Leading off today: The first hour of organized fundraising brought in $30,000, but Wantagh parents and students are a long way from the $650,000 required to preserve sports and other activities next year.

   More than 400 parents, students and others attended a rally in the high school auditorium to kick off the effort today, Newsday reported. Private funding became a necessity last week after voters shot down the district's proposed $64.7 million budget for the second time. Inexplicably, no cuts were made after the first budget was rejected.

   Consequently, the school board made $1.5 million in austerity cuts that including most of the funding for 45 sports teams and 62 extracurricular activities ranging from Mathletes to the high school yearbook. Money was budgeted for 12 fall and three winter sports, but private money will be sought to restore the remaining activities.

   A lot is being asked of the fundraising group, known as Wantagh Save Our Students. The $500,000 raised by Plainedge supporters in 2005 is believed to be the most ever for a Long Island district.

   More than 700 residents attended Thursday's school board meeting in which the cuts were made to reduce the increase in the tax levy to 4.74 percent.

   'No' vote in Liverpool: Voters came out in record numbers yesterday to defeat a proposal to rebuild Liverpool's high school stadium. A proposition for $6.3 million of work at the high school, including the complete overhaul of the stadium, failed by a 2,944-2,441 margin. A separate $34.3 million proposition to renovate two schools and perform work on two other facilities passed, 2,759-2,671.

   Wilson update: The two coaches facing charges in the aftermath of an alleged hazing incident on a school bus returning fom a Wilson Central baseball game this spring were back in town court on Thursday and learned the case has been postponed to late August.

   Thomas J. Baia and William M. Atlas are charged with three counts of endangering the welfare of a child, a misdemeanor, for what police have said was failing to supervise their teams. Three players who also had their cases adjourned face a variety of counts including felony aggravated sexual abuse charges.

   The timing of the future court procedings makes it unlikely that either man will be able to coach in the fall. Atlas is the varsity football coach and Baia is the boys soccer coach. AD Charlie Jufer said he'll put "Plan B" into effect.

   "We’ve had two plans in place from the start,” he told the Grand Island Record. "If they were to be acquitted in a timely fashion, they’d have the opportunity to return to their coaching position and if (the case) was extended, we would have two candidates in place to present to the school board."

   The paper said Nick Benedetti, recently retired after 12 years as Medina's coach, could be brought in to run the football program. Chris Alex, formerly a JV coach at Wilson, would handle the soccer team.

   Proposal batted down: The Rockland County Legislature will pull a proposal to ban metal bats from all pre-high school baseball games at the request of its sponsor, Legislator V.J. Pradhan (D-Nanuet), at Tuesday's meeting, The Journal News reported.

   The proposal is opposed by Little League organizations, with officials attending a recent committee meeting on the subject.

   "I’m pulling it out for one reason: because Nanuet Little League has taken the first step toward safety," Pradhan told the paper. "They are asking their pitchers to wear a shield to protect their heart."

   Coaching news: Matt Burch, a former first-round pick in the Major League Baseball amateur draft, will coach the sport at Corning West next spring. After graduating from Elmira Heights Edison, Burch was drafted by the Boston Red Sox in 1995, attended Virginia Commonwealth University and then was picked 30th overall by the Kansas City Royals. He spent his career in the Royals system battling control problems and then returned to the area to coach basketball at Edison.

   Gatorade track honor: Distance ace German Fernandez of Riverbank (Calif.) High School is the 2007-08 Gatorade National Boys Track and Field Athlete of the Year.

   Fernandez, who will attend Oklahoma State in fall, won the 3,200 meters last weekend at the Nike Outdoor Nationals in 8:34.40, breaking a 29-year-old national high school record set by Jeff Nelson. His three-kilometer split in the race was 7:59.83, making Fernandez the first U.S. schoolboy to go sub-eight minutes.

   At his state meet recently, Fernandez pulled a distance double of 4:00.29 for 1,600 meters and 8:34.23 for the 3,200.

   State-by-state winners have not yet been announced.

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