Danny Alnwick, Jonathan Osmun, Thomas Sangiovanni lift Harborfields to Suffolk 'B' crown

In a season filled with late drama and ups and downs, Harborfields’ path to a second straight county title seemed pretty straightforward: protect a five-goal lead in the final 10 minutes.

A weather delay slowed the Tornadoes’ rhythm, ensuring things would not be so smooth, but it turned out to be just another obstacle they overcame.

Danny Alnwick scored three goals and Jonathan Osmun added two goals and two assists to lead No. 2 Harborfields past No. 1 East Islip, 11-6, in the Suffolk Class B lacrosse championship on Wednesday at Farmingdale State.

Thomas Sangiovanni added two goals and an assist for Harborfields, which won its second straight county title and will face Manhasset on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. at Hofstra for the Long Island championship.

“I’m really proud and I’m most proud because it wasn’t easy at any point this whole season,” coach Glenn Lavey said. “Nothing about the season was smooth. We had a ton of one-goal games, we were humbled at times and we struggled at times. That’s what makes this special. They were at their best when their best was needed.”

“Everything thought we weren’t going be that good this year, that this would be a rebuilding year,” Sangiovanni said. “But we overcame that, overcame injuries and we proved everybody wrong.”

After a close start Wednesday, Harborfields (14-4) began to pull away as Stephen Markowski scored with 3:31 left in the third quarter to give the Tornadoes a 9-4 lead. The goal was part of a 4-1 run that opened the second half that was interrupted not by East Islip, but by lightning.

“We had everything going our way,” Lavey said. “[East Islip was] starting to get a little frantic because of the score. They were starting to make mistakes because they had to push the pace, and maybe that break gave them a second to slow down.”

In actuality, Harborfields continued its run, as Sangiovanni netted a pair of fourth-quarter goals that made the score 11-4 with 4:17 remaining.

At the other of the field, Harborfields’ Nick Caccamo had a game-high five groundballs, Ward Tucker made 10 saves and Jonathan Vuono slowed the dangerous John Sidorski, who is fifth in the county in points (93). He did have three assists Wednesday but did not score.

“He’s a very good player and a skilled lefty, so we had to watch the tape and work hard,” Vuono said.

Said Caccamo: “It’s our first back-to-back championship, so to be a part of that is an honor and it’s been so rewarding.”