East Hampton High’s boys swimming team improved its league record to 3-2-1 by defeating Northport 82-58 at the Y.M.C.A. East Hampton RECenter on Jan. 11; four sophomores, Dylan Cashin, Melina Sarlo, Riley Miles, and Ryleigh O’Donnell, set a distance medley relay record at the Zeitler Relays Saturday; Ethan Mitchell, who coaches Bonac’s wrestling team, was impressed by some of his charges’ performances last week, and Pierson (Sag Harbor) High’s boys basketball team, the state’s second-ranked Class C team, whose record was 8-0 as of Monday, was to begin testing itself tonight against League VIII’s Class B teams.
The Whalers are to play host to Southampton, which is also unbeaten in league play, at Pierson’s gym tonight at 6:15. Pierson’s coach, Will Fujita, agreed that it would be a challenge. How his charges handle the Mariners’ full-court press ought to be the determinant.
The Whalers’ attack is balanced. “We don’t really depend on one or two guys, the ball goes to whoever is open,” said Fujita. “We’re not looking for anyone in particular. . . . Arguably, it’s the toughest part of our season coming up.” Southampton, Center Moriches, Mattituck, and Babylon are the B schools in League VIII. The state’s top-ranked C school was Moriah, Fujita said.
Yani Cuesta, East Hampton’s girls winter track coach, brought a dozen competitors — from a roster numbering 19 — to the Zeitler Relays at Suffolk Community College-Brentwood. “Some were quarantining, some were away,” she said, “but we took home three bronze medals,” in the distance medley relay, the sprint medley relay, and in the 4-by-400 relay.
Cashin led off the distance medley relay, running 1,200 meters in 4 minutes and 7.29 seconds. Sarlo followed with a 68.11 in the 400. Miles turned in a 2:48.82 in the 800, and O’Donnell anchored the team with a 5:38.60 in the 1,600. Their combined time of 13:41.92 bested the 13:50.71 that Penelope Greene, Bella Espinoza, Hannah Medler, and Ava Engstrom had run in January 2020, Cuesta said.
East Hampton’s sprint medley relay team of Khalila Martin (400), Lyla Wilson (200), Kate McMillan (200), and Briana Chavez (800) also finished third, as did the 4-by-4 team of Sarlo, Martin, Cashin, and O’Donnell. Their 4:36.68 was not far off the 4:34.04 that Devon Brown, Ana Toledo, Alexa Berti, and Elizabeth Bistrian ran in January 2016, which remains the record.
Casey Stumpf and Kristina Baratta teamed up in the shot-put and triple jump relays, placing seventh in the latter event with a combined distance of 50 feet 11 1/4 inches.
Bonac’s wrestlers lost 66-6 to East Islip, one of the league’s top three teams — and a wild card entry in the county’s dual meet championships — here on Friday. Four of the losses, worth 24 points, were by forfeit, at 102, 172, 215, and 285 pounds. Of those contested, Mitchell was impressed by Juan Roque and J.P. Amaden’s grit at 118 and 132. Matched against strong opponents, both wrestled off their backs for most of the time, but refused to be pinned.
Cooper Ceva at 145 “lost a close one, 7-5,” and Caleb Peralta at 126 and Santi Maya at 138 had impressive wins. Peralta won 8-3, and Maya, whose first competition it was in a while, led 5-1 going into the second period and held on for a 6-3 decision. After that Gus Hayes at 152, Joe Scully at 160, Jose Calderon at 89, and Josue Elias at 110 were pinned.
East Hampton wrestled in a tournament at Copiague High School Saturday. Peralta went 3-1 on the day, losing to the county’s number-one 126-pounder in the final; Amaden, at 132, went 3-2, taking fourth, and Ceva, at 138, went 2-2. The team was to have had a nonleague match at William Floyd yesterday, and is to take part in a tri-meet at Southampton Saturday. The other team will be Centereach.
“Middle school wrestling begins tomorrow,” Mitchell said Monday. “Steve Redlus and John Augi, a new teacher who wrestled at Bellport, are the coaches. We’ve had very good turnouts lately. Coach Redlus is our Pied Piper.”
As for the swim meet with Northport, East Hampton won eight of the 12 events contested, with Tenzin Tamang swimming a county-qualifying time in the 200 freestyle and with the 400 free relay team (Luke Tarbet, Aidan McCormac, Tamang, and Dan Piver) doing the same.
East Hampton’s winners were: the 200 medley relay team of Cristian Sigua, Piver, Tarbet, and McCormac; Piver in the 200 individual medley; McCormac in the 50 and 100 free; Tarbet in the 100 butterfly; the 200 free relay team of Tamang, McCormac, Ottavio Pettrocino, and Owen Robins; Sigua in the 100 backstroke, and the 400 free relay team of Tarbet, McCormac, Tamang, and Piver, which was exhibitioned, i.e., the 8 points it would have got for the win were forgone.
Jack Ziemer, a Pierson freshman, was the captains’ pick as swimmer of the meet, in which he swam in the 500 freestyle (for the first time) and anchored East Hampton’s B 400 free relay team.
East Hampton’s final home meet, with Lindenhurst, was to have been held here at the Y yesterday.