I know more than most, but miss more than ever

Cleaning house - Sussex Academy’s Sadie Tunnell was Henlopen Conference champion in the 400-meter run with a time of 58.17 seconds. She also clocked 13.1 in the 100 meters for fourth place and 26.4 in the 200 meters for third. Sadie ran the DQ Dash Sunday morning and Sharpie of Lewes is her grandfather (local connection). Bailey Fletcher, a Cape sophomore cross country runner, tried pole vaulting for the first time this spring and jumped a personal best 12-feet-6-inches to win gold at the conference meet. Bailey now needs to spend time with Sam Young (Cape and University of Virginia) to ascertain if he’s crazy enough to fly higher and what to do when he gets up there. Bre Reed of Sussex Central, a volleyball player, jumped 18-5 to win the Henlopen Conference long jump event. Bre also high jumped 5-2 to place second. Tucker Brown (Worcester Prep and St. Joe’s) scored three goals – all in the first half – for the Hawks, who lost to Yale in the NCAA lacrosse tournament. Tucker finished the season with 43 goals and 18 assists. Leigh Lingo, a graduate student (Worcester Prep and Virginia Tech) picked up three ground balls – she’s a defender – as the Florida Gators beat Jacksonville 15-10. Leigh’s cousin Lillie Lingo was a defender for UNC. Florida played at Maryland May 19 in the quarterfinals. Florida beat Mercer 19-12 in the opening round. Chloe Schaffer (Cape) scored three goals for the Mercer Bears. Izzy Cryne, a goalie, ended her college career as a four-year starter for Mercer. West Chester University women’s lacrosse (17-3) lost to East Stroudsburg (19-1) 13-12 in overtime in a Division II Mid-Atlantic regional game. Lindsay Monigle (Cape) had five goals and two assists. Monigle closed the season with 47 goals and 63 assists. She finished her college career with 92 goals, despite her sophomore season all but lost to COVID. Not sure if she has an option or will opt for an extra year. Salisbury University baseball, the defending Division III national champions, will play William Patterson Friday, May 20, in Granville, Ohio, in the first round of the NCAA regionals. Brock Hilligoss (Milford), with a record of 3-1, faced 13 batters in a conference-clinching win over Christopher Newport, throwing 32 strikes on 46 pitches. Brock made 12 relief appearances for the 2022 Seagulls. Brock is a lefty just like his maternal grandfather Johnny Morris, a star at Lewes High School who pitched in the major leagues along with Route 9 contemporaries Chris Short and Costen Shockley.  

Playing up - The Milford Middle School boys’ lacrosse team went undefeated this spring 11-0 for the second season in a row. Eighth-graders at Milford have the option of playing up, but a talented group of players elected to stay down and play together. In the final game of the season, the Baby Bucs beat unbeaten Smyrna 6-4. Milford had an incredible 27 eighth-graders on the roster. My son Jack was a volunteer assistant to coach Griffin McWilliams. The team also included grandson and seventh-grader Will Frederick, which explains why I know so much about them. By contrast, Sussex Academy eighth-graders mostly choose to play up. The Seahawks varsity, winners of the Henlopen Conference Southern Division at 12-3, will host Cape at 5 p.m., Friday, May 20, for the Henlopen Conference Championship. Sussex Academy has seven eighth-graders on the varsity squad. Cape’s two middle schools, Beacon and Mariner, don’t allow eighth-graders to play up. Beacon has 11 eighth-graders on its rooster of 30 players, while Mariner has 16 eighth-graders on its roster of 25. And adding spice to the sauce, the practice of holding back eighth-graders for a maturation year before entering high school is an option if you feel you have a blue-chip athlete eating multiple sandwiches each day living in your house.  

Snippets - I am not a long-suffering fan of any sports team, but as a young child running wild just two blocks from Connie Mack Stadium, the first word in my baby book was “Ashburn” and my first sentence “Park your car for a dollar.” The Phils are dead middle in the 15-team National League pack, and if you're a numerologist, you know there is no dead middle for No. 15 or any odd number, but some whack math teacher will rock a formula to prove otherwise. Dylan Hilligoss, son of Mike and Tina and brother of Brock, graduated from Delaware with a master’s in physics. Brock throws the curve, but Dylan knows if the ball actually curves or is an optical illusion. It’s state tournament time and my plate is full. Perhaps I should push away from the table and leave the house. Go on now, git!