Moriarty strong in goal in South Side win

When Dominic Moriarty lifted his helmet, exposing his flowing blonde locks, and then flashed his smile, displaying his bright blue braces, it was like beaming a ray of sunshine on an otherwise dank afternoon.

Playing under the weather and under the clouds, South Side could use the warmth.

Behind Moriarty's 15 saves, South Side earned a 6-3 win at Carey in Conference B-I boys lacrosse Wednesday.

Kevin Waxon's goal off a feed from Stephen Tita with 3:50 left in the fourth quarter gave the Cyclones (5-3, 2-0) their first lead of the game. They scored six unanswered goals, beginning with Bryan Gerrato's tally with 49 seconds left in the third quarter, to close the game.

"No one was talking, we had our heads down, not picking up ground balls," said Waxon, who was ill, of South Side's pregame lethargy.

With tired eyes he added: "When you do that, you're going to come out flat."

Peter Nicholls (man-up), Mike Locicero and Matt Oswald scored first-quarter goals for Carey (4-2, 1-1) and it remained 3-0 until Gerrato's goal.

SEE PHOTOSSouth Side 6, Carey 3

Moriarty kept South Side in the game with nine first-half saves in many different varieties -- high in his stick, low off his leg and point-blank stuffs.

"I was just following the stick," Moriarty said. "I was seeing the ball well. I don't mind a couple of one-on-ones."

South Side's offense minded the physical one-on-ones of Carey defenders Giuliano Bove and Drew Zahradka, as it was held scoreless the first 35:11. Said Cyclones coach Steve DiPietro: "There's no excuse for not getting up for a game."

With its 28-game conference winning streak in danger of fading to black, South Side faceoff man Sean Kenny helped part the clouds. He won 6 of 8 draws in the second half to help the Cyclones keep possession. Said DiPietro: "He's been a pleasant surprise."

SEE PHOTOS2011 boys lacrosse players to watch

Zach Scaduto's team-leading 16th goal pulled South Side to within 3-2, and then Peter Clark tied it with 4:54 left, just three seconds after a Carey penalty had released. Eric Gennari and Patrick Finnerty scored unassisted insurance goals late.

Defender Mike Hayes took a shot off his helmet at the end of the third quarter, and Tita was swept off his feet on a penalty-producing hit with 1:05 to play.

Hayes was OK, and Tita walked off on his own power. Still, it only added to the Cyclones' bleariness. "We didn't come to play and they took advantage," DiPietro said. "We still have a long way to go in the maturity department."

Good thing Moriarty was there to spread the sunshine.