NOVEMBER 09, 2017 • TIMES HUNTINGTON & NORTHPORTS • PAGE A15
SportS
Huntington’s Gerbavsits, Giamo qualify for state final Tyler Gerbavsits and Matt Giamo dropped every shot they needed to make it a pressurefilled round as the Huntington teammates qualified for the state golf championship at Cornell University. The state final three-day event is scheduled for June 2 to 4 at Robert Trent Jones Golf Course at Cornell University in Ithaca. The Huntington links stars both shot 77 on the first day of the two-round county competition and state qualifier Nov. 2 at Manorville’s Rock Hill Golf & Country Club to move into a good position for making a run at All-County honors, but they were still outside the Top 9 positions that qualify for the state championships. The duo was in a tie for 12th place en-
tering the final day of the Suffolk tournament. “Nine is the magic number for Suffolk county golfers, as it reserves a spot for them on the coveted Section XI state team,” Huntington varsity golf coach Michael Marinello said. “[Tyler Gerbavsits and Matt Giamo] knew what they had to do, but to execute this task under extreme pressure is easier said than done. This is what separated Tyler and Matt from a very talented field. The pressure was put upon these kids and with golf being such a fragile game, anything can happen.” The Blue Devil seniors have been mainstays of the Huntington golf program. The duo was looking to make their final round in high school play on a Suffolk course something special, and they did. Gerbavsits jumped off to a quick start Nov. 3, hitting the par-5 second hole in two shots and making a birdie. On the par-3 fourth hole, he launched a shot deep into the woods. His shot out of the woods bounced over the green and left a 60-foot putt up and over a ridge and then sloping back to the hole. “I can’t imagine going out any better, especially with my best friend and teammate,” Gerbavsits said. “The pin placements were really tough out there. It took a lot of focus to keep myself at even par.” Marinello said he was hoping Gerbavsits would two putt, but said three putt was more likely. “I watched the putt hit the hill and move to the hole, hit the pin and drop in,” Marinello said. “That was the shot of the championship. Tyler was on cruise control after that.
He played a beautiful game and was in total control, parring all but one hole on the back nine to finish with an even par 71 and safely claiming his spot on the state team.” Giamo’s route to Cornell was entirely different. A pair of double bogies over the first nine holes put the athlete’s hopes of qualifying for the state tournament in real jeopardy. A 6-over-par 41 on the front nine looked ominous to all the scoreboard watchers. “The kid never hung his head,” Marinello said. “He told me, ‘Coach, I’m going low on the back nine,’ and low he went.” Giamo went on to shoot an even par 36 over the final nine holes. The pressure increased a few notches when the Huntington senior was forced into a three-way playoff for the final two spots on the Section XI state team. After a drive into the left rough, which narrowly avoided the bunkers, Giamo hit a laser 7-iron shot to the pin. Left with a 4-footer for par to earn his ticket to the state championships, he struck a putt that hit the bottom of the cup and “ended the matter,” Marinello said. “Walking back with Tyler and Matt after his playoff victory was one the most satisfying moments I have ever had in coaching,” the head coach said. “Watching two determined competitors; two great friends, both of whom I’ve known since seventh grade walk off so happy; well it was a storybook ending.” Gerbavsits reached the state championships as a sophomore before missing the cut at this same Suffolk state qualifier for last year’s
Photos Darin Reed
tyler gerbavsits, above, and Matt giamo, on left, finished top 9 in the county.
New York finals. This will mark Giamo’s first appearance in the state championship. “It’s just great that Tyler and I both got to qualify,” Giamo said. Marinello is proud of what his athletes have been able to accomplish during their Blue Devils tenures. “They were aware that everything they had worked extremely hard for could disappear in one bad swing,” Marinello said. “This was a remarkable performance by both Tyler and Matt. I hope everyone knows what an amazing accomplishment this is.” —Huntington atHletics
Huntington’s Tricia Arceri wins Suffolk diving title Tricia Arceri has been accomplishing each of her goals, one by one. The Huntington senior knocked off another one when she won the Suffolk diving championship Nov. 3 at Hauppauge, plunging past the talented field. There’s still one elusive goal on the horizon for the standout — a state title. The Blue Devils great is headed to the state championship at Ithaca College Nov. 17. It will mark Arceri’s third trip to the state finals, where she hopes to reach the top step of the victory platform once and for all. Huntington senior Sigrid Cassell also qualified for the state final after meeting the standard time in the 50-yard freestyle Nov. 4 at Suffolk County Community College’s Brentwood campus. Her brother, Gunther, won three state titles for the Blue Devils boys team and is currently swimming at Penn State University.
Huntington head coach Chris Helmke and assistant coach Meg McConnell, who coaches Huntington’s divers, were ecstatic with the performances turned in by Arceri and Cassell. The Blue Devils stars also basked in the glow of their accomplishments at they prepare for the state competition. “I feel like I had a great meet,” Arceri said. “I did two new hard dives that made me nervous, but I executed them pretty well. I will be working extra hard on those for the state meet. Overall, I am very happy to win the counties for the second time as a senior. My only focus now is on the state championships.” Arceri overcame an ear injury this year, regaining her form in time for the league and county championships. “Being out for two weeks during the season meant she missed the invitational diving meet, the only other chance to qualify for states in our section,” McConnell said. “Trish kept her focus and consistently performed solid dives, and determination paid off. Now she can focus on fine tuning her dives and hopefully achieve her state-title goal.” To be a champion diver requires polishing your skills to near perfection. The slightest miscue can cost a diver precious points and allow opponents to gain an edge. But Arceri was on the mark in her final Section XI meet. “It was a great night and most everybody dove really well,” McConnell said. “It was a nice way for most of the girls to wrap up their season. Trish dove very well, starting with a
great back dive that scored 9s across the panel. That put her in a solid first place and that’s where she stayed for the rest of the meet.” Arceri could make history in two weeks. Huntington has never had a state diving champion. But the senior knows high-level competition like no other — her sister Molly won three county diving titles and her brother John was a four-time county wrestling champ. But the competition will be grueling, and once again Arceri will need to come close to perfection when she goes up against New York’s best. “Winning states would top off my year as a senior,” she said.
Sigrid Cassell reaches state finals
Sigrid Cassell has been chasing the state qualifying time all season, and Saturday, she was determined to nail it down. The Huntington swimming star touched the wall twohundredths of a second under the time she needed to reach the Ithaca College pool Nov. 18. “Sigrid started her day off by swimming the last 50-yard leg of the 200 medley relay and she swims two-hundredths of a second faster than the state time, but it doesn’t count because she’s in a relay,” Helmke said. “So we know she’s tuned up and ready to rock when her 50 free heat starts. She takes off and her turn is perfect and winds up doing the same time from the relay.” Cassell’s time of 24.82 seconds beat the state finals cut time of 24.84.
Photos by Darin Reed
tricia arceri, diving above, celebrates her second county crown with sister Molly, on left.
“I am beyond ecstatic,” she said. “I’ve worked really hard for this.” The senior has been swimming with the Huntington varsity team since seventh grade. “I feel that I’ve put in a lot of hard work and commitment into my Blue Devils career and it’s paid off nicely,” Cassell said. “My goal [at the state meet] is to make memories and do the best I can and have fun doing it.” —Huntington atHletics