Leading off today: I have a hunch that Steven Davis is about to get a bunch of phone calls and emails that ask, "How did you do that?"
Newsday reported on a program in he Brentwood school district, where Davis is the athletic director, that taught high school juniors this summer about the rules, mechanics and responsibilities of officiating basketball and soccer contests. "Lead the Game: Referee Certification Program" ran from July 6 to Aug. 14 and culminated with participants being certified to ref youth games.
It doesn't take any imagination to envision the participants applying their new skills to officiating Little League baseball and youth soccer throughout their college days and then moving up to working high school sports contests, helping solve an ongoing staffing issue seen across the country.
The idea evolved from Brentwood's Graduation Plus initiative, which provides students opportunities to earn certifications and explore college and career pathways.
"We said, 'Why not the same thing with athletics?'" Davis said. "Kids who love being around sports, love to participate and really want to give back. I think it's a great opportunity."
Brentwood teacher Blake Crespo, who refs Section 11 games, was an instructor in the program, which attracted interest from about 40 students.
"We teach them how to talk to coaches, how to talk to players, how to deal with an abusive spectator," Crespo said. "We teach them all that stuff just so, if we give them those tools to handle those situations, I think they're going to do well."
Classroom training was put to use on the field in scrimmages, like one with Brentwood soccer players conducted with junior Gabriella Martinez, who plays club soccer, overseeing. She was surprised by how willing players were to question calls.
"I was kind of shocked because I was like, 'Oh my gosh, they have so much power,'" Martinez said with a laugh.
Rye captures the annual Kerr Cup All-Sport Championship
Congratulations to the coaches, athletes, and administrators at Rye, the winner of the
NYSSWA Kerr Cup All-Sport Championship for the 2025-26 school year.
Garnets teams captured NYSPHSAA titles in football, girls soccer, boys ice hockey, and boys lacrosse and scored in five other sports to roll up 89 points and fend off Massapequa (79) and Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake (62.4).
The winning total ranked second only to Fairport's 91 points in the 2023-24 school year.
Rye competes in Class AA. The Kerr Cup champs in the other classes:
•Class AAA: Massapequa
•Class A: Westhill
•Class B: Marcellus
•Class C: Tuckahoe
•Class D: Bolton
For its part, Massapequa won NYSPHSAA titles in boys wrestling, lacrosse, volleyball, and baseball. Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake, a four-time past champion and perennial Kerr Cup contender, earned state championships in field hockey and boys cross country.
NOTE: We announced the Kerr Cup results online Monday afternoon and made a small revision in the results early this morning after discovering we had reversed two championship match results in boys volleyball.
The changes did not affect the overall championship but did boost Massapequa to No. 1 in the boys standings. Lancaster had the top girls score.
The finale for Farmingdale coach
Buddy Krumenacker, 78, informed his Farmingdale football players on Monday that this will be his final season as their coach. He is entering his 34th season in charge of the Dalers and his 58th as a football coach on Long Island.
"I am very satisfied with the work we put in and the results," he told Newsday. "I followed a coaching icon (Don Snyder) and left this place in the same shape that I found it -- and that's something to be very proud of. There were expectations to keep it in line -- keep the train on the tracks. And that'll be the next guy's goal. Farmingdale is a football town and that will continue. This day comes for everyone one way or another."
Krumenacker's teams have earned nine Nassau Conference I titles and played in nine Long Island Class I championship games, winning in 2001 and 2022. He has a 315-105-11 career record.
Vermont begins implementing long-sought policy change for girls
The Vermont Principals Association is replacing white shorts on school sports uniforms with darker colors following discussions evolving from monthly "Girls and Equity" brainstorming sessions, according to
VT Digger.
Darker colors will be phased in for girls' middle school and high school sports, though the VPA is still about $20,000 short of covering the cost.
The VPA cited a study showing one in three girls quits sports by the age of 14. Anxiety over periods is a contributing factor to the declining participation.
"There's this whole thing around period anxiety and being comfortable in their uniforms," said Lauren Young, VPA's executive director of activities and athletics. "Which, man, that goes back decades for me -- having a uniform that fit and I felt confident in."
