Kellenberg Memorial High School Athletes Win Awards at Spring Athletics Banquet

Andrew Williams (West Hempstead, Bernie Ward Commitment Award, JV Baseball)

Head coach of JV Baseball, Matthew Kirk had this to say about West Hempstead’s Andrew Williams. This year’s Bernie Ward Commitment Award recipient goes to an individual who embodied the phrase “actions speak louder than words”. Being a pitcher is never an easy task. Aside from having to perform in many pressure situations, this individual worked hard to perfect his craft every day at practice as he became one of the most trusted arms on our very talented pitching staff. There is no doubt to the coaching staff that this individual has a bright future and we look forward to seeing him bring his mentality to the varsity level. This year’s recipient of the Bernie Ward Commitment award is Andrew Williams.

Bret Carpentieri (Malverne, Most Improved Player, Freshman Baseball)

Coach Joseph Beyrouty wrote this of Bred. It would have been easy for Bret Carpentieri to give up on his Freshman Baseball season, but he does not know the word “quit.” After some early struggles at the plate, and on the mound, Bret slowly but surely not only worked himself back into the lineup, but also worked himself up to the top of the lineup. So humble and focused is Bret that when asked who he thought led the team in hitting, he had no idea it was he! Bret provided the spark that the team needed to get going offensively, and is about as sure handed an infielder as they come.

Ryan Barrett (Malverne, Most Valuable Player, JV A Lacrosse)

Coach Eric Meisse wrote this of Ryan. This season’s Most Valuable Player Award goes to Ryan Barrett. Ryan embodies everything that a coach could ever ask for in a player, no matter what we ask of him Ryan never doubted himself or his abilities. We often asked a lot of Ryan both physically and mentally, we were also very hard on him trying to get all we could out of Ryan as a player and a captain but we knew he was a young man who could handle it. Ryan embraced the pressure and never asked out, he was a dual threat as a middie on both offense and defense. His dodges from up top often initiated the action we needed on offense to create goals, on defense he always knew where to slide and played exceptional 1 on 1 defense. In addition Ryan also did all of the intangibles that make lacrosse middies special, he was a clearing machine and always hustled to force turnover when riding. Ryan even dominated the Faceoff X when both the teams faceoff guys were out sick for a game, he truly did it all for us and did it as a leader. Most of all Ryan’s value came from the fact that we knew we would get a maximum effort and a warrior’s attitude in every game and practice from him. The future is bright for Ryan as a lacrosse player and in life.

Courtney Ferguson (Lynbrook, Most Valuable Player, JV B Lacrosse)

Coach Shannon Asquino wrote this of Courtney. his year’s Most Valuable Player Award goes to a girl who was skilled in all aspects of the game. From offense to defense, to taking over the draw controls, Courtney Ferguson could do it all. Her quickness and speed made it difficult for any defender to catch her and any offender to get away from her. She never slowed down and always worked her hardest whenever given the opportunity.

Declan Westlake (Malverne, Most Improved Player, Spring Track)

The most improved athlete goes to a young man who certainly looked to improve on his performance ever since he was a freshman. He stayed the course when it came to some battles with injuries and fluctuating times in the 200 and 400-meter dashes. He proved to be a strong asset to our 4X100 and 4X400 meter relays and took on a strong role as a senior leader by organizing and staying on top of the boys who trained during the non-traditional fall season where one could voluntarily workout to get better for the winter and spring. This young man is deserving of this award and we wish him the best of success during his college career. The most improved award goes to senior Declan Westlake. This speech was delivered by head coach Robert York.

Thomas McKenna (Malverne, Bernie Ward Commitment Award, Spring Track)

Our Bernie Ward Commitment award goes to a distance runner who has been dedicated not only to the spring season, but also the indoor and cross-country seasons as well. He lowered his mile time considerably from beginning to end, and was a valuable point scorer in the two-mile run at the freshman league championship meet. A member of one of our 4X800 meter relays as well as an entrusted athlete to the steeplechase this young man speaks softly and carries a strong work ethic. It is our pleasure to award this year’s Bernie Ward Commitment Award to the hardhat wearing, lunch pail carrying distance runner Thomas McKenna.