Lady Bulldogs roll to division title

Hewlett racked up more points — 231 — in winning this spring’s Division 3A girls track and field championship than any other team in the county and went on to finish third behind Garden City and Mepham in the Nassau Class AA meet.

“Everyone did a great job,” Lady Bulldogs coach Stephen Honerkamp said. “We scored our most points ever in a division meet and had some strong performances at counties.”

Sophomore Shari Weiss captured the county champion in the Pole Vault, clearing the bar at 9-feet, while junior Chelsea Heath took home the title in the 100 Hurdles in 16.4 seconds. Hewlett also had the runner-up (senior Jayla Therancy) and third-place (sophomore Melissa Ramos) finisher in the 100 Hurdles, and took third in the 4-x-100 relay.

Weiss, who scored points in the Triple Jump and 400 Intermediate Hurdles in the division meet, was a repeat county champ in the Pole Vault. “Shari’s athletic and talented,” Honerkamp said. “She likes a challenge and is able to rise to the occasion in big meets.”

Heath was division runner-up to Therancy in the 100 Hurdles but turned the tables in the county meet despite battling a case of strep throat. “Chelsea’s one of our hardest workers and most versatile athletes,” Honerkamp said. “She can run the 100 up to the 800 and even tried the pole vault in some meets. She’s a tough competitor who cares a lot.”

Therancy picked up a pair of division titles, also winning the 400 Intermediate Hurdles, and will graduate as one of the program’s Top 10 career scorers, Honerkamp said. She also tied for fifth in Class AA in the High Jump. “She’s always been able to do multiple events and battle up to the level of the competition,” he said. “She’s eighth on the school’s all-time scoring list and had a really nice career.”

One of Hewlett’s top juniors, Nicole Sellino, saw her hard work since the fall payoff with big finishes in the 100 and 200 meter dashes. She placed second in the division in the 200, and was third in the 100, then took sixth and fifth, respectively, in those events at the county meet. “Nicole has been working hard since September and gained confidence as the year unfolded,” Honerkamp said.

Junior Gabby Leon enjoyed a huge division meet, placing second in the Long Jump, Triple Jump, and Discus, while classmate Heather Kaminker rallied to win the 400. Another junior, Erika Kaminer, won the division Triple Jump championship.

Sophomore Laurie Antoine captured the division Discus crown and went on to finish third in Class AA with a heave of 96-feet, 10-inches. Sophomore Shana Farkas edged senior teammate McKerrah Knopf to win the division Pole Vault, and freshman distance runner Natalie Weintraub impressed by winning the 800 and placing sixth in Class AA in the 3000. The Lady Bulldogs also took the 4-x-800 division title with Kaminker, Kaminer, Brianna Moran-Person, and Ana Arango.