Hewlett's Matthew DeCicco sets pace in Nassau track meet
Matthew DeCicco of Hewlett, right, races to victory in the boys 110-meter hurdles final during the Nassau Class AA track and field championships at Hewlett on Monday. Credit: James Escher
It was fitting that, in his last track and field county championship meet, Hewlett senior Matthew DeCicco not only got to play host to the Class AA championships, but also got to win two of them.
DeCicco was the only male athlete on Monday in Hewlett to win multiple individual events. He flew 20 feet, 1⁄4 inches to win the long jump before running 15.69 seconds to take the 110-meter hurdles.
DeCicco, who has already hit the state super standard in the 110 hurdles and pentathlon, does not have to win at the Nassau state qualifier meet on June 5-6, as the super standard serves as an automatic bid into the state championships.
“To become county champion and end my [county championship] career by winning on my home field here is great,” DeCicco said.
Though brisk and sunny out, the windy conditions were not the most optimal for fast times. On route to victory, DeCicco had to run against 16-mph winds in the hurdles. He stayed true to his mechanics, which allowed him to succeed despite the blustery weather.
“I think my discipline in each event led me to win,” DeCicco said. “Knowing how much work I put in during practice, I can just let my technique take over, even if I’m sore. Especially with the wind, I know that if I attack it and just rely on my tech, it’ll work out.”
The only other multi-event winners on the boys side were Elmont senior Dominic Collins and his junior teammate, Aidan Peterkin. Collins won the 400 in 49.91, and Peterkin sprinted 21.98 in the 200. Peterkin beat Roosevelt junior Leroy Barrett, who won the 100 earlier in the meet with an 11.05.
Collins and Peterkin teamed up with seniors Caleb Harris and R’Len Richards to run a championship-winning 3 minute, 23.45 second 4 x 400 relay.
“Me and my boys, whenever we run with Elmont across our chest, it represents a culture that we have,” Peterkin said. “Not only as a school and a team, but as brothers.”
Garden City senior DJ McDonough continued his Nassau ascent when he ran 1:55.35 to win the 800 championship.
“Based on what I ran last year, this is a big jump,” McDonough said. “Last year, I absolutely would not have imagined myself here. I would’ve thought that I would’ve still been running the 400, and even that was a little too far for me. So it’s definitely a shock, but it’s a great feeling.”
The afternoon began with Great Neck North senior Jonah Berkowitz winning the 3,000 steeplechase in 10:20.11. It was his first county title.
On the home straightaway, Berkowitz looked behind him to locate the nearest competitor. Once he saw he had several seconds on them, he was able to relax. He knew he had it won.
“It feels out of this world,” Berkowitz said. “It’s good to know that I’ll have this legacy to leave off on, not only for my team but for the whole county.
“It’s an amazing feeling when you’re that far ahead and you know you’re going to win. In my head, I was just thinking about how my mom and older brother were here to support me today. My coach was cheering me on the whole time. I did this for them.”
Manhasset won the team county championship with 129 points. Junior Blake Sealy won the 3,200 in 9:43.9 and sophomore Nic Katsoulis took home the 1,600 title in 4:32.03. Senior John Hogan, freshman Max Tobar, senior Matthew Milewski and sophomore Cole Miller combined to run 8:22.65 and win the 4 x 800.
Due to a lack of personal records being broken, Katsoulis has been disappointed in his spring season. The 1,600 championship was a reminder that he’s still a very capable runner.
“It says I’ve still got it,” Katsoulis said. “Early to midseason, I wasn’t running well in any super competitive races. I just wasn’t feeling it. Having a race like this shows me that, maybe if I’m not the best in the country or state, at least I can still come here and beat everybody else.”
Garden City’s 4 x 100 team rounded out the relay champions by running 43.63 on the backs of seniors Jacob Antilety, Michael Tusiani-Eng and William Farquhar, alongside sophomore Christopher Byrne.
Elsewhere, Bethpage senior Michael Sheahan won the 400 hurdles in 57.69.
In the field, Friends Academy junior Cooper Mott cleared 6-4 in the high jump, Roslyn senior Zach Davidson reached 13 feet in the pole vault and Sewanhaka senior Braylon Metellus flew 43-8 in the triple jump to become county champions. Glen Cove senior Josiah Mingo-Cooper threw the shot 46-11 and Hewlett senior Lucas Rodriguez threw the discus 140-10 1⁄2.
Mike Anderson is a high school sports reporter who has covered 12 sports so far at Newsday. He was the sports editor of Stony Brook University's campus newspaper for two years.
