By Chris Vaccaro
MaxPreps.com
After a year of anticipation about which school he'll attend next year, East Meadow offensive lineman John Elliott opted to sign with Boston College.
The 6-4, 286-pound beast will make the transition to guard while redshirting next season for a team that he says is headed in the right direction in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
He was also recruited by Miami, Florida State, Rutgers and North Carolina State, but the overall awareness he has for both academics and athletics played a big part in his decision.
Bellport had six players sign, a true testament to what head coach Joe Cipp, Jr., normally does every year: get his players ready for the next level.
Jonathan Spruill will play at Stony Brook, Vaughn Flake is headed to C.W. Post, Mike Pepe will play at Marist, Denzel Person will play at the University of Maine and James Prendergast and Cheyenne Ray will play at Bryant University.
Other recruits to sign: Roosevelt's Michael Mayo signed with Central Connecticut, Glenn's Trevor Coston signed with the University of Maine, while his teammate Ifeanyi Momah signed with Boston College and St. Anthony's Tom Hagan will play at Army.
Suffolk Hall of Fame Welcomes New Legends
The Suffolk County Sports Hall of Fame announced its Class of 2007 this week.
Amityville boys basketball coach Jack Agostino, Wading River baseball coach Sal Mignano, and Wyandanch girls basketball coach Warren Fuller will all be inducted.
Agostino has won 10 Suffolk titles, eight Long Island Championships and four state crowns. Mignano has won 451 games and nine Suffolk County titles, and Fuller just passed the 500-win mark in January. He is the winningest girls' basketball coach in Long Island history with 506 wins (as of Feb. 11).
Boys Basketball: Copiague's Byrd Reaches Milestone
Richard Byrd is having the season of his life. Everything he has touched has turned to gold for his Copiague team, which hasn't lost a league game yet and is bound to be in the Long Island Championship in about a month. He scored career point No. 1,000 in a 94-39 win over Newfield last week.
Johnson Takes Over for Lindenhurst
Lindenhurst junior Chris Johnson was taking his normal amount of shots in the first half against Pat-Med, but nothing seemed to fall. Both teams struggled to put up any points, going into halftime with Lindy up 13-12.
Johnson scored 23 of his 26 points in the second half and went on scoring streaks of six and eight points to break the score open in both the third and fourth quarters. Lindenhurst won, 55-46.
Cajuste's Double-Double Propels Jericho
Jericho's Matt Cajuste scores and rebounds in double figures almost every game, but when two teams with combined records of 19-3 meet, he knew he needed to elevate game.
He didn't post mind-blowing numbers, but delivered with 13 points and 14 rebounds in a 72-70 win over South Side. Jericho improved to 10-2, while South Side has the same record. Both teams are gunning for the top spot in Nassau's Conference I-A.
Girls Basketball: West Islip Takes Rivalry Game
Every battle between East and West Islip is a true sporting spectacle. There is school and town spirit, love and hate, and a passion to beat the other team back to its own town.
West Islip won the battle on the hardwood in a 57-52 game that featured good all-around play from Dana Hannsgen, who had 10 rebounds and five blocked shots. West Islip is 5-7, while East Islip dropped to 3-9.
More Milestones
Eastport/South Manor's Sarah Vivonetto and Copiague's Leasia Walker reached the 1,000-point mark of their careers last week. Walker joins teammate Gabrielle Gibson, who reached the plateau earlier this week.
