By Scott Brinton
82769d|Calhoun High School's Maedelyn Ciccerelli winds up for a shot during the Nassau County girls' badminton championship at Island Tree High School. Mepham defeated Calhoun four sets to three.|
82769a|Mepham's Emily Burger and Tiffany Lui take on Calhoun's Christina Strezenec and Kim Lalljee in the doubles championship match.|
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Mepham nets county title|
By Scott Brinton|
In 2007, the Mepham High School girls' badminton team didn't earn a playoff berth.| This year, the squad of mostly seniors got a new coach, Anthony Cracco, who stressed athleticism in addition to skill. As the season progressed, the girls gained confidence, particularly after they defeated top-ranked Calhoun, which had won the county championship two years running.
Then it all came down to one match.
Mepham recently faced Calhoun in the county championship at Island Trees High School. Mepham players hoped to pull off a win, but held no expectations. For Calhoun, a longstanding tradition of winning was on the line.
In the end, Mepham prevailed, sweeping past Calhoun four sets to three. "We worked very hard," said Donna Pierno, a senior who played second singles.
Mepham had a host of talented players, including a number who have played tennis since childhood -- which also helped propel Mepham to a conference title in tennis last fall.
Donna McNamara, Mepham's top singles player, said the squad's big win against Calhoun felt sweet. "We accomplished what we went to do," she said.
Cracco said the county championship "was the goal we set the first time we met as a team" earlier in the spring.
Senior Stephanie Rosen said that having a roster full of seniors helped. "We knew it was our last year," she said, "so we really pushed it."
Saul Lerner, the Bellmore-Merrick Central School District athletic director, said there is no doubt that Cracco's coaching helped move the Mepham squad's level of play up a notch. He explained that, unlike baseball, soccer and basketball, badminton players take up the sport in high school, so solid coaching is critical to helping them master the game. "Coaching is a more important aspect in badminton than in any other sport," Lerner said.
Gregg Muscarella coached both of Calhoun's county championship squads and has built the school's badminton program into one of Nassau County's best. Many Calhoun players saw a second-place finish in the county finals as a defeat. "Everyone was upset," said senior Lauren Waterman, who plays first doubles.
Teammate Sarah Wanger, a senior who was also a standout on the Calhoun girls' soccer team, agreed. "Yes, there were tears involved" after the match, she said.
The squad could take solace in winning three doubles team county titles, though. Its doubles teams included Waterman and Chelsea Diamond, Christina Strezenec and Kim Lalljee, and Sam Player and Amy Delloicono. Additionally, Megan Madden, the second singles player, was undefeated during the regular season.
Comments about this story? SBrinton@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 203.
