Bears take over in second half of tight contest
The Haldane boys’ lacrosse team, seeded No. 2 in the Section I, Class D tournament, managed to stay a step ahead of No. 6 Briarcliff through most of the first half on May 26 in Cold Spring.
But the Blue Devils could not hold off the visitors, who turned the tide in the second half and advanced with a 10-8 victory. The Bears (9-10) went on to lose to No. 1 Pleasantville (19-1) in the championship game on Wednesday (May 31).
Haldane found itself trailing 2-0 halfway through the first period but tied the game at 2-2 on a goal by Frankie DiGiglio with 2:28 left. The Blue Devils managed to maintain a lead through the rest of the half and held a 7-5 cushion at the break.
But goals became scarce in the second half, and late in the third period Briarcliff tied the game at 7-7, then took the lead and changed the momentum. Haldane failed to score on a man-up opportunity after a Briarcliff penalty. When the Blue Devils were flagged for their own infraction and went one man down, Briarcliff scored the tying and go-ahead goals. The Bears outscored Haldane 5-1 in the second half.
“We had played them a week earlier [in the regular season] and lost, 10-9,” noted Coach Ed Crowe. “We knew it would be a good battle, and it was. Briarcliff cashed in on its opportunities. They were patient.”
Evan Giachinta and DiGiglio each had a hat trick for Haldane, Rhys Robbins added two goals, and keeper Jordon Hankel had seven saves.
“Evan had a great game for us, and Rhys was also strong,” Crowe said. “Our guys were pretty down [after the loss]. But we won the league, finished 13-5 and beat some good teams, some bigger teams. Our goal was to get to the finals, but we played great lacrosse all year and saw a lot of improvement.”
Haldane loses nine seniors to graduation, including three starters, but “we return a good amount,” Crowe said. “And our goal remains the same — to get to the championship game and win a title.”
TRACK & FIELD
Beacon’s Henry Reinke and Damani DeLoatch each won two titles at the Section IX, Class B championships on May 27 at Goshen.
Reinke was first in the 200 in 22.99 seconds and 400 meters in 49.27, while DeLoatch won the long jump (20-11.25) and triple jump (45-01.5). Rubio Castagna-Torres was third in the 400 hurdles in 59.94; Jack Twining finished fourth in the 1,600 in 4:42.39; and Leibinson Perez-Novas was fifth in the discus at 114-0. As a team, the Beacon boys finished sixth.
For the girls, Isabella Migliore placed sixth in the 800 meters in 2:27.36.
“Damani missed several weeks of competition recovering from a heel injury, so it was particularly exciting to see him back out there and setting new personal bests,” said Coach Jim Henry.
Next up for Beacon is the Section IX state qualifier on Thursday (June 8) at Monroe-Woodbury and Friday at Middletown. If all goes according to plan, Beacon hopes to qualify three athletes for the state championships.
Haldane competed May 27 in the Section I, Class C finals at Valhalla High School. For the girls, the top finishers were Andreia Vasconcelos, who was sixth in the triple jump with 29-03.5; and Ashley Sousa, who finished 14th in the 1,500 meters in 5:41.80. For the boys, it was Aleksander Noormae, who was 13th in the 400 in 57.14; and James Frommer, who was 14th in the 800 meters in 2:12.73.
