Weldon E Howitt High School - Hi Life Yearbook (Farmingdale, NY)

Page 143 text:

Agility and Grace Bring Beauty to Athletics Left: Coach Jim Hraba spots for leaping. FHS 84.05 Girls’ Gymnastics (6-3) Calhoun 97.45 90.01 Oceanside 84.30 116.85 Baldwin 112.00 85.21 Uniondale 81.00 89.06 Syosset 85.90 116.80 Lawrence 122.15 114.40 Berner 87.60 91.03 Massapequa 90.20 109.00 Bellmore 92.00 Back Row: Sue Dealto. Judy Miller. Lori DeSantis, Kathy Kenny. Second Row: Manager Mark Cohen, Lorraine Kelly, Judy Freshour. Mary McKeveny. Lisa DeBernardo, Tara Cunningham, Suzanne Domni, Gina Cestaro, Coach Jim Hraba. Front Row: Donna Miller, Diane Ferraro. 139

Page 142 text:

Right Judy Freshour prepares for a front walkover. Far Right: Diane Ferrara shows her good balance and extreme flexibility. Even though the team didn’t get off to a great start, we had a lot of girls with great talent, Kathy Kenny commented about the girls’ gymnastics team. The first meet was lost to Calhoun by a score of 97- 84. A loss of thirteen points wasn’t bad considering that half of the team did not at- tend the meet. This was easily the most talented group I’ve ever had or worked with. But we were up against some tough competition in the di- vision, coach Jim Haraba commented. The girls worked very hard, and I think we did much better this year than we have ever done before.’’ A friendly atmosphere helped boost the team spir- it, along with a good coach. Everyone was friendly and we worked hard together so we could win, Judy Miller said. The coach knew the girls were inspired to compete only with themselves and couldn’t be forced to achieve perfection. He did have some expectations, however, and the girls put forth their best effort to fulfill them. We worked hard every day to do the best job we could, Donna Miller stated. Above: Gina Cestaro straddles the balance beam EQUIPMENT 'It’s about time we got the new uneven parallel bars. We couldn't hold any competitions here, because the bars were so bad. We had meets at Woodward Park- way — Kathy Kenny, junior. Most of our equipment is OK, but we had really old bars and this year we got a new set. They really helped our performance — Maria Garace, senior. The new bars are really great, they help improve our timing, and we don't have to hesitate before a move — Judy Freshour, junior. 138

Page 144 text:

Below Middle: Benji Mills displays strong opposition as he approaches his opponent. Below: Rich Bayer. Senior, attempts to pin his man. FINALLY “After the semi-finals, the whole team felt that A was just one more step toward the top. We had only won half the battle, and when we lost the finals it was a big shock. Usually the heavyweights would always pull through so we kept on saying ‘don't worry,' but when we got there we fell short — Ronnie Heller, junior. “I was definitely disappointed, but I’m not going to cry over it. We lost. All the way through the season the scores came very close but we were usually able to pull it off. It's just too bad we couldn't do it when it counted the most’’ — Bill Profriedt, senior. “It was a relief when it was over. All the pressure was off. We couldn't possibly be disappointed because we came so far. We had to be happy with what we did for the year — Brent Williams, senior. “I think we pulled off a lot of matches that we shouldn't have, so I wasn't all that surprised or disappointed. The atmosphere after the match was optimistic — kind of like, 'let's go out and win the tournaments' — Joe Ryan, senior. Back Row: Bill Profriedt. Lou Brienza, Ronnie Heller, Mike Morrnino. Linda Bulin, Coach Irv Apgar. Second Row: Denise Bosse, Lisa Pennacchio. Brent Williams. Rich Bayer. Joe Byrnes. Timmy Henn. Barbara Williams. Front Row: Jim O'Connor. Joe Arnold. Mark Daleo. Vinny Ferrara. Tom Henn. Benjamin Mills. Missing: Tony Ferrara. John Quinn. Joe Ryan. 140 Above: An Island Trees wrestler is thrown on his back by senior John Quinn.