There was a frenzy of horn-blowing from local fire trucks and members of the Bayport-Blue Point Long Island Championship football team as they drove down Snedecor Avenue to the Bayport-Blue Point High School auditorium. During the Dec. 13 Board of Education meeting, the team was honored by central administration, the trustees and members of the community. Superintendent of Schools Dr. Timothy Hearney welcomed and congratulated the athletes for garnering the Long Island Championship title with an 11-0 fall season under Coach Mike Zafonte.

Board of Education President Michael Miller told the team, “We are most proud of your character and professionalism. Obviously, winning is important but your character is even more important. Thank you for bringing this honor to Bayport-Blue Point.”

Director of Physical Education, Health and Interscholastic Sports Timothy Mullins explained that the time and commitment Coach Zafonte dedicated to these student-athletes is just one of the many reasons why the 2022 football team will go down as the district’s best team ever. “While the championships captured this year were historic, this team was also named a New York State scholar-athlete team, exemplifying that these student athletes were putting forth the same effort in the classroom,” Mr. Mullins said.

Coach Zafonte said there was a lot of failure before this winning season but that the team chose to have a winning season. He also spoke about community and parent/guardian support when he said, “We can’t win without an entire community getting behind us. That level of support was paramount. This group of athletes did everything that was asked of them.”

The varsity cheerleaders were also congratulated for their support of the team. Mr. Mullins said the cheer team played an “integral role” and “added spirit to all the games.”

Date Added: 12/16/2022