Athletics

A tribute to their coach

EMHS renames baseball diamond Ken Sicoli Field

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Ken Sicoli thought he was going to his grandson’s Little League game in Hicksville. But on the drive there, his family persuaded him to make a quick stop at East Meadow High School’s baseball field, his home away from home as coach of the varsity squad for 33 years until his retirement last year.

To his disbelief, hundreds of his friends, former players and colleagues were there waiting for him.

In a surprise ceremony, East Meadow High officials dedicated the field in Sicoli’s name, honoring his more than 40 years of teaching and coaching in the district, during which, many who know him say, his humble nature added class and dignity to the school’s athletic program.

The crowd waited impatiently on a beautiful Saturday afternoon, eager to honor a man who had an impact on so many lives. “Everybody is walking around here, floating,” said Vin Mascia, an assistant coach under Sicoli for 28 years, grinning widely. “He’s the most humble man in the world. He’s never out of his element.

“But today,” Mascia added, “he’ll be out of his element.”

East Meadow’s varsity squad has had just three coaches in its 60-year history. Before Sicoli took over in 1982, he was the junior varsity coach under Mike Kostynick, who led the program from 1955 to 1981. Last year, Sicoli, 67, passed the torch to John Marciante, who played and coached for Sicoli.

After amassing 190 wins at the JV level, Sicoli earned 501 more as varsity coach. His teams won 13 conference championships and three county titles, in 1991, 1997, and 2005. The 2005 squad went on to win Long Island and state championships as well.

A 15-time county Coach of the Year, Sicoli coached 60 All-County players, and 15 of his players went on to coach on Long Island. He taught business at East Meadow High School for more than 30 years, serving as department chair, and also held several administrative positions in county sports organizations.

“Ken Sicoli’s accomplishments are matched only by the greatest coaches in the history of Nassau County baseball,” said the school’s principal, Richard Howard, who, like Mascia, played for and coached under Sicoli. “Yet what he is most remembered for is his ability to touch lives.”

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