2006 All-Long Island Boys Lacrosse

BY TOM ALLEGRA | Newsday Staff Writer
June 18, 2006
A look at Long Island's best boys lacrosse players for the 2006 season.

Adam Ghitelman
Nassau Player of the Year
Cold Spring Harbor, Goalie, Junior
The 5-8, 175-pound Ghitelman directs the defense with his communication skills and sparks the transition offense with his pinpoint outlet passes. He stopped 49 shots taken from 5 yards or closer and 75.2 percent of the shots he faced this season.

Scott Kocis
Suffolk Player of the Year
Huntington, Midfield, Senior
With 44 goals, 43 assists and an 85-percent success rate on faceoffs, Kocis helped the Blue Devils go undefeated -- again -- and win the Class B state title -- again. For his career, the 6-4, 220-pound Kocis totaled 109 goals and 107 assists. Originally committed to Duke, the Inside Lacrosse preseason midfielder of the year will play at the Georgetown.

Sal Barcia
West Islip, Goalie, Senior
If you don't think the 5-9, 225-pound Barcia's .645 career save percentage is impressive, consider this: in three years his teams have gone 64-3 with three Long Island Class A titles and a 2006 state crown they wouldn't have won without him. He will play at Robert Morris.

Rhamel Bratton
Huntington, Midfield, Junior
He doesn't score as much as his identical twin brother, but the speedy Rhamel Bratton (40 goals, 17 assists in 2006) is just as valuable to the Blue Devils' unparalleled transition game. He is also a more highly touted defensive weapon.

Shamel Bratton
Huntington, Midfield, Junior
This lefty is a star on unsettled situations, a player who can turn a defensive-end takeaway to an offensive-end breakaway goal in less than 10 seconds. The 6-1, 180-pound Shamel Bratton had 70 goals and 22 assists this season.

Sean Burke
St. Anthony's, Midfield, Senior
A complete and lanky middie, the 6-2, 180-pound Burke had 40 goals and 23 assists this season and 121 points in a three-year varsity career. He is headed to North Carolina.

Dylan D'Alessio
Cold Spring Harbor, Defense, Senior
The 5-10, 180-pound D'Alessio, who had 53 groundballs and 28 takeaways this season, committed only one penalty even though he defended opposing teams' top attackers. He will attend Hartwick.

Craig Dowd
Northport, Attack, Senior
It wasn't easy to follow in the footsteps of his older brother Kyle, a two-time Long Island champion. And although the 5-11, 175-pound Dowd never won a postseason title, he does hold the program record with 261 career points.

Kevin Federico
West Islip, Attack, Senior
The 5-9, 170-pound Federico totaled program-records of 154 goals, 164 assists and 318 points in a three-year career in which the Lions went 79-7 and won three straight Long Island Class A titles and the 2006 state title. He will attend North Carolina.

Dean Gibbons
Garden City, Attack, Junior
The 6-0, 160-pound Gibbons will have a tough act to follow next season after shattering the previous Long Island single-season goals record of 88. He finished with 101 goals and 34 assists and has 231 career points in two seasons.

Bobby Hayes
South Side, Midfield, Senior
A do-it-all midfielder, the 5-8, 165-pound Hayes will play for national finalist UMass next year. He had 36 goals and 28 assists this season but, more importantly, won a program-record 71 percent (534 of 751) of his faceoffs in a three-year career.

Matt Kresse
Ward Melville, Defense, Senior
The 6-2, 220-pound Kresse was a leader for a Patriot defense that allowed less than four goals per game in advancing to the Suffolk Class A final. He will attend UMBC.

Chris Lubin
Syosset, Attack, Senior
The 5-9, 175-pound Lubin, headed to Providence, made a name for himself when his overtime winner upset Ward Melville in non-league. He finished with 54 goals and 33 assists this season and 182 career points.

Kerry McCormick
Garden City, Defense, Senior
Garden City's lockdown defender, the 6-0, 170-pound McCormick is a two-time All-Long Island pick and one of many gold medal-winning Empire State team members on this year's Newsday squad. He will attend North Carolina.

Chris Ritchie
Mount Sinai, Attack, Senior
The 5-10, 170-pound Ritchie forced himself to become an ambidextrous shooter as a freshman, and it paid off. He finished his four-year varsity career as Suffolk's all-time leading scorer with 393 points. He will attend Cornell.

Christian Scuderi
West Islip, Defense, Senior
The 6-4, 205-pound Scuderi had 54 takeaways and 74 groundballs this season and 115 takeaways and 170 groundballs in a three-year career capped by a Class A state title. He is headed to NYIT.

Dennis Bonn
Nassau Coach of the Year
Cold Spring Harbor
Dennis Bonn never forgot the Seahawks' loss to Manhasset in the 2004 Nassau Class C final, when they blew a three-goal lead in the last three minutes of regulation. That's why CSH didn't relent in its 10-2 win over Manhasset in this year's Nassau final en route to its first Long Island and state titles. He is 139-55 in seven years as Seahawks head coach.

Paul McDermott
Suffolk Coach of the Year
Huntington
The last two seasons were a long time coming for Paul McDermott, whose Blue Devils had knocked on the county championship door the previous seven years but never opened it. Consider it kicked in, as McDermott led Huntington to its second straight undefeated state championship season. He is 203-85 in 17 years as Blue Devils head coach.

Copyright © 2008, Newsday Inc.

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