Manhasset beats Lynbrook, 9-6, to capture Nassau Class B boys lacrosse title

Quick sticks, slow pace.

Manhasset followed that game plan to defeat previously unbeaten Lynbrook, 9-6, Tuesday night and capture the Nassau Class B boys lacrosse championship at Hofstra's Shuart Stadium.

"We worked on it all week. They like to get out and run, so we thought if we could slow it down, they might get a little impatient," Manhasset coach Bill Cherry said after his team improved to 13-4 and ended Lynbrook's winning streak at 18 games.

Tyler Dunn led the Indians with three goals and Matthew Gavin added a pair of goals for Manhasset, which will play for the Long Island Class B title at Stony Brook on Saturday against the winner of Wednesday's Suffolk Class B championship game between Sayville and Mt. Sinai.

"Slowing down the offense worked great," Dunn said. "We minimized our mistakes and valued every possession. We maintained the ball and forced turnovers."

Manhasset exploded from a 3-2 halftime advantage with a 5-0 third-quarter burst. Dunn started the run on a crease feed from Thomas Duran, Gavin scored two consecutive goals to make it 6-2 and Dunn stepped into a rocket from straightaway to make it 8-2 with 1:07 left in the third.

The Owls threatened to make it interesting with two man-up goals by Zach LoCicero in less than a minute that cut the deficit to 8-4 with 8:30 left. Then Jack Miller dashed from behind the cage to score his second goal and dash any lingering hopes for defending Long Island Class B champion Lynbrook.

SEE PHOTOSManhasset vs. Lynbrook

"We handled the ball well in the third quarter and we kept it away from them," Cherry said.

Cherry cited the defensive work of Chris Battaglia, who held high-scoring Gordon Purdie to one goal and one assist, and John Graziano, who limited LoCicero to only those extra-man goals.

"Those guys were a major part of slowing them down," Dunn said. "That's how we grinded out the win."

Slowly. Very slowly.