Mount Sinai wins Long Island 'C' title

Rachel Dillon reached back and fired a shot from a sharp angle on the right side, tucking the ball inside the left post to extend Mount Sinai's lead to five with 19:50 left. It was a position the Mustangs had been in before, but once again, they had to fight off a feisty opponent late in the game.

"We've always been a team that pulled through in the end," Dillon said.

Dillon and Shayna Pirreca each had three goals and Shannon Burns and Sydney Pirreca each had two goals for Mount Sinai, which held on to beat North Shore, 12-10, in the Class C girls lacrosse Long Island championship / Southeast regional championship Saturday at Hofstra's James M. Shuart Stadium.

Mount Sinai (13-4) earned its first Long Island championship and will play Section I champion Pearl River in the state semifinals at noon Saturday at SUNY-Cortland.

"It hasn't sunk in yet," Mount Sinai coach Courtney Leonard said. "We make every game very interesting regardless of our lead but the bottom line is it feels great. We executed the stall perfectly and it feels really good."

In a scene reminiscent of Thursday's Suffolk county final, Mount Sinai saw a five-goal lead trimmed and had to rely on strong defense and the ability to stall on offense in order to come away with the win.

North Shore (13-5) cut a five-goal deficit to three at halftime and then down to two with 4:26 left, but would not get any closer.

SEE PHOTOSClass C final: Mt. Sinai 12, North Shore 10

The Vikings played a man down for the final 15:49 after receiving their third yellow card.

Amanda Johansen had four goals and an assist, including two goals in the final six minutes when she returned to the field with an abdominal injury.

"She's a team player and went back in, even though she was hurting," North Shore coach Sarah Hogan said. "We got into some defensive trouble and played a man down for the last 14 minutes. They're tough, aggressive and double-teamed us in the midfield."

Mount Sinai's offense fired more than 30 shots at North Shore goalie Jennie Berglin, who made 13 saves and kept her team in it. Six different players scored for the young Mustangs, who have just four seniors on their roster.

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"Everyone can score, everyone can take it to the goal," Burns said. "I have full confidence in every single player. If I pass it to someone, I know they have potential to take it and they can beat the defense."

Leonard praised the leadership of her seniors, Burns, Dillon, Lindsay Hogan and Natasha Wolfe, for leading a team with 16 players who are sophomores or younger to their first Long Island championship game.

"They're leading a team of underclassmen, taken them under their wings, leading by example and setting the tone for them," Leonard said. "The younger girls really feed off of it. I'm so happy they can get to this point and hopefully win a state championship."