Serving Manhasset, Munsey Park, North Hills, Plandome Heights, Plandome Manor, Plandome and Flower Hill
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Friday, July 23, 2021
Vol. 9, No. 30
SUMMER DINING GUIDE PAGES 19-22
NHP MAN WILL GET NASSAU TO GET UP TO SAME DEAL IN NASSAU $115M IN OPIOID SETTLEMENT PAGE 3
PAGE 7
Manhasset native to pitch for Israel
F R E S H FA C E S
Herricks alum Alex Katz on country’s 1st Olympic baseball squad in Tokyo BY R OB E RT PE L A E Z From humble beginnings at Herricks High School to joining Israel’s national baseball team in the upcoming Olympics, Alex Katz is accomplishing feats only a handful of people in the world can relate to. The 26-year-old Katz, earlier in July, was named to the final 24-man roster for Israel’s first Olympic baseball roster, which will be traveling to Tokyo to compete against other nations around the world later this month. Katz is also a dual citizen of the United States and Israel. “There’s no words to describe the feeling — it still hasn’t hit me yet,” Katz said. “I’m excited for the opening ceremonies and our first game, which will be against Korea.” A Manhasset native, Katz graduated from Herricks in 2012. During his time with the Highlanders, Katz was second-team All-Island
and first-team All-County and was named the Most Valuable Player of the Nassau County Exceptional Senior Game. Some notable performances Katz had at Herricks as a pitcher included games with 15 and 16 strikeouts against top competitors. After high school, he received an offer to play in the Cincinnati Reds organization but declined so he could attend college at St. John’s University. His junior year with the Red Storm proved to be the one that would pave the way for future success. Katz went 3-1 with a 3.40 ERA in 19 mound appearances with 52 strikeouts in 55.2 innings. That same year, Katz and the Red Storm won the Big East baseball championship and secured a berth in the College World Series. In 2015, Katz was selected by the Chicago White Sox organization in the 27th round of the MLB Draft. Katz, in a 2015 interview Continued on Page 26
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE MANHASSET SCHOOL DISTRICT
New members of the Manhasset Board of Education Jill Pulano (left) and Erin Royce (right) were officially sworn into their new roles earlier this month.
Visiting goats feast on town’s poison ivy BY S A M U E L E PETRUCCELLI Peeking through the tall grass and dense weeds along the shores of Manhasset Bay, a heard of hungry farm animals
can be seen peacefully chomping on the ground’s thick poison ivy. Traveling everywhere from New Haven, Conn., to Thurmond, West Va., the Green Goats of Rhinebeck in Dutchess
County, N.Y., have become famous in the world of environmentally eradicating invasive vegetation. Now at the unanimous request of council members, Continued on Page 27
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