2010 West Islip High School Fall Sports Recap

The 2010 West Islip high school varsity fall sports season has officially come to a close, and while the Lions didn't win a county championship this season, there were plenty of teams played into November with exciting playoff runs.

Record: 8-1-3 League III, 13-1-3 Overall

Head coach Nick Grieco and assistant coach Jim Albert led their team to its third straight Suffolk County Class AA Final on Wednesday, Nov. 10.  As they have all season, through a grueling 80 minutes of regulation and 30 minutes of overtime before the county title was decided on sudden death penalty kicks. The Lions fell one kick short of their second straight county title, but it was hard to not be impressed yet again with their performance.

"This team never gives up and they give 100 percent effort," head coach Nick Grieco said. "If someone told us at the beginning of the year that we'd be in the county finals again for the third year in a row with a new group of 24 girls I'd say you're crazy, but these kids did an outstanding job. They should be very proud."

led the Lions with 17 points and 13 goals, while senior had another spectacular season in net, notching 13 shutouts.

Boys Soccer

Record: 11-1-1 League II, 13-3-1 Overall

The boys soccer team got off to a flying start with a , followed by nine straight league victories. They clinched the League II title in the final game of the regular season, a 4-1 win over Central Islip on Oct. 28. The, 3-2, in the first round to set up a quarterfinal showdown with No.4 Brentwood. The Lions fell to for the second time in 2010, ending their playoff run.

Senior forward was third on Long Island with a team-leading 28 points, while junior led the Lions and was fifth on Long Island and third in Suffolk County with 17 goals.

Record: 4-4 Division II, 4-5 Overall

The Lions earned the No.8 seed in the Suffolk County playoffs after a . Unfortunately for the Lions, rival East Islip fielded an impressive team in 2010 and earned the No.1 seed to set up a quarterfinal matchup between the two, .

starred for the Lions this season showing impressive skills as both a passer and a runner. Despite the loss in the quarterfinals, head coach Steve Mileti was very proud of his team's performance this season.

"To play …It's an honor," he said.  It's an honor to coach these guys, they're tremendous kids with tremendous character. These kids will do anything for me and I'd do anything for them.  They're great athletes, students and people.  I wouldn't want to be doing anything else." 

Girls Volleyball

Record: 11-2 League II, 15-5 Overall

The Lions earned the No.5 seed in the playoffs after finishing second in League II in 2010. They in the first round of the playoffs before upsetting No.4 Connetquot in the quarterfinals, 3-1. The Lions drew the short straw in the semifinals and had to face .

Record: 8-5-1 Division II, 8-6-1 Overall

Jessica Boden led the team with 11 goals and keeper Jessica Honan recorded four shutouts in a strong season in net for the Lions. hunt until losing its final two games of the season to Bayport-Blue Point and Connetquot.

Boys Volleyball

Record: 5-8

The and Whitman twice in 2010 to go along with a win over Comsewogue and were 5-4 before losing their final four games in a row to miss out on the playoffs.

Cross Country

Girls League Record: 3-2

Boys League Record: 0-3

The in 2010 and fielded some very competitive runners. The boys season was highlighted with a. The team was led all season by a strong top five – along with freshman standout Scott Nelson.

For the girls, Ali Foote finished first in all of the Lions' wins and finished a few three-mile races in the 18-minute time range. Jessica Ball also ran well for the girls in 2010.

Record: 6-1-0 League II, 6-2-0 Overall

Swimmers Rachel Morgano, Bridget Whalen, Julia English, Andie Cuiffo and Carli Zukowski teamed with divers Ashley Carter and Rebecca Olson to lead the Lions to a first place finish in Suffolk County League II.

Boys Golf

Record: 8-1 League IV, 8-1-1 Overall

The golf team had a spectacular season in 2010, highlighted by winning the Molloy Cup, a four-team, end of the season tournament at Sumpwams Golf Course in Babylon. James Sullivan, the team's No. 1, led the way with a 1-over par 28. 

Patch was able to catch a match against Lindenhurst at .  The county tournament will be this May, stay tuned to see how mnay West Islip players qualified.