Coming off an improbable victory last year, the Class of 2025 aimed to continue its dominance by winning its second consecutive Sports Night. Never having won Sports Night, the seniors in the Class of 2024, the sophomores in the Class of 2026, and the brand-new freshmen in the Class of 2027, aimed to play spoilers for the repeat-seeking juniors. Led by Sports Night chairpeople, Bennett Votano and Brooke Mazzei, the juniors aimed to orchestrate the improbable feat of becoming back-to-back Sports Night Champions.
Votano is entering his third year as boys’ Sports Night chairperson for the Class of 2025. His experience has allowed him to determine what goes into building the perfect rosters. While he may have given the final say on many of the boys’ roster decisions, Votano gives credit to his peers for helping put together the strongest possible team: “My title may have been ‘Boys’ Sports Night Chair,’ but everyone helped in some way making these rosters. We weren’t biased in who we chose for our teams; we used the people we honestly thought would do the best.” Mazzei, who was in her first year as Sports Night chairperson, corroborated Votano’s claim: “There’s a bunch of factors that go into building the rosters… what everyone participated in last year, what worked, and what didn’t, figuring out who plays what sports.”
The events kicked off with the volleyball semifinals: freshmen versus juniors, and sophomores versus seniors. The winners advanced to the championships on Friday. The junior girls, led by Chloe Roemig and Isabella Melaram, cruised to an easy victory over the freshmen. The sophomore girls put up a valiant effort, but ultimately fell short to the seniors, who advanced to the finals. On the boys’ end of the competition, the juniors, led by Eddie Stradowski and Joe Woods, won in similar fashion to their female counterparts, dominating the freshmen. However, the senior boys, led by Tim Mingo and Ramon Calderon, could not replicate the efforts of their girls’ team, as they fell short of the sophomores.
The second day of events was just as exciting as the first, as spectators were treated to the “Obstacle Course” event and four electrifying ultimate frisbee matches. First, the four grades faced off in a timed obstacle course, where participants leap over hurdles, dodge cones on a scooter, then face the ultimate challenge: the bowling pin. Athletes must knock down a bowling pin with their foot, sit on the floor, and attempt to put the pin back into the upright position, using nothing but their feet. Each participant’s run is timed, and deductions are given out for every obstacle hit on the course.
After the obstacle course, the gym was cleared for the subsequent ultimate frisbee matches. The juniors, still hot off their volleyball sweep and badminton dominance from the previous day, continued their dominance, as the boys and girls both advanced to the finals. As for the sophomores and seniors, the girls match came down to the final minute, and the match was not decided until the seniors scored the go-ahead touchdown to propel the girls ahead. Unfortunately, history repeated itself once again for the Class of 2024’s boys, as they fell just short to the sophomores, setting up a rematch of last year’s ultimate frisbee championship. The Class of 2026 boys bested the Class of 2025 in last year’s events, but the juniors, led by Ismar Purisic and Jack LaBarbera, toppled the class sophomores in a hard-fought battle, winning the ultimate frisbee championship. Similarly, the girls’ ultimate frisbee championship was also a rematch of last year. However, this one yielded the same result, as the Class of 2025 had earned victories in boys’ and girls’ ultimate frisbee.
When asked what their favorite part of the Sports Night events were, both Votano and Mazzei agreed that watching the teams dominate in ultimate frisbee was the highlight of the event. “[The games] were so exciting, and it was super important for us to get those points. I’m so proud of everyone who played; they all did amazing,” Mazzei preached. “We really stood out this year in frisbee as a grade,” Votano agreed. “Every team we played gave a great fight, and for us to come out with both championships was amazing.”
Running away with the lead, the juniors aimed to close out their implausible victory heading into the final night of the event. For the seniors, the time to capture the elusive Sports Night victory was running out. Missing several key players, the senior girls were able to pull off the improbable upset against the juniors in the volleyball championship. All hope was not lost for the Class of 2024. Aiming to avenge their loss in the frisbee championship, the sophomore boys were the only thing standing between the juniors and yet another championship. The intense matchup was neck-and-neck, as the two teams traded points back and forth for seemingly the entire game. At the end, the Class of 2025 boys emerged victorious, virtually putting the finishing touches on their unlikely victory.
The following Monday the scores were announced, and the juniors emerged victorious. Votano and Mazzei expressed nothing but pride in their grade’s accomplishment, but they were clear when saying they plan to make it three in a row next year. “We’re almost a dynasty,” said Votano, “but not yet. One more year.” Votano also expressed his love for the camaraderie the competition highlights in the LHS community: “Despite every grade being against each other, [Sports Night is] such a friendly competition that really brings all the grades closer. It’s one of the things that makes Lynbrook so special.”
