A quintessential fall day and community pride provided the backdrop for a successful homecoming weekend for the Islip School District community, held on Oct. 23. Students from all of the district’s schools met at Town Hall to line up for the parade down Main Street that included high school floats, organization and school banners, cheerleaders, the marching band and more as residents cheered from the sidewalk. This year’s float theme was Holidays, with creations centered around Christmas (seniors), Halloween (juniors), July 4th (sophomores) and Valentine’s Day (freshman). After the parade, the community gathered at the Islip High School soccer field to participate in a district-sponsored carnival. The fun-filled event included a dunking platform, information booths, bounce houses and slides, a dance section and games. During the game’s halftime show, the cheerleaders, kickline team and marching band gave flawless performances and motivated the already upbeat fans. The homecoming court was also announced and included King Richie Castronova, Queen Desiree Pagan, Stephanie Castro, Bipro Dhar, Brianna Dodier, Nate Moran, Emma Neri, Jameson Seegar, Noah Whitehouse and Abby Zimmerman.

The Buccaneers lived up to the reputation as a first-class team, even though they fell one touchdown short (14-7) of a victory against undefeated Sayville.