Local Athletes Gear up for Empire State Games

Essentially, for the athletes that compete, this is the Olympics: complete with opening ceremony, multi-day sporting events, thousands of finely tuned competitors and of course, gold medals.  

The Empire State Games kick off on Wednesday, July 21 after taking a one-year break due to New York State budgeting issues.  It's a collection of the best amateur athletes New York has to offer, on the grandest stage.  This year, the competition is being held in Buffalo, NY. 

The games are broken down into three different divisions; scholastic, open and master.  To be eligible for the scholastic division, you must be 17 years of age or younger.  The open division requires you to be 18 years of age or older (but not exceeding 34 years) and the master division requirements vary from sport to sport.

The way it works is that the state is divided into six regions: Adirondack, Central, Western, Long Island, New York City and Hudson Valley.  Leading up to the games, athletes had to qualify for their respected region and beat out other top athletes at their sport. Each region will square off against one another, with the top teams advancing to the medal rounds.

This year, West Islip has a number of athletes headed to Buffalo.  They are:

(Name, event, position)

Joey Fallon, Scholastic Men's Ice Hockey, Center

Ali Foote, Scholastic Women's 500m Run

Arielle Klopsis, Open Women's Synchronized Swimming

Casey Mcgowan, Scholastic Women's Lacrosse, Defense

Laure Loughlin, Master Women's Diving-Solo

Nick Policastro, Scholastic Men's Soccer, Goalie

Michael Sagl, Scholastic Men's Lacrosse, Attack Midfield

Shannon White, Scholastic Women's Basketball, Guard Forward

For tickets, scheduling and other information, visit the Empire State Games web site