70 The QUEE NS Courier • NOVEMBER 28, 2013 for breaking news visit www.queenscourier.com sports METS ANTHEM SEARCH FLUSHING LOSES SEMI-FINALS FANS SING FOR METS Hopefuls audition to sing anthem at Mets opening day BY LIAM LA GUERE [email protected] O say can you sing? The New York Mets hosted the first round of their 2014 Anthem Search on Thursday, November 21, to find the person who will sing the national anthem at opening day next year. More than 150 contestants auditioned for the position, sharing 60 seconds of their best vocals with a panel of judges. “It’s the Mets version of American Idol,” said Gary Apple, an SNY broadcaster and competition judge. “I think it’s great for the Mets and baseball.” This year’s Anthem Search winner will be allowed to sing on opening day for the first time. Past winners chose dates throughout the season to perform at a game. Many talented singers saw the opportunity as a way to bolster their future singing goals. “It would be an honor to sing in front of many people and represent the Mets, and it would be really challenging and add to my experience in singing,” said Victoria Labban, 13, of Richmond Hill, who has sang at the Apollo Theater in Harlem. Mets officials said contestants will be called soon after the auditions and will be informed if they made the cut. The judges gave singers encouragement, but were also tough. They said performing the anthem in front of thousands of fans requires someone who would not choke up, not forget words and of course sing well. “There were definitely some people who should have gone to work and not come here today,” said Skeery Jones, a judge and radio personality for Z100. In the second round, Mets staff Singers from all over the country competed in the first round of the Mets 2014 Anthem Search. will determine a single winner, who will sing on the 2014 opening day on THE COURIER/Photo by Liam La Guerre March 31, when the Mets host the Washington Nationals. RED DEVILS BURNED Flushing football team loses PSAL semi-finals BY LIAM LA GUERE [email protected] The PSAL football semi-finals between the Lincoln Railsplitters and Flushing Red Devils seemed to be decided by halftime. The November 23 game was held at Lincoln High School’s field in Brooklyn. Leading 41-0, players on Lincoln’s sideline were dancing to Jay Z’s “Brooklyn (Go Hard),” while their fans chanted “Brooklyn,” a cheer now associated with the Brooklyn Nets professional basketball team. On Flushing’s sideline, players were more reserved, but hadn’t given up. They were yelling “Don’t give up, ya’ll” as their teammates returned to the field. Flushing eventually lost 55-7, missing their chance to play in the championship game at Yankee Stadium. “You guys made me proud today,” head coach Jim DeSantis told his teary-eyed team in the visitor’s locker room after the match. “Probably prouder than you have all year because you never gave up. There were only four teams playing football today, and you were one of them. You put Flushing on the map. You put Queens on the map, and that’s a good thing.” Although Flushing lost, the Red Devils seniors took pride in the first time the school had ever made it to the semi-finals in the championship league, the city’s top division. All season they had made Flushing a team to fear, with a 7-2 record during the regular season. But Lincoln, which was undefeated (9-0) in the season, easily picked apart Flushing’s defense and dominated the Red Devils. Three minutes into the third quarter, Lincoln scored, inflating the score to 48-0 after the extrapoint. Just a few minutes later, Railsplitters junior Elias Davis capped another successful drive, with a 20-yard rush for a touchdown. But down 55-0, Flushing finally answered Lincoln and gave dozens of fans who travelled in from Queens something to cheer about. Flushing put together a drive in which senior DeAndre Ross Lomax rushed for 20 yards, followed by an eight-yard rush by junior Terrence Chavis. The drive was extended when senior DeShawn Scott Jr. completed a 20-yard reception for a first down. “I just felt like I had to play hard. I had to finish the game,” Scott Jr. said. Later in the drive, Ross Lomax rushed for 14 yards, which got the Red Devils to the one yard line. Chavis ran the ball in the end zone for the team’s only score. After the game, players were upset about the loss, but understood they had brought Flushing to another level. “We went further than any Flushing team in history, so it’s still pretty good,” said Ross Lomax. “But I still wanted to get a chance to take my team to Yankee Stadium.” THE COURIER/Photo by Liam La Guerre
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