Kellenberg Memorial High School Honors Its Winter Athletes

On March 6th Kellenberg Memorial High School honored its winter season's athletes. Here is what the coaches had to say about the team members from your hometown! Here are the awards given to our athletes. The Most Improved Player Award is awarded to the athlete who displayed the greatest amount of improvement and growth in their skills which contributed to the success of their team. The Bernie Ward Commitment Award is named after our beloved former faculty member, coach, and colleague Bernie Ward is for the athlete who has displayed the most passion and commitment towards bettering themselves and their teammates during the season. The Most Valuable Player Award is awarded to the athlete whose contribution to the team contributed most towards that team’s success during the season.

Boys JV Basketball: This year’s Most Improved Award goes to Jake Cosgrove of Seaford. Last year due to injury Jake missed a large majority of the season and therefore had a less than stellar Freshman year. He was determined to change that during his JV season. He worked hard in practice early in the season to show his growth as a player and his ability to help be a leader on the offensive and defensive sides of the basketball. This hard work paid off. His offensive ability was a catalyst that helped us win some very important games. He was truly able to put his Freshman year behind him and let his true potential shine during an impressive JV season.

Boys Freshmen Basketball -Joe’s journey this season was a challenging one for a player. However, as one of Coach Matt Grahn’s “Top ten signs you’re a great teammate,” Joe was willing to play any role that helped the team win. Joe starting the season as a starting forward, and as the season went on, Joe was asked to switch his position to guard. Joe had to quickly adjust to this new position and he did so with great success. Congratulations Joe Durso of Seaford on winning the Bernie Ward Commitment Award.

JV Dance Team - This year’s Bernie Ward Commitment Award goes to a JV dancer whose dedication to the art of dance and learning her skills is undeniable. Her commitment to the team has never faltered. Sophomore Shannon Tominey of Wantagh is well deserving of this accolade. She is fully open to tips and suggestions on how to achieve her goal. She pushed herself to landing tricks she didn’t think she was capable of. When a team member was down, she stepped right up and met the need of the team. Shannon is completely worthy of such a prestigious award, and we are proud to have been able to be her coach for three seasons.

Boys Freshman Track: Commitment does not come cheap. It often takes an athlete out of his comfort zone, and he is called to take on different roles within the program because he is someone we can count on. Kyle Murray embodied that commitment. He also embodied a spirit of wanting to do something extra or something different when it came to his running. Whether it was asking him to run in a sprint race, when he trains as a distance runner or having run a distance that’s a little longer then he’s used to. Kyle also battled an early-season foot injury and came back with a fury and a confidence that this time of healing was now behind him. Kyle Murray truly deserves our commitment award this season.

Girls Varsity Basketball: For the last three years on Varsity, Clare Calabro of Seaford has been the unsung hero of the basketball program’s success and her final season in a Kellenberg uniform was no different. Clare’s value to the team is not only measured by her statistical contributions to the team but also by things that do not come up on any stat cheat. Clare played a vital role as the team’s most versatile defender, always being put in the most important spots on the floor. In addition, Clare’s ability to break an opponent’s press, to make the extra pass to get her teammates involved and the willingness to put her body on the line and take a charge made it impossible to the coaching staff to take her off the court. As a three-time All-League Player, Clare will be remembered as a great player but more importantly a great teammate, who was loved and respected by her peers. This year’s Most Valuable Player is senior captain, Clare Calabro.

Varsity Wrestling: Sean Coakley finishes his career as one of the most successful Firebird wrestlers in history. As a rare four-year starter Sean amassed 108 wins placing 5th all-time in school history. He was also a league finalist all 4 years of his career and placed every year at the NY CHSAA Championships making him an Ironman Award recipient. Even with all of these accomplishments on the mat, it is what Sean has done off the mat which makes him the most valuable. Sean has been a two-year captain and role model to the other wrestlers on the team. Even as things always did not go his way his work ethic and the class in which Sean always carried himself will lead him to be successful in any walk of life he chooses to go forward with in the future.