Seahawks secure conference win

It’s been a tough start for Carey on the hardwood, but hopefully a recent win will get things turned in the right direction for the Seahawks.

Carey got 18 points and eight rebounds from senior Danny Sadlowski as it knocked off visiting Westbury, 56-49, Jan. 5. It was the Seahawks’ first win in Conference AA-III play in four tries. Senior Andrew Gentile had all nine of his points three three-pointers in the final quarter.

Coach Marty Kelly is hopeful the victory over Westbury will help to get things righted for Carey. “We haven’t played a complete game as of yet, but I still think we’re very capable,” Kelly said. “Coming into the season, we expected to be very tough from the perimeter, but the shots just haven’t been falling for us. Hopefully the fourth quarter against Westbury will give us a little confidence and momentum. We need to shoot the ball well to be successful.”

Like nearly every league contest, the game with Westbury was a nail biter. The teams were knotted at 33 apiece when they took the floor for the final eight minutes. Sadlowski and Westbury’s big man Giordan Walker, who scored a career-high 24 points, were the focal points for three quarters, but it was Gentile’s shooting in the fourth that put Carey over the top. Clutch shooting by the Green Dragons kept the game tight down the stretch. Senior Carl Ricaurte helped seal the win for the Seahawks with six free throws in the final two minutes.

Carey’s season started with games against intra-district rivals Elmont, the defending Nassau Class AA champions, and Sewanhaka. As Carey has seen too often, one poor quarter was its undoing against Elmont. The Spartans, who got 14 points from sophomore point guard Tristan Brown, outscored the Seahawks 26-6 in the second quarter en route to a 68-47 win in the Gregg Petrocelli Classic at Elmont. Sadlowski had 14 points.

The Seahawks got in the win column with a 53-39 come-from-behind victory over Sewanhaka. Carey, which trailed by five at the half, got 10 points, seven rebounds, and three steals from sophomore Andrew Ris. Senior Shawn Mason led the offense with 12 points.

Carey’s loss to Conference AA-III rival Mepham may be its most frustrating. The Seahawks battled back from an 11-point deficit, and took the lead on a three by junior James Harrison, only to fall to the Pirates 62-56 in overtime. It was a coming-out party of sorts for Adrian Denner. The sophomore recorded a triple double (16 points, 16 rebounds, and 11 blocked shots) in the loss. Sadlowski added 20 points. The Pirates got a game-high 28 points from Kyle Wechsler.

Kelly remains optimistic. “I think that we can play with anybody in this conference,” he said. “We’ve been strong in the frontcourt, we just need to start shooting the ball better from the perimeter. We have the ability to do so.”

Carey visits Bellmore-JFK this Friday at 7 p.m.