Galasso sets LI scoring record as West Islip wins Class A crown

Even if Nicky Galasso wanted to put the Long Island scoring record out of his mind, his teammates wouldn't let him. At Friday's practice, several West Islip players came up to the senior attack and asked, "How many points are you going to get?"

Galasso's response: "I don't know. Shut up. It's all about winning the championship."

Galasso was well aware that he needed six points to break the Long Island lacrosse career scoring record and seven points for a career total of 500. He wanted to make another point, however. "I knew where I was [on the list]. I wasn't planning on getting the record. I didn't want to think about it. I just wanted to win another championship," Galasso said.

He got it all in the third quarter yesterday when West Islip went on a 7-0 scoring spree to defeat Fairport, 13-5, before a crowd of 2,500 at Stony Brook's LaValle Stadium for its second consecutive state Class A championship and fourth in the last five years.

Those seasons correspond to the time Galasso has spent on the varsity. "They're all sweet, but this is my favorite one because it's my last game as a West Islip Lion," he said after his team wrapped up a 21-1 campaign on a 21-game winning streak.

Galasso made his last game a memorable one by making history. He tied Elmont's Jim Zaffuto, who scored 498 points from 1974-77, on a pass to Andrew Hodgson with 1:34 remaining. The record-breaking 499th point came on a feed to Drew Federico with 16.3 seconds left in the third. The 500th point came on Mike Sagl's fourth goal of the game 33 seconds into the fourth quarter. Earlier, Sagl and Galasso combined for back-to-back, no-look goals. Galasso finished with one goal and six assists.

"I wasn't sure if he was counting, so when he got to 500 I held up a five [fingers] and then two fists to let him know," Craig said.

SEE PHOTOSWest Islip 13, Fairport 5

When Galasso came out of the game moments later, he was thrilled to share the news with a teammate - who already knew. "He didn't tell me until afterward," Federico said of his goal that became a part of Long Island history. "He came over to me and said, 'Guess what? I just broke the record on your goal.' It just worked out that way. The third quarter is our quarter."

Indeed, West Islip has been magnificent in the first 12 minutes after halftime throughout the playoffs. In the last four games - the Suffolk final, the LIC, the state semifinal and state final - the Lions outscored their opponents, 27-4. "At halftime, I told them, 'It's 5-5, we've got 'em where we want 'em' " Craig said.

Galasso admitted he was slugging in the first half. "I had some back spasms and we were playing three games in five days," he said. "But that's no excuse. I found the energy in the third quarter."

He was pleased the record came on an assist rather than a goal. "Definitely. I love getting my teammates involved," said Galasso, who finished 2010 as LI's leading scorer with 136 points on 66 goals and 70 assists.

SEE PHOTOSHigh school sports -- June

"Hands down, he's the best we've ever had here," Craig said.