‘There’s always a spot for you’

Kennedy athletes commit to playing in college

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Kennedy High School has seen a spike in the last five years in the number of student athletes moving on to play in college, according to its athletic director, Craig Papach.

Last fall, Kennedy senior Anthony Maffucci committed to running track for the Adelphi University Panthers, a Division II team. On Feb. 28, the school recognized football players Domenic Brocco and Jack Jones, and swimmers Alina Tucker and Stephanie Kaplan, who also committed to college teams. Those who have yet to decide where they will play will be acknowledged in a June ceremony.

Brocco said that Papach has encouraged students to continue playing in college by constantly offering the same advice: “No matter what sport you play, or what level you play at, there’s always a spot for you.”

After a student is recruited by a school, he or she signs a binding agreement called a letter of intent. At a Feb. 28 ceremony, Jones signed to play football for the Muhlenberg Mules, a Division III team; Brocco for football with the Western Connecticut Colonials, a Division II team; Alina Tucker for swimming with the Southern Connecticut Owls, a Division II team; and Stephanie Kaplan for swimming with the Vassar Brewers, a Division III team.

Changing the statistics

Brocco and Jones have played football since they were 5 years old, when they competed on the Bellmore Braves community team. “If I didn’t continue playing … well, it’s my life,” said Brocco. “When you’re an athlete and you love a sport, you try to play as much as you can.”

Jones agreed and said that, on his college search, he tried to picture himself at the school of his choice warming up for a game on the sidelines.

The two said they could count on one hand the number of Kennedy alumni who continued to play football in college. When they were sophomores, Brocco and Jones were pulled up to the varsity team, along with five other junior-varsity players. That first year, the team won one of eight games they played. Brocco said that this made him realize how much work he and his teammates needed to put forth.

“We felt this school deserves to have a team that [is] reputable and that people care about,” he said, and added that Coach Tom Durnin and his staff helped them achieve their goal. Last fall, the team won five of its eight games.

Just keep swimming

“I was motivated to keep swimming,” Kaplan said, “because I’ve been doing it for 10 years and I wasn’t ready to give it up yet.” Kaplan will be Kennedy’s first swimmer to compete in college since her twin sisters, Brooke and Paige, also swimmers, committed to schools in 2015.

Tucker, who has swam for six years, said she shared Kaplan’s drive to continue her involvement in the sport. “I want to be a competitor,” she said of her first-year goals at Southern Connecticut. “I want to be involved. I don’t want to be benched.”

This year, the Kennedy girls’ swim team won seven of eight meets, and it was the first time that Tucker and Kaplan competed at the state championships, held at Ithaca College.  

Advice for underclassmen

“Don’t compare yourself to other people in your sport,” said Kaplan, when asked what she would tell underclassmen looking to pursue athletics in college.

“You hit the nail right on the head,” Brocco said to her, adding that he has friends from other high schools who play for Division I schools and friends who aren’t playing in college. He said that a student athlete’s time in college should be spent focusing on self-improvement.

“I want to enjoy every second of” the next four years, he said.