Sports
Marines Prep for Playoffs
Long Beach give backup wrestlers experience in last round of dual meet matches before qualifiers.
Wrestlers from Long Beach, East Meadow, Seaford, Mineola and Bethpage squared off on Saturday at East Meadow High School to get their final matches in before the dual meet playoffs and qualifying tournaments begin.
In first place in Conference II, Long Beach showed up to EMHS with their Varsity B Team to get some of their younger guys varsity experience before the qualifier tournament.
With a lineup of virtually all backups, it was a rough day for the Marines, losing all three of their matches. But the matches were more a means to prepare for upcoming matches.
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“We rested most of our starters but saw some good stuff,” Assistant Coach Leo Pallacio said. “We wanted our guys to get ready for the qualifier.”
East Meadow
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Host school East Meadow dominated the day, winning all four of their matches. The injury-plagued Jets bounced back quickly after losing a close match the night before to Massapequa at home, 42-30.
“They responded really well, I am proud of the guys,” Coach Chris Crithcley said.
East Meadow closed their regular dual meet season winning ten out of their last eleven matches.
“All the kids on the team [are] scoring big,” senior Andrew Danzinger said. “It is the end of the season and we’re all peaking.”
Number-one ranked Danzinger continued his dominance in the county, getting pins in all four of his matches.
Seaford
The Vikings took Saturday as a chance to get their healthy guys matches and prepare their team for the upcoming playoffs. Seaford went 1-2 in dual meet action.
“We are not worried about the score; just getting ready for the playoffs,” Coach Rob Takseraas said.
That mentality was echoed by last year’s county champ Will Montgomery of Seaford wrestling, who, at 119, took each match he had on Saturday as a learning experience and preperation.
“I wanted to do one thing each match to get better,” Montgomery said.
Mineola
The Mustangs faced an uphill battle against the other schools, having to forfeit four matches due to a shortage of wrestlers.
“Giving up 24 points, it is tough to win,” Coach Dan Guido said. “If we do well I am happy.”
Mineola went 1-2 on the day, with a victory over Long Beach 44-42.
Final Scores
Bethpage 56
Seaford 27
East Meadow 66
Long Beach 15
Long Beach 21
Seaford 45
Mineola 35
Bethpage 48
East Meadow 55
Mineola 24
Long Beach 42
Mineola 44
Bethpage 28
East Meadow 45
East Meadow 51
Seaford 24
