State semifinal preview
Garden City defender Stephen Jahelka and Manhasset's Joe Mancini battle over a ground ball in the 120th Woodstick Classic boys high school lacrosse game. (April 30, 2011) Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
Wednesday at White Plains High School are the East Regional semifinals (a.k.a. the state semifinals). Long Island champions Farmingdale (Class A), Garden City (Class B) and Bayport-Blue Point (Class C) will be representing the Island.
Here is a quick breakdown of each game...
CLASS A: Farmingdale (15-4) vs. Shenendehowa (19-1), 3:30 p.m.
The biggest challenge for coach Bob Hartranft is getting his Dalers to come down from the high of ending West Islip's 40-game winning streak.
Hard to believe Farmingdale started the year 0-2. But eight straight wins, including the overtime thriller against West Islip, have the Dalers positioned for a run at their third state final appearance (the last was an 11-10 loss to West Genesee in 2003).
Attack Sal Tuttle has been the driving force on offense in the playoffs, with 11 goals, including the tying score against West Islip, and seven assists. Joe Ostrander leads the defense.
The Plainsmen, hailing from 10 miles outside of Schenectady, only lost one game this season, an 8-7 decision to Yorktown on April 9. They have won 17 in a row since, and are led by Syracuse-bound goalie Bob Wardwell.
The winner of this game will play the winner of the Ithaca-Pittsford matchup at 11 a.m. on Saturday at Cicero-North Syracuse High in the state final.
CLASS B: Garden City (18-2) vs. Yorktown (14-7), 5:30 p.m.
The Trojans are the hottest team on Long Island, having won 14 in a row by a combined 168-38.
Leading the stout defense are All-American defenders Stephen Jahelka (pictured above, left) and Brian Fischer and goalie Dan Marino, who made 11 saves in a 9-4 win over Shoreham-Wading River in the Long Island championship.
The Trojans have appeared in six state finals, winning four. Last year, they lost to Jamesville-DeWitt, 11-5.
The Huskers, hailing from Westchester, played an extremely difficult regular-season schedule. They went 0-3 against Long Island teams, with one-goal losses to Smithtown West and St. Anthony's, and a 14-8 loss to Chaminade. Garden City defeated Smithtown West 6-2 on March 26.
Yorktown is led by Hartford-bound midfielder Ty Schuldt.
The winner of this game will play the winner of the Jamesville-DeWitt/Irondequoit matchup at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday at Cicero-North Syracuse High in the state final.
CLASS C: Bayport-Blue Point (12-5) vs. Bronxville (21-1), 8 p.m.
The Cinderella story of this year's postseason are the Phantoms of Bayport-Blue Point.
In just its eighth year as a varsity program, BBP has reached its first state semifinal. Mike DeBlasio has led the charge for the Phantoms with eight goals and three assists in their two playoff games.
The Broncos, hailing from southern Westchester, are one of the top Class C teams in the state and are just one double overtime loss to Class A Mamaroneck away from being undefeated. Bronxville did not play a team from Long Island this season.
The Broncos, who are also appearing in their first state semifinal, are led by Charlie McCormick and Jack Near.
The winner of this game will play the winner of the Cazenovia/Silver Creek matchup at 4 p.m. on Saturday at Cicero-North Syracuse High in the state final.
