, netting seven players who were selected by pro teams.

A handful will likely stay the course and play collegiate baseball, but many were selected out of college and will enter the professional ranks this summer.

Here’s a look at who was selected:

  • Jesse Berardi: Commack HS / St. John’s – Indians, 10th rd., 312 overall
  • Michael Donadio: Mt. Sinai HS / St. John’s – Marlins, 30th rd., 899 overall
  • Ben Brown: Ward Melville HS – Phillies – 33rd rd., 983 overall
  • Ricky Negron: Babylon HS – Braves – 34th rd., 1010 overall
  • Dan Jagiello: West Islip HS / LIU Post – Dodgers, 34th rd., 1030 overall
  • Brian Morrell: Shoreham-Wading River HS – Phillies, 35th rd., 1043 overall
  • Tyler Osik: Shoreham-Wading River HS / Chipola College  – Pirates, 40th rd., 1198 overall

Of course Suffolk County is well represented with the emergence of Marcus Stroman and Steve Matz over the last few seasons.

The northeast continues to be a hotbed of talent that has increased in recent years.

Congratulations to all players who were drafted, and good luck to everyone who is angling to sign free agent contracts this month!

Suffolk to the Pros

Suffolk to the Pros: Rob Pannell

If you’re from Long Island lacrosse is not taken for granted. The rest of the country, anything is possible.

When it comes to lacrosse there are a handful of names that stand out, and in the modern era, one of the premier players of the game hales from Suffolk County.

Smithtown native Rob Pannell is one of the greatest players in NCAA history and is forging his way as one of the most marketable players in the pro game today.

Pannell, who played at Smithtown, then briefly at Deerfield Academy before starring at Cornell. Today he plays for the New York Lizards of Major League Lacrosse.

Pannell Notes

  • NCAA Second place all time for NCAA points (354 career points)
  • 2013 Tewaaraton Trophy
  • 2x Lt. Raymond Enners Award (2011, 2013)
  • 2x Jack Turnbull Award (2010, 2011)
  • NCAA Division I Men’s Lacrosse Championship Finalist (2009)
  • 3x Ivy League Player of the Year (2010, 2011, 2013)
  • 4x First Team All-Ivy League (2009, 2010, 2011, 2013)
  • ESPY Nominee for Best Collegiate Athlete (2011)
  • MLL: Single Season Points Record (74)
  • MLL Offensive Player of the Year (2016)
  • MLL Rookie of the Year (2013)
  • MLL All-Star (2013, 2014, 2015, 2016)
  • MLL All-Pro (2014, 2015, 2016)
  • Member of Team USA (2014)
  • All-World (2014)
  • FIL Most Outstanding Attackman (2014)
Section XI News

Suffolk County Lacrosse Championship Week

It’s lacrosse championship week in Suffolk County!

Girls’ championship game results:

  • Class A: Middle Country 13, Northport, 3
  • Class B: ESM 15, Rocky Point 8
  • Class C: Mt. Sinai 9, Bayport 6
  • Class D: Mattituck already clinched victory!

Boys’ championship game results:

  • Class A: Ward Melville 9, Smithtown East 8
  • Class B: ESM 7, East Islip 5
  • Class C: SWR 13, Islip 7
  • Class D: Babylon already clinched victory!

Brackets: Click to review all previous games and results from this year.

Follow @SectXISuffolk on Twitter for updates!

Section XI News

Section XI Honors Sponsors, Partners

Thank you so much to all of our sponsors and partners from the 2016-2017 year. Your support means a tremendous amount!

  • Major General Kok presents US Army Service Award to Nick DeCillis, Section XI Administrative Assistant for Corporate Sponsorship
  • Section XI Coporate Sponsor, Jennifer Gunn, TFCU
  • Section XI Sponsor, Russell Cohen, Laser/Residential/Sprinturf
  • Section XI sponsor, Lucy Mazany, Signature Bank
  • Section XI Sponsor, Don Hoffman, Cullen and Danowski
  • Section XI Sponsor, Harold Schwab, Steve Schwab, Schwab’s 2nd Wind
  • Section XI sponsor, Bob LoNigro, Emily LoNigro, Port Jeff Sports
  • Section XI Sponsor, Major General Kok, Captain Imbriaco, First Sergeant Willhite

 

Section XI News

NYSPHSAA Announces Spring Scholar-Athlete Teams, Individuals

The New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) announces its spring 2017 Scholar-Athlete teams and individuals. This is the 25th year the NYSPHSAA has conducted the Scholar-Athlete program, which is sponsored by Pupil Benefits Plan, Inc.

This spring 2,064 teams received the Scholar-Athlete Team Award. Even more impressive, 35,301 student-athletes received an individual grade point average of 90.00 or above, and have been recognized as Individual Scholar-Athletes. The change in this year’s program resulted in over 1,200 more individual scholar-athletes being recognized during this spring season compared to the spring 2016 season.

“Congratulations to our member schools and student-athletes,” said Executive Director Robert Zayas. “We continue to be proud of this program especially this year in which we recognized an additional 1,200 student-athletes achieving high standards in the classroom. We are excited to have the opportunity to expand this program to honor even more students for the academic excellence.”

The School of Excellence and School of Distinction Awards will be given to deserving schools over the summer. The School of Excellence Award recognizes schools who have 75% of its varsity programs receive the Scholar-Athlete Team Award over the academic school year. The School of Distinction Award recognizes schools who have 100% of its varsity programs receive the Scholar-Athlete Team Award.

The full list of Scholar-Athlete Teams and Individuals for the 2017 spring season can be found HERE!