William Floyd student-athletes are back making their marks in their respective sports this season and have six players represented on various Newsday “Top Player” lists for fall 2021. William Floyd has two student-athletes representing boys’ soccer, two representing football, and one each from girls’ cross country and field hockey in their top 100, top 50 or top 25 lists, respectively.

Girls’ Cross Country – one student-athlete was named to Newsday’s Top 25 Long Island girls’ cross country runners for fall 2021 – Head Coach John Ryan

Zariel Macchia, freshman: Newsday called Macchia the “fastest girl in Suffolk.” Still only a freshman, Macchia has already won the Suffolk Class A championship with a 14:49:90 finish in the 2.5 mile run at Sunken Meadow State Park this past April. She also won the Suffolk County Division I girls cross country championship, as well as the Female Runner of the Year award for all of Suffolk County. The future is bright for this talented Colonial. She continues to outpace the competition and recently placed first in the women’s division for the 20^th annual Smith Point Bridge 5K Run for Literacy with a time of 18:29.22.

Field Hockey – one student-athlete was named to Newsday’s Top 50 Long Island field hockey players for fall 2021 – Head Coach Maria Carucci

Sydney Marchese, midfielder, senior: Marchese has been a focal point on the varsity field hockey team for multiple seasons. The midfielder does a little bit of everything for the Colonials on both offense and defense. The Colonials defeated Copiague 4-1 last week and look forward to finishing the season strong. Their senior game is scheduled for Friday, September 24 at 4 pm at the Nathaniel Woodhull turf field.

Football – two student-athletes were named to Newsday’s Top 100 Long Island high school football players for fall 2021 – Head Coach Paul Longo

Ryan Amato, offensive line/defensive line, junior: Amato anchors a strong Colonial offensive line and has started since his freshman season. He excels in the run game.

Brian Benson, defensive line/tight end, senior: Benson was named to the All-Long Island first team last season following a monster junior season in which he recorded 12 sacks and 32 tackles. He is one of the top pass rushers on Long Island and a key component to the dominant William Floyd defensive line.

The Colonials are 2-0 as they prepare to head north on William Floyd Parkway to take on Longwood for the 10^th annual Parkway Power Bowl and bragging rights.

Boys’ Soccer – two student-athletes were named to Newsday’s Top 100 Long Island boys’ soccer players for fall 2021 – Head Coach Paul Paniccia

Jovanny Ortiz, midfielder, senior: Ortiz is one of the Colonials’ top scorers from last season, scoring six goals and adding four assists. Ortiz will be crucial to William Floyd’s run at the Suffolk AA title this season.

Alex Rojas, midfielder/forward, senior: Newsday describes Rojas as the Colonial’s “Swiss Army knife.” A multi-year starter, Rojas is Mr. Everything for William Floyd and one of Coach Paniccia’s most dependable players.

The Colonials are currently 2-2 in league play and are gearing up for their senior game on Friday, September 24 at 5 pm, and the subsequent playoff push.

Good luck to all of the Colonials the rest of the way!