Can West Islip make it 9 straight titles?

CLASS A

Will nine be fine or is eight enough?

That question hangs in the spring air like a high, lofted clearing pass as No. 1 seed West Islip tries to add to its impressive run of eight consecutive Suffolk championships. The Lions have won four of the past six state Class A title and had a 40-game winning streak ended by Farmingdale in last year's Long Island championship. They have a potent offense led by the lefty-righty senior attack combination of Tom Moore and Brendan Smith. The dynamic duo totaled 13 goals in 16-2 and 15-3 victories to start the season.

There's more, of course. Shifty junior Nick Aponte, already committed to Penn State, is one of the best midfielders on Long Island. Anthony Santo is a defensive whiz at long-pole middie or close defense. Goalie Jack Kelly is one of several college-bound Division I players on the roster.

Ward Melville is a strong No. 2 seed, with exceptional midfield depth, led by Cornell-bound John Edmonds, Jimmy Coughlan and Frank Lucatuorto. No. 3 Smithtown West has a very powerful offense led by Virginia-bound attack James Pannell, finisher Matt Schultz, impressive sophomore Ryan Keenan and midfielder Alex Dodge. A not-so-secret-but-very-important weapon is faceoff specialist Craig Madarasz, headed to Johns Hopkins.

Sachem North lost high-scoring Dalton Crossan for at least two months, but still has plenty of offense with attack Kyle Rhatigan, Shawn Murphy and Cody Petillo and middie Jack Gannon.

Northport is dangerous, led by flashy sophomore Brian Cannon and Sean Gilroy. Smithtown East features North Carolina-bound junior goalie Brian Balkam.

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CLASS B

Comsewogue is a very motivated No. 1 seed, having suffered its only loss of last season, 12-11, in overtime to Huntington in the playoffs. The Warriors are particularly strong on defense, led by Jeremy Wiley, Devon Cruz and Ryan O'Donoghue. Offensively, Tom Hughes is a fleet triple-threat middie who works well with Matt Cossidente. Kenny Scotland, a LIU Post-bound football player, is a load to handle on attack.

Legitimate challenges will come from Eastport-South Manor, which features high-scoring Ryan Curley and an outstanding defensive corps. Sayville should be strong, led by Jake Sichenzia (12 goals in first two games) and Zach Sirico on offense, Stony Brook-bound Steven Ferreira on defense and Pat Fleming in goal. Hofstra-bound Sam Llinares leads playoff contender Hauppauge and Syracuse-bound Ryan Palasek hopes to get Rocky Point into the playoff mix. Dan Plant, who scored the winner against Comsewogue, returns for Huntington.

CLASS C

Because of a decline in enrollment, No. 1 Shoreham-Wading River moves down a class and should dominate, led by Maryland-bound junior Tim Rotanz, who led Long Island in scoring last year with 110 points. Notre Dame-bound middie Trevor Brosco has recovered from a severe hamstring injury and Chris Mahoney leads the defense. Defending Class C champion Bayport-Blue Point returns a tough attack duo in Brian White and Brian Ward. Athletic Maryland-bound midfielder Tom Forsberg makes Glenn a tough opponent. Mount Sinai features goalie Billy Poillon and lefty attack Chad Marino.