Three people were charged with drunken driving over Fourth of July weekend, including two men who crashed their cars in separate accidents, Southold Town police said.

Gary Herrmann, 57, of Peconic was driving on Adams Street in Greenport shortly before midnight Sunday when he hit a parked car and left the scene, officials said.

Police pulled him over after he was found traveling north on Carroll Avenue in Peconic and veering off the roadway, officials said.

He was charged with driving while intoxicated, leaving the scene of an accident and failing to maintain his lane of travel, police said. Mr. Herrmann was held for an arraignment, officials said.

On Saturday, police arrested East Marion resident Wayne Baker after he reportedly crashed his vehicle into a mailbox and rock embankment in Southold, police said.

Mr. Baker, 51, was driving on Anchor Lane around 6:50 p.m. when the accident occurred, officials said. He was charged with driving while intoxicated and held for an arraignment, police said.

A 21-year-old woman was charged with drunken driving Sunday in Greenport, officials said.

Kiersten Weiss, 21, of Plymouth, Vt., was driving near the intersection of Route 25 and Sound Road around 6:40 p.m. when police pulled her over after she was found veering into the shoulder, police said.

Ms. Weiss was charged with driving while intoxicated and failure to maintain her lane of travel, officials said.

Hundreds of festive patriots lined the streets of New Suffolk Monday morning for a small-town North Fork tradition that rivals most any other: the New Suffolk Civic Association’s annual Fourth of July parade.

Dozens of parade floats — which included classic automobiles, tractors, wagons and bicycles — marched from the corner of Tuthill and New Suffolk roads and up Main Street to New Suffolk Beach. A community barbecue followed.

Among those participating in the parade were the civic association, New Suffolk Waterfront Fund, Cutchogue Fire Department, New Suffolk School, U.S. Submarine Vets of Long Island and several other community organizations.

Photos by Grant Parpan

The Southold Village Merchants 19th annual Fourth of July parade kicked off at noon Monday with hundreds of spectators lining Main Road from Boisseau Avenue all the way to Tucker’s Lane.

Local first responders, scouts and children on decorated bicycles were among the hundreds of marchers.

Photos by Katharine Schroeder

During their senior year, a pair of recent Mattituck High School graduates traded in their first-period study hall for an independent project. Their goal: engineering a prosthetic hand equipped with artificial muscle. 

Jack Dufton, 2016 salutatorian, and Yianni Giannaris spent more than eight hours a week on the project, which required repeated trial and error to perfect engineering muscles out of fishing line.

The idea dates back to the end of their junior year, when they approached technology teacher Mark Mincieli and asked if they could do an independent study. Initially, they wanted to sign up for a robotics course that was created two years ago but couldn’t fit it into their schedules since they were already enrolled in AP Biology and AP Physics.

“We still wanted to work down in the metal shop,” Jack said. “It’s better than sitting, listening to music and twiddling our thumbs for 45 minutes.”

Mr. Mincieli said that if they found a project, they could give it a try.

After a summer of brainstorming, Yianni found a suitable project involving artificial muscles made from fishing line — a relatively new topic.

“I figured it’d be more rewarding than taking a piece of technology that someone has worked on and perfected and just applying it, because it left us room for discovery,” he said.

Mr. Mincieli was on board with supervising their project.

“I hadn’t read anything on [these muscles] so I thought it was kind of a neat idea,” he said.

Work had been done previously on producing artificial muscles from many different materials. Until 2014, however, fishing line hadn’t been among them. That’s when a team of material scientists at the University of Texas in Dallas discovered a process that made use of these low-cost fibers.

According to Popular Mechanics, an online magazine dedicated to current trends and technology, the scientists used plastics like polyethylene or nylon, both of which are used in fishing line. Then, using a machine, they twisted the strands to the point where they began to coil up and then heated the coils so they remained intact, creating a hyper coil.

Once the coil is heated, the scientists found, it contracts — like a real muscle.

After researching the work being done in Texas, Jack and Yianni reached out to researchers in Australia who were doing similar work. They responded with tips and advice, along with an essay on what they had completed so far, Jack said.

From there, the students did their own research and conducted trials to determine what material and heating element would work best.

“We were watching videos of the Australians and banging our heads against the table trying to figure out what they were using,” Jack said. “We tried a million different things.”’

(Credit: Sara Schabe)

It took about seven months for Jack and Yianni to decide how to coil and heat their synthetic muscles. The hands-on work began in April.

After trying nichrome wire, kanthal and a few other materials to build the coils, the research partners chose a silver-coated nylon thread, a common and inexpensive type of fishing wire.

To twist their wire, they created a coiling device from parts of a rowing machine and a motor from an electric scooter. Electric current was then run through an attached circuit board, pulsing the coil with a flow of heat. The students had trouble finding a suitable heating element, as some they tried emitted too much heat. Jack said some, such as a brass tube wrapped in nichrome, got so hot they could be used as weapons.

“That thing could burn through you pretty good,” he said. “With this project we learned that burnt skin does not smell too good.”

The wire they finally chose reaches temperatures between 150 and 200 degrees.

Once Jack and Yianni figured out how to make their “muscles,” it was time to determine a practical use for them.

According to Popular Mechanics, these types of muscles have uses ranging from facial muscles in robots to creating exoskeleton suits. The Mattituck students chose a medical application: prosthetics.

A prosthetic using artificial muscles made from contracting coils would be silent compared to the more common motor-driven prosthetics.

Jack said the project was a nice combination of both students’ intended fields of study: Jack will attend Amherst College for biology and Yianni will study engineering at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Using a 3-D printer at the school, they printed a hand, hoping to attach their muscle fibers to it and enable it to function.

Employing 3-D printing technology would have been unthinkable five years ago, when it was far too expensive for any investigation being conducted outside a highly funded research facility.

Currently, a single muscle strand can lift about 150 grams — substantially higher than its own mass of less than one gram. As for contraction, their muscles are at about a 10 to 12 percent contraction along the length, Mr. Mincieli said.

While the students have completed the muscles and the hand, the school year came to end before they could complete their project by combining them. For now, they’ll put the project on hold to focus on college.

“We may pick it up between semesters,” Yianni said.

The students said that while the entire process was fun, there was a lot of trial and error. They both agreed that the moment the muscles started working was the most exciting. They also said they enjoyed how every day was a challenge and that they always had to solve a problem.

“Sometimes I’d be distracted in other classes trying to figure out what I was doing wrong that morning,” Jack said.

Top caption: Recent Mattituck graduates Yianni Giannaris, left, and Jack Dufton work on their senior project. (Credit: Sara Schabe)

I can understand Greenport residents’ point of view that they have a hard time parking when they have to run an errand in the village and I also understand that they are taxpayers and deserve to be able to run those errands.

That said, the people who come to their village spend a lot of money taking in the sites and savoring the food at restaurants and shops. The flood of tourists who come and support events like the Maritime Festival and Tall Ships also should be able to park their vehicles and enjoy the sights and sounds of Greenport.

[Editorial: Be careful where you park your car in Greenport]

The money they spend help the tax base in Greenport. There should be a happy medium.

Put in meters and give parking stickers to residents so they don’t have to pay for the meters. To make parking difficult will only cause people to not visit and spend their money in Greenport and that lost revenue will cause taxes to rise.

— Jerry Esposito of Southold

After a late crash prevented Kyle Soper of Manorville from claiming a top-10 finish last week, his crew got to work to prepare the car for racing Saturday. Soper was more than ready for the challenge at the 66-lap Whelen All American Series event. 

Soper admitted after the race he considered taking a week off to recover from two crashes. But his father urged him to push forward and his team worked past 11 p.m. each night to get the car ready for racing.

The work paid off when Soper won the modified race, finishing ahead of last week’s winner, Shawn Solomito of East Moriches. Dave Brigati of Calverton was third.

Soper set the standard in qualifying with a lap of 11.990. He opened the race by maintaining an early lead over Vinny Biondolillo and the two young racers ran one-two for the first half of the race before Solomito passed Biondolillo for second. Solomito’s next task was to close in on Soper, who had gotten away from the field. A few late caution flags from minor spins helped him close the gap.

Solomito lined up alongside Soper on a double file restart with just laps remaining and Soper managed to maintain the lead. Soper held on over the final few laps to win the race.

John Fortin Jr. of Holtsivlle and Howie Brode of East Islip rounded out the top five.

Saturday’s racing featured a full slate of races, including late models, figure eights, super pro trucks, grand enduro and demolition derby.

Scott Kulesa of Georgetown, Mass. raced to his 22nd career late model win after surviving an intense late race, side-by-side duel with Shawn Patrick of Brightwaters. The two were neck-to-neck over the final nine laps. The two cars never touched down the final laps, creating an exciting finish. Jeremy McDermott of Riverhead was third.

Ken Hyde Jr. of Mastic Beach secured his second victory of the 2016 season in the 15-lap figure eight race. He took the lead with just two laps remaining. Roger Maynor of Bay Shore was the runner-up and Mike Mujsce Sr. of Quogue was third.

In the 20-lap super pro truck, Jimmy Rennick Jr. appeared to have his first win in 33 years of racing across various classes at the track. However, after winning the race, a post race inspection turned up unapproved valve seats in his engine that resulted in a disqualification. The result was Roger Turbush of Riverhead claiming the victory. He was already home with his family when he received word of his victory. Brigati was credited as the runner-up and Mike Albasini of Flushing was third.

In the 50-lap grand enduro, David Antos of Lindenhurst won his second race of 2016. Greg Zaleski of Jamesport made a late charge to finish in second and Glenn Simonin of Holbrook was third. In the demolition derby, Jason Savoy of Lake Panamoka was the winner.

Margaret “Peggy” Killian passed peacefully at her home in Mattituck on Sunday, July 3, with her husband Bill at her side. 

She was born in Brooklyn, Jan. 10, 1923, and later married William Killian. They celebrated 70 years of marriage on May 18.

Peggy was an avid real estate salesperson with Celic Realty in Mattituck. Her gift for gab went unmatched; not so much her selling of houses, said family members.

She leaves behind her husband Bill; daughter Peggy; sons Bill Jr. and Charlie and his wife Pat; granddaughters Krista, Heather and Courtney and great-granddaughter Michaela.

The Liturgy of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Friday, July 8, at Our Lady of Good Counsel R.C. Church in Mattituck. Monsignor Joseph W. Staudt will officiate.

Interment will follow at Sacred Heart R.C. Cemetery in Cutchogue.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Susan G. Komen Foundation; P.O. Box 650309 Dallas, TX 75265-0309.

DeFriest-Grattan Funeral Home is assisting the family.

This is a paid notice. 

On Thursday, July 7, the Suffolk County Board of Elections is expected to count more than 1,790 absentee ballots cast in the Democratic primary race between Congressional hopefuls Anna Throne-Holst and Dave Calone.

The county has also started the state-mandated process of auditing three percent of the 10,863 votes cast on primary night last Tuesday.

Unofficial results from the Suffolk County Board of Elections showed that Ms. Throne-Holst held a lead of 29 votes. Just under eight percent of the 1st District’s 136,464 registered Democrats voted on primary night.

County officials said it could take several days to count all 1,794 absentee ballots. Here’s a breakdown of each town’s absentee ballot totals, according to the Suffolk County Board of Elections:

Brookhaven Town: 947
Southampton Town: 229
East Hampton Town: 207
Southold Town: 112
Riverhead Town: 111
Smithtown Town: 111
Shelter Island Town: 60
Islip Town: 17

On primary night, Mr. Calone of East Setauket won Brookhaven Town, which is the largest town in Suffolk County, by 55 percent and East Hampton Town by 57 percent.

[Related: How North Fork residents voted in the 1st District primary race]

Before the vote, Mr. Calone was endorsed by the Brookhaven and East Hampton town Democratic committees and committee chairpersons. He also had the backing of all four Democrats on the East Hampton Town Board and of the only Democrat on the Brookhaven Town Board, plus the support of two former Democratic Brookhaven Town council members.

Locally, Ms. Throne-Holst was ahead in Southampton, where she was town supervisor for six years, with 56 percent of the vote; in Riverhead with 63 percent; in Southold with 60 percent; and in Shelter Island with 85 percent.

Ms. Throne Holst was also ahead in Smithtown and Islip.

Regardless of who wins the Democratic primary, both candidates will  appear on the ballot to face Congressman Lee Zeldin (R-Shirley) in November.

Mr. Calone has support from the Independence Party and Ms. Throne-Holst is the Women’s Equality Party candidate.  Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 8.

tgannon@timesreview.com

Four people were taken to Eastern Long Island Hospital with minor injuries Tuesday after the private minibus they were traveling in was involved in an accident with another vehicle on Route 48 in Cutchogue, authorities at the scene said.

Fifteen people were aboard the bus, which is owned by Adelwerth Bus Corp in Eastport, at the time of the accident, Southold Fire Department officials said.

The driver of the car was traveling alone, officials said.

The eastbound lane between between Depot and Cox lanes remained closed as of 4:20 p.m. during the rescue efforts.

No other information about the accident was immediately available.

nsmith@timesreview.com

Photo credit: Nicole Smith

To paraphrase the great Forrest Gump, playing in the Town Brookhaven Summer Recreation Basketball League is like a box of chocolates. You just never know what you’re going to get. 

The Southold boys varsity basketball team certainly knew what that felt like at Eastport-South Manor High School as the First Settlers were outnumbered in several ways Tuesday night.

Vacations, summer jobs and other commitments sliced their 12-player roster to only six players for their game against Miller Place, which had a dozen players at its disposal for the small varsity game.

While they were placed in the same small school varsity league although Southold is a Class C school and Miller Place a Class A side.

So, it should not be surprising that the Panthers recorded a 55-26 win.

Like it or not, quirky things happen in the summer league.

Basketball games aren’t quarters, but are two halves that broken into a pair of 22-minute periods with running time, the only stoppages by coach’s timeouts and when the ball goes out of bounds and fouls in the final minute.

Teammates don’t have to wear matching shorts as long as they have the correct jerseys.

Miller Place (3-0) had two number 16’s and when one was called for a foul, the referee said told the official scorer, “The other 16.”

Southold (1-2) faced an uphill battle for most of the game with only one bench player to give the First Settlers breathers. Head coach Matt McCarthy moved players in and out of the game to give them a rest while the Panthers would bring on waves of players.

With Matt Hirdt connecting for nine of his game-high 16 points, Miller Place bolted to a 14-2 lead and never looked back as it grabbed a 34-10 halftime advantage.

Adam Baldwin recorded three out of his seven points in the opening five minutes of the second half as the First Settlers outscored Miller Place, 7-2, to move within 36-17. But fatigue finally caught up to Southold and the Panthers regained their rhythm.

Zach Grathwohl, who will be a junior this upcoming school year, led Southold with 10 points.

Christian Loretta added 11 points for Miller Place.

Photo Caption: Anthony Klavas goes up for a shot despite being closely guarded. (Credit: Robert O’Rourk)

Just before 11 a.m. last Wednesday — two hours before low tide — Goldsmith Inlet was already sealed shut by sand. The winding waterway in Peconic had slowed to a trickle, then vanished into a line of sand blocking the tepid water.

Town engineer Michael Collins pointed to Long Island Sound beyond and laid out the consequences of a little extra sand.

The water in Goldsmith Inlet can’t connect to the Sound, so the inlet can’t be flushed with seawater. This causes water quality to suffer.

Fish can’t swim into the inlet and the eels that reside there won’t be able to leave to breed when mating season comes.

Nearby Autumn Pond can’t drain into the inlet through an underground pipe because the water is trapped in the inlet. This is causing the water level in the pond to rise high enough that it reaches nearby houses’ septic systems, exposing the water to potential bacterial contamination.

In short, according to Mr. Collins, Goldsmith Inlet — the problematic waterway that has been the subject of ongoing controversy about ways to protect it — is once again in trouble. And as the tide lowers, things will only get worse.

Town officials, homeowners and neighbors say the inlet must be dredged soon.

“It is really serious,” said Southold Town Trustee John Bredemeyer said at last Tuesday morning’s Town Board work session.

Supervisor Scott Russell said the town has received a letter from nearby homeowners who are “somewhat alarmed by it.”

“They’re saying the pond is dying,” Mr. Russell said. The town, he added, will have to enlist the help of Suffolk County’s Department of Public Works to dredge the inlet to remove the blockages.

While the town conducts its own annual dredging at the inlet, Mr. Collins said, that work is limited to an area its mouth. The county would be able to dredge the entire waterway, removing enough sand and silt to improve conditions in a meaningful way, he said.

And since Suffolk owns land on either side of the inlet, Mr. Russell said, it’s the county’s responsibility to care for it. He said he has spoken to county representatives about dredging the waterway quickly.

“Suffolk County has an obligation to protect their asset,” he said. “They recognize the necessity to keep dredging.”

Goldsmith Inlet dates back to at least the 1700s and was the site of a mill in the mid-1800s. The channel — which at the time was deep enough to allow powered boats — later served as a base for rum running during Prohibition.

Problems began after 1963, when Suffolk County paid just over $134,000 to build a jetty on the western side of the channel, which started funneling sand into the inlet.

By the late 1980s, the inlet had not only been added to the town’s list of “critical and essential” dredging sites, but had risen to the top of the list, according to previous Suffolk Times coverage. In 1990, the state Department of Environmental Conservation followed suit, declaring the inlet a “critical environmental area.”

The town began dredging the inlet annually starting in 2006, after a county dredging project the previous year was less effective than authorities had hoped.

“The problem is, we can dredge and the dredging might last for the season,” Mr. Russell said. “But we can’t keep going back and dredging.”

Mr. Collins said the town didn’t dredge the inlet last fall because indicators at the site showed it wasn’t necessary. But a sudden change at the inlet months later worsened conditions dramatically — long after the official dredging season ended in January.

“The difference in the past few weeks is devastating,” one neighbor wrote in an email to the town. “The sand has formed a total blockade of the inlet. There is a green slime on top of the stagnant water. The fish, crabs and water life are dying a slow death.”

The county has a committee that must approve all dredging projects; town officials said the only criteria that would apply is an environmental consideration for the health of the waterway.

“We’re asking the county to place it back on the dredge priority list,” Mr. Russell said. As a backup plan, the supervisor said his preliminary proposed budget for next year will include money to cover a town dredging of the inlet.

But the county health department’s testing of the area showed the waterway as healthy, though that was before it was sealed shut. Town Board member William Ruland said the process was “moving forward, albeit slowly.”

“They have to recognize that if you wait until you create your own crisis, common sense asks why you would do that,” he said.

Mr. Ruland said the board should continue to put pressure on the health department to dredge the inlet quickly.

“Unfortunately, it seems pressure is the only thing the health department responds to in these instances,” he said.

psquire@timesreview.com

Photo: Goldsmith Inlet — the problematic waterway that has been the subject of ongoing controversy about ways to protect it — is once again in trouble. (Credit: Paul Squire)

On a typical Fourth of July weekend, Main Road in Orient and East Marion is already stressed to a breaking point, as hundreds of tourists head east visit the picturesque farms at the tip of the North Fork.

This particular Fourth of July weekend’s visit by a sitting Supreme Court justice certainly didn’t make matters any easier.

And when you added in the phenomenon of tourists pouring in to see the blooms at Lavender by the Bay farm in East Marion — well, the area’s only east-to-west road just couldn’t handle the demand. The result was a traffic jam that had cars at a standstill Sunday between Greenport and Orient, causing half-hour delays over a three-mile stretch.

“That was just a killer,” said Southold Town Police Chief Martin Flatley. “It was the perfect storm that day.”

And while the police and an owner of the lavender farm said they’re working together to prevent similar gridlock this coming weekend, neighbors weren’t happy with the effort made so far and demanded more planning to prevent what they see as a public safety hazard.

“I think the town needs to do something because we’re a tiny hamlet and we can’t handle this kind of volume,” said Anne Murray, president of the East Marion Community Association. “It was horrific traffic.”

Though Lavender by the Bay has been in operation for more than a decade, the farm has become especially popular with Asian tourists in recent years, due in part to a 2000 Hong Kong romance film that featured the purple flower prominently.

Roughly 1,500 people visited the farm this weekend, said Chanan Rozenbaum, whose family owns Lavender by the Bay.

“This was the first time that traffic got to the level that it did,” he said. Mr. Rozenbaum said the family had spoken to police before the bloom to alert them to the potential for traffic problems.

“We try and do our best,” he said. “We’re not trying to add a strain to the neighborhood; it’s not our intent. Our intent is to have a beautiful farm for the community and for people to come and experience it themselves.”

Two traffic control officers were stationed in the area, but Chief Flatley said the holiday weekend made it difficult for the Southold Police Department to spare additional manpower to direct traffic.

“It just overwhelmed the area,” he said.

The chief stressed that the decision to put traffic control officers in place there was a unique circumstance because there’s only one road through the hamlet. The police department can’t spend every weekend at the site, he said, since that would set a precedent for other businesses that want the town to provide traffic control officers.

“If we start doing that, manpower’s going to evaporate quickly,” the chief said.

The traffic jam affected not just local residents, but passengers heading to and from the ferry in Orient, according to Stanley Mickus, director of marketing and public affairs for Cross Sound Ferry.

Mr. Mickus said dozens of people missed their ferry reservations because of the traffic. Luckily, the company had some openings on other crossings and was able to accommodate those who missed their rides.

“It was an atypical Sunday for us because the holiday fell on a Monday, so Monday was the busier travel day,” he said. “If that were a typical Sunday, when all of the boats are booked, it would have been a big issue.”  

Orient Association president Bob Hanlon said some of the organization’s board members had trouble traveling east through Sunday’s gridlock.

“I’ve seen traffic jams in and around the lavender farm before, but never quite that extensive,” he said. “It wasn’t death and destruction, but it’s frustrating.”

Ms. Murray said some customers at the farm used parking spaces at the nearby firehouse when the farm’s parking spaces filled up. Others, she said, littered and held picnics on residents’ lawns.

“I think we’re just lucky that nobody needed an ambulance,” she said.

Ms. Murray — who was unable to leave her block this weekend due to the traffic — was also unhappy with marketing from the farm that went out on social media, which she said brought more customers to the area on the busy holiday weekend. While she said the business should be allowed to advertise and be successful, Ms. Murray said a “balance” is needed.

“[Owner Serge Rozenbaum] has to think of the consequences,” she said. “This is a community of residents. It’s a two-square-mile hamlet and it’s jammed full during the summer time … He doesn’t realize the impact on the community here and he should take that into consideration.”

But Chanan Rozenbaum said the farm does its best to deal with the influx of tourists by banning buses from its property and trying to obtain more parking spaces. Mr. Rozenbaum said the traffic jam “wasn’t only a result of the farm but it was a result of the holiday weekend and people coming out to the island.”

Mr. Rozenbaum said he expects the traffic problem to be easier to handle this coming weekend, as the lavender bloom is finishing up and will then be harvested. Chief Flatley said the department is already planning to add more resources to the area to prevent another traffic jam.

“It’s going to be a priority to keep that roadway flowing this weekend,” he said.

psquire@timesreview.com

In the early stages of the girls lacrosse program at Mattituck, it may have seemed far fetched to imagine that a few years later, the high school would be represented on the sport’s grand stage: the Under Armour All-America game. 

Then again, after watching Katie Hoeg early in her career as part of the young Tuckers’ program, it might not have seemed so far fetched after all. Over her varsity career, she amassed more than 500 points, including 56 goals and 58 assists this past season as a senior. Her high school career officially wrapped up last weekend when she represented the North team in the prestigious All-America game. Playing attack, she not only helped her team to a 13-11 victory, but earned Most Valuable Player honors along the way.

“I’m really proud to come from Mattituck,” Hoeg said. “I always say in seventh grade we won one game. And to think someone from Mattituck could come and get an MVP at such a big game, I never would have believed it.”

The award can serve as an inspiration to the players following her footsteps, Hoeg said. “You’re not a big fish in a small pond any more,” she said.

The All-America game was part of a weekend of festivities. The girls game was held Saturday night at Towson University in Maryland. The game features 44 of the top lacrosse players from across the country and beyond. The girls team, for example, featured two Canadians. The rosters, which are chosen by a selection committee and Inside Lacrosse magazine, were announced in four waves starting in May. Hoeg was announced in the first wave as a member of the North team.

“When I got the call I was really happy,” she said.

Hoeg was one of 13 Long Island players selected for the game. Two players who were chosen will be joining Hoeg at the University of North Carolina in the fall. One girl, Charlotte Allard, is from Massachusetts and the other is from Huntington. Taylor Moreno, a goalkeeper, was injured though and could not play in the game.

Hoeg said the experience was a confidence boost that she could play at an elite level before beginning her collegiate career.

“Playing with those girls in three days made me a better lacrosse player,” she said. “Now I’m so excited to go down and play with UNC because I know they’ll make me better.”

Hoeg scored three goals with two assists in the All-America game. She said her goals came by getting open in the middle and using her height to her advantage. The assists came by simply finding the open player.

“The team was really unselfish,” she said.

About a week prior to the game, each player received brand-new equipment to use. Hoeg said she traveled to Maryland Thursday and on Friday the team held two practices, mostly to get used to the new equipment. Hoeg said the coaches had informed her before she arrived that she would be playing attack, a position she could find herself playing in college. At Mattituck, Hoeg contributed on both ends of the field as a midfielder.

After the game ended, Hoeg said she was surprised to hear she had won the MVP.

“I think I was really overwhelmed with happiness,” she said. “Before going into the game, I didn’t think I would get that award because there’s so many great players on the field.”

Hoeg had been a part of the Under Armour All-America games the past two years when she played in the underclassmen games. This year, she had a chance to watch her sisters, Riley and Mackenzie, play in the tournament as part of the Long Island “Command” team. Riley is going into 10th grade and Mackenzie is going into ninth. Both have played on varsity at Mattituck the past two years.

The underclassmen team lost in the semifinals, Katie said.

Another Mattituck player, junior Chelsea Marlborough, played on the “Highlight” team.

The tournament features teams from Baltimore, New England and Philadelphia.

Sophia Triandafils, who’s going into her senior year at Shoreham-Wading River, represented Long Island on the “Highlight” team. On the boys side, a standout on the Wildcats’ boys team this past season, Xavier Arline, played on the Long Island “Command” team. Arline scored 43 goals as an eighth-grader this past spring and was the Suffolk County Rookie of the Year.

Photo Caption: Katie Hoeg holds her MVP trophy Saturday. (Credit: Courtesy photo)

joew@timesreview.com

Here are the classifieds for July 7, 2016. If you are interested in placing an ad, please call Karen, 631-354-8029 or email kcullen@timesreview.com.

Times Review classifieds: July 7, 2016

Here is the Suffolk Times Service Directory for July 7, 2016. If you are interested in placing an ad, please call Karen, 631-354-8029 or email kcullen@timesreview.com.

Suffolk Times Service Directory: July 7, 2016

Have you ever walked down the produce aisle at your area supermarket, noticed a “buy local” sign and wondered exactly where the vegetables you were about to purchase were grown?

You’re not alone. 

With demand for local produce on the rise, grocery chains across Long Island are more eager than ever to do business with North Fork farms. Currently, more than 20 farms from Wading River to Orient sell their goods wholesale to Long Island supermarkets.

But the practice isn’t in the cards for everyone. Some area farmers say they grow too little to sell wholesale; others can’t make the economics work or prefer traditional direct-to-consumer sales through farm stands or regional farmers markets.

So while some of the produce you see at grocery stores comes from area farms, it’s probably less than you might imagine. And despite the demand, not all growers are looking to get into the supermarket game.

Paulette Satur of Satur Farms in Cutchogue, which deals entirely in wholesale, said doing so wasn’t always her intention.

“It kind of mushroomed into this,” she said. “The grocery store is our farm stand.”

Ms. Satur and her husband, Eberhard Müller, started their farm 19 years ago to grow vegetables for the Manhattan restaurant Lutèce, where he was chef.

Today, Ms. Satur said, much of the produce grown on their 250-acre farm — mainly leafy vegetables and salad greens — would have a short shelf life on farm stands or at farmers markets. Instead, Satur Farms vegetables can be found at Whole Foods, Fresh Direct and Pret a Manger restaurants, among other places. The farm has the technology available to keep the vegetables refrigerated and fresh until they get to market.

In 2014, Satur Farms received a $120,000 state grant to expand its wholesale reach. That enabled the farm to buy additional equipment during the renovation and expansion of its Calverton warehouse. That expansion was necessary to meet wholesale demand, which Ms. Satur said varies each month but can amount to as many as 25,000 boxes a week.

“It’s a very difficult thing to work up your production and processing and food safety standards to the level that you need to be,” she said.

Northville farmer Lyle Wells in one of his asparagus fields on Sound Avenue. Although he has been selling produce to supermarkets for nearly a dozen years, he is thinking about scaling back. (Credit: Barbaraellen Koch, file)

Long Island Farm Bureau administrative director Rob Carpenter said he believes wholesale farms on the East End struggle to keep up with competitive pricing because of all the restrictions New York farms face. These include the Food Safety Modernization Act and Good Agricultural Practice certification, both of which were designed to ensure that food is safe and that fair-practice standards, such as eliminating food contamination, are met.

Phil Schmitt of Schmitt’s Farm in Riverhead said his business wholesales herbs, lettuce and other vegetables, which are also sold at its Sound Avenue farm stand. Recently, Mr. Schmitt said, he has been thinking about scaling back his wholesale efforts despite the supermarkets’ increased interest in “buying local.” That’s due to the cost of farming on Long Island, the inability to match global market pricing and the impact regulations have had on his crops, he said.

Mr. Schmitt pointed specifically to regulations prohibiting the use of certain weed-killers, which have altered his business.

“Spinach used to be our biggest crop,” he said, adding that he once grew 75 acres but now produces just five due to weed-control regulations. “I cannot justify pulling the weeds by hand and there’s no profit left.”

Mr. Schmitt said that if he stepped away from the wholesale business and focused more on retail sales, he could reduce the number of acres he keeps in cultivation. He said that while selling directly to consumers is also competitive, doing more of it could help improve his profit margins. In fact, Mr. Schmitt said, he could get 50 percent more for his produce at a farm stand.

Lyle Wells of Wells Homestead Acres in Riverhead, which has been farmed by the same family for 12 generations, said he began wholesaling produce, including asparagus and zucchini, to supermarkets about a dozen years ago. However, he has also found it challenging and is thinking about scaling back.

Strawberries at Bayview Farms & Market in Aquebogue. (Credit: Krysten Massa)

Mr. Wells said his produce has been sold in several supermarkets, but that this year he is only supplying them with small amounts. He said one chain pulled out on him last summer during prime growing season because he didn’t want to comply with all the food-safety regulations, which are very costly for his small farm.

“It’s impossible for us to do,” he said. “It’s not only expensive, but it’s impossible.”

Lucy Senesac of Sang Lee Farms in Peconic said her farm is able to offer better prices by dealing directly with customers. Each week, Ms. Senesac and the Lee family sell their certified-organic produce at their Route 48 farm stand and three area farmers markets.

“There’s demand here, so for us that’s better, because with direct-to-consumer we can sell a vegetable for about what it costs to grow,” Ms. Senesac explained.

Before Sang Lee became an organic farm with a higher price point, Ms. Senesac said, it sold many of its Asian-style vegetables wholesale to markets in Chinatown and to Hunts Point Cooperative Market in the Bronx. Eventually, she said, those markets were able to purchase the same produce for less from other farms and Sang Lee began seeing much of its supply returned.

While Ms. Senesac said she is frequently asked if Sang Lee will ever begin selling its organic produce to area supermarkets, they don’t have the resources in place to return to such a business model.

Gene Wesnofske of Wesnofske Farms in Peconic said wholesale business is secondary to farm stand sales on his Route 48 property. In fact, he said, he really only wholesales surplus corn, peppers, cabbage and squash to Hunts Point Cooperative Market.

Mr. Wesnofske explained that when his family started the farm in 1967, it wholesaled its potatoes as far away as Puerto Rico. Now, however, the practice only accounts for around a quarter of the farm’s revenue.

Mickey Harley of Bhavana Blueberries in Southold began wholesaling his fruit to local IGAs and Uncle Giuseppe’s in 2015. This year, he hopes to add Stew Leonard’s to his client list. Unlike other farms that use distributors like J. Kings, Bhavana Blueberries deals with supermarkets directly, which adds an even greater challenge to the practice of wholesaling.

Last year, Mr. Harley said, IGA officials would call him when they needed blueberries and he would pick, pack and deliver them that same day.

“You lose that efficiency the distributor brings,” Mr. Harley said. “You’re biting a bullet on one hand, but hopefully receiving a higher price on the other hand.”

Tomatoes at Wesnofske Farms in Peconic. (Credit: Krysten Massa)

Mr. Carpenter said that if consumers really want Long Island fruits and vegetables they have to be willing to pay a higher price for them — even at the supermarket. He added that he hopes local grocery chains will advocate for East End farmers by featuring Long Island-grown sections.

“The grocery stores being part of the Long Island community should try and do more to encourage the purchase of locally grown [produce],” Mr. Carpenter said.

King Kullen was one of the first supermarket chains to carry local produce, starting around 18 years ago. While Mr. Carpenter said some grocery stores define “local” as anywhere within 100 miles, King Kullen specifically labels some of its produce as “Grown on Long Island.”

Rich Conger, director of produce for King Kullen, said that as demand increases, purchasing wholesale produce remains important to his locally owned grocery store chain.

“The Long Island consumer appreciates the fact that we are buying local,” he said.

Top Photo Caption: Farmer Lucy Senesac at Sang Lee Farms in Peconic. (Credit: Krysten Massa)

kmassa@timesreview.com

Unless pumpkins are your produce of choice, there’s no better time of year than July to purchase fruits and vegetables grown on the North Fork.

The blueberries are being picked, the corn is being shucked and the local cucumber, cauliflower and tomato seasons have begun.

In total, about a dozen additional standard varieties of locally grown produce are available at farm stands right now.

Will you take the time to buy directly from your local farmer?

While a report in Newsday last month boasted of an increased presence of local produce in Long Island supermarkets, that’s not necessarily what’s best for area farmers.

As our story in this week’s paper outlines, despite growing demand, many local farmers still do not sell wholesale to area grocery stores. Even those who do tend to prefer direct sales at farm stands and farmers markets.

The financial impact of regulations, costs of distribution and other expenses have made wholesaling impractical for many.

The average Long Island farm is only about 100 acres — and most are family-owned, making it difficult for growers to offer their fruits and vegetables at a competitive price against other producers in a wholesale environment. That’s especially true when compared with corporately owned farms in the Midwest, which cultivate as many as 2,500 acres.

The farm stand’s price might not be best for your budget, but it helps ensure that farmers get a fair price for their produce. And it’s more than just a PR pitch to say there’s value in knowing your local farmer. There’s no better way to learn how to best prepare your food than by talking with the person who grew it. Shopping at farmers markets or participating in a Community Supported Agriculture program will also help educate you about fruits and vegetables you might not ordinarily try.

If you do buy your produce at the supermarket, seek out in-season inventory purchased from Long Island farms. If something is branded as local, find out exactly where it was grown.

Then, on your way home, make a quick stop to pick up that one last item at a local farm stand. It really can make a difference.

Dorothy “Dottie” Lesser of Greenport died June 15 at the age of 81.

Ms. Lesser was born Nov. 16, 1934, in Hermon, Maine. She married Richard Lesser on Sept. 16, 1953.
Along with her husband, she is survived by her daughter, Deb Kimmelman (Mike) of Cutchogue, and son, Michael (Becki), of New Hampshire; two grandchildren, Cody and Jenna Kujawski; and two stepgrandchildren, Steven and Corinne Kimmelman.

A celebration of Ms. Lesser’s life will be held from 3 to 6 p.m. Saturday, July 30, at 1865 Highland Road, Cutchogue. All who knew Dottie are invited to attend.

This is a paid notice.

Congratulations to the following students!

HIGH HONOR ROLL

Grade 12: Cassidy Arnzen, John Batuello, Thomas Behr, Taylor Berkoski, Hayley Berry, Julie Dickerson, Jack Dufton, Emma Fasolino, Erin Feeney, Hannah Fitzgerald, Sarah Fogarty, Gwyneth Foley, David Folk, Emily Gatz, Yianni Giannaris, Sarah Goerler, Katerina Hatzinikolaou, Christina Hatzinikolaou, Benjamin Hinsch, Katherine Hoeg, Chloe Janis, Raven Janoski, Caroline Keil, Anna Kowalski, Julie Krudop, Trevor Larsen, Antonina Lentini, Dylan Marlborough, Meghan McKillop, Lika Osepashvili, Gabriella Pagano, Meghan Pawlik, Courtney Penny, Brianna Perino, Dawn Rochon, Miranda Sannino, Kimberly Scheer, Samuel Shaffery, Sophia Sluyters, Samantha Smilovich, Cecilia Stevens, Joseph Tardif, Shane Uher, Charles Zaloom.

Grade 11: Amy Li Berninger, Alex Bradley, Ty Bugdin, Karen Carrillo, Charley Claudio, Dylan Drewes, Cheyenne Harris, Thomas Hoeg, Svitlana Hoshko, Samantha Husak, Colleen Kelly, Joseph Kelly, Brendan Kent, Colette Kodym, Bianca LaColla, Amy Macaluso, Ryan McCaffery, James McDonald, Carter Montgomery, Karolina Morawski, McKenzi Murphy, Johanna Pedone, Corinne Reda, Autumn Reichardt, Sascha Rosin, Tyler Seifert, Sarah Shannon, Dale Stonemetz, Gage Suglia, Christopher Waggoner, Dylan Wilsberg, Mary Kate Wilton.

Grade 10: Alexandra Beebe, Alexander Bellavia, Ashley Burns, Ashley Chew, James Clementi, David Conroy, Mackenzie Daly, Jane DiGregorio, Elizabeth Dwyer, Brian Feeney, Sean Feeney, Samantha Fine, Daniel Folk, Rebecca Foster, Brianna Fox, Jaime Gaffga, Jacqueline Galdamez SantaMaria, Ghana Haase, Rebecca Hammerle, Shawn Howell, Collin Kaminsky, Leah Kerensky, Jacob Kupecki, Justin Lake, Anthony Lopez, Chelsea Marlborough, Grace McKeon, Lucas Micheels, Emily Mowdy, Jakob Olsen, Dennis O’Rourke, Madison Osler, Alexandria Peters, Riley Peterson, Jennifer Rutkoski, Connor Smith, Joseph Stuckart, Alexandra Talbot, Martha Terry, Carly Woods.

Grade 9: Miranda Annunziata, Lauren Bihm, Sarah Bihm, Charles Bordsen, Kaitlyn Brisotti, Beverly Cahueque, Max Cantelmo, Dorothy Condon, Christian Demchak, Annabel Donovan, Gabrielle Dwyer, Anne Finnegan, Caleb Foley, Jillian Gaffga, Savvas Giannaris, Bryce Grathwohl, Riley Hoeg, Claudia Hoeg, Christopher Imbriano, Rachel Janis, Mason Kelly, Kristen Lisowy, Antonio Marine, Sean McDonald, Catherine McGrath, Julisa Medina Martinez, Cassidy Mullin, Tyler F. Olsen, Katherine Parks, Matteo Pellegrini, Trevor Poole, Meghan Riley, Amber Rochon, Lily Russell, Wylee Sanders, Madison Schmidt, Ryan Seifert, Julie Seifert, Matthew Sledjeski, Madison Storm, Christina Tomao, Courtney Trzcinski, Francesca Vasile-Cozzo, Gabrielle Wahlers, Goksel Zaim.

Grade 8: Margaret Bruer, Kianja Christian, Joseph Corso, James DiBartolo, Cole DiGregorio, Shelby Dufton, Gabrielle Finora, Justin Garbarino, Claire Gatz, Grace Golder, Viktoria Harkin, Miranda Hedges, Max Heilman, Mackenzie Hoeg, Charlotte Keil, Abigail Kerensky, James Kowalski, Jenna Lisowy, Payton Maddaloni, Tyler Marlborough, Shannon Massey, Jessica Mazzeo, Mildred Monroy, Taylor Montgomery, Hannah Murphy, Christopher Nicholson, Jillian Orr, Jordan Osler, Eric Palencia, Rachel Park, Cade Patchell, Veronica Pugliese, Emmet Ryan, Jessica Scheer, Tyler Shuford, Rylie Skrezec, Emily Sullivan, Christopher Talbot II, Kathryn Thompson, Matthew Warns, Thomas Wilton.

Grade 7: Luke Altman, Rudy Alvarado-Carillo, Silvia Borrayo, Ainsley Brewer, Jackson Cantelmo, Emily Chew, Jessi Clementi, Kylie Conroy, Nathaniel Demchak, Renee DePinto, Nicolas Diaz, Hunter DiVello, Antonia Dris, Kendall Fabb, Connor Fox, Katherine Hamilton, Annabel Hammerle, Jaimee Hanly, Madison Hansen, Sadie Heston, Weronika Jachimowicz, Savanna Kelly, Julia Klibisz, Sean Kobel, Alex Koch, Julie Kosmynka, Rashad Lawson, Paul LoCascio, Jada Marine, Isabella Masotti, Samantha McNamara, Olivia Minguela, Steven Moeck, Emma Olsen, Lauren Onufrak, Nikita Palianok, Fernando Perez, Hanna Prager, Emma Reidy, Rylie Rittberg, Matthew Rodgers, Olivia Sciara, Nikki Searles, Abigail Seifert, Lily Slovak, Bryan Soto, Ashley Young.

HONOR ROLL

Grade 12: Maria Capichana, Meghan Corazzini, Taylor DiVello, Carly Doorhy, Eddie Dowling, Alec Durkin, Liam Finnegan, Jacquelin Gonzalez, Joseph Graeb, Skyler Grathwohl, Liam Gregg, Audrey Hoeg, Samantha Kaelin, Alison LePre, Ryan McCaskie, Matthew Mehalakes, Joseph Melly, Andreana Mineo, Daniel Nugent, Michael Onufrak, Victoria Pagano, Ryan Reilly, Benjamin Savercool, Phurlamu Sherpa, Andrew Stakey, William Stuckart, Parker Tuthill, Rachel Voegel, Lucas Webb, Matthew Wells, Feng You.

Grade 11: Chance Anderson, Jennifer Avila Ramos, Eshi Baldano, Thomas Beebe, Alexander Burns, Tabitha Conklin, Joseph Considine, Caitlyn Deerkoski, Sean Gambaiani, Jacob Golanec, Michael Goodale, Daniel Harkin, James Hoeg, Tina Imbriano, Grace Izzo, Jacey Lengyel, Christopher Massey, Matthew V. Mauceri, Liam McShane, Joseph Mele, Eric Momente, Mathew Montefusco, Taylor Nietupski, Cassandra Nine, Nicholas Parks, Timothy Pelan, Grace Pellegrino, Melanie Pfennig, Joshua Prager, Hannah Prokop, Ally Robins, Thomas Salice, Tyler Schroeck, Kyle Schultz, Christopher Schwamborn, Ryan Shuford, Emily Sidor, Amanda Young.

Grade 10: Talia Aiello, Larysa Andreadis, Brittany Benediktsson, Luke Bokina, Jack Bokina, Liam Corbley, Alissa Dabrowski, Joy Davis, Kaitlyn Ficarra, Macie Grathwohl, Sophie Jacobs, Jack Kitz, Taylor Larsen, Stephen Masotti, Mauricio Moran, Thomas Olsen, Sarah Park, Jillian Pedone, Greta Peters, Tucker Phillippe-Johansson, Peter Pugliese, Elvira Puluc, Marilyn Ramirez, Britney Santos, Jason Scalia, Jake Sciara, Thomas Sullivan, Julia Vasile-Cozzo.

Grade 9: Alexis Burns, William Burns, Jake Catalano, Kaitlyn Cox, Cassidy Deerkoski, Joseph DePinto, David Fasolino, Charlie Hasel, Jessica Lessard, Kyle McFadden, Brian Molchan, Alexander Nadel, Teagan Nine, Tyler C. Olsen, Mikayla Osmer, Ashley Perkins, Ethan Prager, Francesco Sannino, Matthew Schroeck, Olivia Schutte, Madelyn Shannon, Christopher Siejka, Thomas Silleck, Mia Slovak, Jasmin Torres Echeverria, Benjamin Webb, Lauren Zuhoski.

Grade 8: Ian Baker, Anna Burns, Rhiannon Cherney, Oswald Cuellar, Matthew Czujko, Halle Foster, Julia Gammon, William Hickox, Andrew Hildesheim, Emily Javier, Sean Jester, Madeleine Jimenez, Adam Kaya, Michael Kiel, Hayden Kitz, Adam Kobel. Marissa Lechner, Jadyn Maichin, Joshua Masotti, Paige Mather, Kyle McCaskie, Jennifer Palencia, Frankie Priolo, Morgan Puterbaugh, Dane Reda, Sarah Santacroce, Julia Schimpf, Mathew Schultz, Grace Shipman, Joshua Starzee, Colby Suglia, Brett Walsh, Taylor Zuhoski.

Grade 7: Mia Xing Berninger, Christopher Catalano, Cassidy Celic, John Condon, Kayla Corrigan, Gabriel Gamboa-Boutcher, Berkan Ilgin, Jonathan Jacobs, Antonio Jimenez, Hudson Kaufer, John Lajda, Thomas Nemschick, Myah Orlowski, Filippo Pellegrini, Thomas Peters, Daniel Puluc, Abigail Rosato, Nishant Seodat, Claire Stevens, Dylan Szczotka, Tara Terranova, Brighton Tucci, Jillian Tuthill.

Margot W. Clark, 80, died peacefully at her home in Greenport on July 7.

Family will receive friends on Sunday, July 10, 6 to 8 p.m. and Monday, July 11, 9 to 11 a.m. at Horton-Mathie Funeral Home in Greenport. A funeral service will follow at 11 a.m. in the Horton-Mathie chapel, led by Pastor Tom LaMothe of First Baptist Church of Greenport. Burial will follow at Cutchogue Cemetery.

Memorial donations may be made to East End Hospice, First Baptist Church of Greenport or the Greenport Fire Department Rescue Squad.