Leading off today: Retired East Hampton coach Ed Petrie, New York State's winningest public high school boys basketball coach, died early Sunday morning at the age of 82.
Petrie's teams win three Section 11 and a NYSPHSAA championships during his 52-year career. He retired in 2010 with 754 wins in 41 years at the helm of the Bonackers. Before East Hampton, he coached at Pierson; during East Hampton's year on an austerity budget in 1979 he assisted with Bridgehampton's state championship squad.
Some of his strongest teams were in the pre-state tournament era, and East Hampton was 62-4 from 1975-78. The Bonackers were 67-6 over his final three seasons, leaving Petrie second only to Jack Curran of Archbishop Molloy on the state's overall wins list.
"It's a tremendous loss" for the East Hampton community, Howard Wood, who won a state regional title under Petrie in 1977 and coaches the girls team, told the East Hampton Star. "He had two sons named Petrie, but he had dozens of other sons. He taught them so much about a lot outside of basketball."
Petrie was in the inaugural class inducted into the East Hampton High School Athletic Hall of Fame in 2012 and was also inducted into the New York State Basketball Hall of Fame.
Petrie's sons, Ed Jr. and Michael, played for their father in the 1970s, and Ed Petrie Jr. said their father's legacy within the community cannot be overstated.
"Every kid that grew up in East Hampton and Sag Harbor from 1959 until he retired played for him or was in his phys ed class," he told 27east.com. "Everybody knows him and everybody respected him."
A bit of history: Warwick Valley has made a bit of history today by becoming the first Section 9 Class A team to break into the New York State Sportswriters Association boys lacrosse rankings, checking in at No. 19 with an 18-0 record.
NYSSWA editor Neil Kerr confirmed that the Class A ranking was a first for Section 9.
Warwick Valley plays a NYSPHSAA tournament first-round game Wednesday against Niskayuna at Middletown. Lakeland/Panas escaped with a 6-5 win over Warwick Valley when the teams played in the 2014 tournament.
More lacrosse: Notre Dame signee Brian Willetts broke Smithtown East's record for career points in a 17-11 win
