Friday, December 6, 2024
Jayden Cruz
Brendan Dalton
There are three local school districts that have combined to make up one of the teams in the HS Hockey League of Nassau County (NY Islanders HS Hockey League.) Levittown, East Meadow and most recently the Hicksville School District, have merged together to form one of the club teams known as the Ice Falcons.
Tom Columbia, general manager of the Ice Falcons, said that the club team is not school sponsored, but that the players put in their all every game and practice.
“We are a not-for-profit club team run by volunteers and we are not funded by the school districts due to the high budget for ice hockey,” said Columbia. “These kids are athletes who compete just as hard as kids on other school sports teams. All three of our teams from the varsity, JV and middle school level, are off to good starts this season in their respective leagues.”
There are currently 38 kids from both the Levittown and Hicksville districts that play in three different teams in the league. They play on the middle school, JV and varsity level and range in age from ten to seventeen years old.
The teams compete against other school districts from Nassau County including teams from Bellmore-Merrick, Wantagh/Seaford/Plainedge, Farmingdale and Cold Spring Harbor.
Columbia said that there are two divisions (East/West) at the middle school and JV level and the varsity division is based on how teams finished in the standings in previous seasons.
“The varsity level is based on how teams ended up finishing in prior years,” said Columbia. “There are the top eight teams who are placed in Division one and bottom ten teams who are placed in the lower division. This way teams at this level will get to play each other twice during the season and there is better competition for all the teams involved.”
Brandon Dalton, a Hicksville High School senior, has been playing on the varsity team since he was a freshman.
“The thing I love about this league is that it is so competitive from top to bottom,” said Dalton. “All of the coaches are so knowledgeable about the sport and I’ve formed a strong bond with them over the years. I’ve also bonded with my teammates and we are all close with each other both on and off the ice.”
Dalton has scored sixty goals in his four-year career with the Ice Falcons thus far. He will be looking to add more goals this season, which runs from November until mid February.
Jayden Cruz, a freshman at Hicksville High School, said that his first year competing at the varsity level has been a blast.
“I’ve been interested and involved in the sport since I was younger and making the varsity team was a great accomplishment for me,” said Cruz. “I love the physical and mental aspect of the game and the fast-pace at which it’s played. Since joining the varsity, the coaches have worked with me and made me a more disciplined player.”
The team practices every Monday night at Cantiague Park for their upcoming games.
The Ice Falcons currently hold a 5-2 record in their division. They will be looking to add to their win total when they play Plainview-Old Bethpage/Island Trees in an away game on Friday December 6th.
To find out more about the Ice Falcons club hockey team, you can visit the website, icefalcons.com.
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