Ryan Leach scores OT winner again as Massapequa wins Nassau AA crown

Say one thing for Massapequa’s Ryan Leach -- he certainly has a flair for the dramatic.

The junior striker scored both of Massapequa's goals, including the winner in the first overtime -- in Friday’s Nassau AA semifinal win.

On Monday, Leach made everyone hold its collective breath until the 106th minute. But for Massapequa and its fans, it certainly was worth the wait. Leach blasted a laser inside the far-left post with 4:50 left in the second, 15-minute, golden-goal overtime as No. 2 Massapequa outlasted top-seeded and host Hicksville, 1-0, in the Nassau AA boys soccer final.

Back-to-back overtime winners from Leach gives Massapequa (10-2-1) back-to-back AA crowns.

"It means everything," said Leach, who scored from inside the 18-yard box. "To bring home a county championship, it’s just great."

So was his finish, which came suddenly in a game that seemed to be heading to penalty kicks. Massapequa's senior defender Michael Savella sent a long ball into the box that was deflected and found its way to Leach, who scored Massapequa’s final three goals of the postseason.

"The ball just came to me. It happened real quick," he said. "I was just trying to finish it and . . . I just ripped it and put it in the back of the net."

SEE PHOTOSPhotos: Nassau Class AA boys soccer final

Interestingly, one of Hicksville’s best players -- senior defender Anthony Bonilla -- went down with an injury and had to leave the game less than a minute earlier.

"I kind of imagine," Hicksville coach Scott Starkey said, "we’d have cleared the ball if he’s in the game."

Still, Starkey was appreciative of both teams’ efforts.

"I’m really proud of my team. They came out and fought hard, but give it to Massapequa," he said. "They matched our intensity and matched our ability, and ultimately the ball bounced their way. . . . They’re a quality program and they’re here every year. They put themselves in a position to win and they buried it when it counted."

Both teams had seven shots after regulation. The best chance of the match before the winner belonged to Hicksville (10-2-1). David Vides smashed the crossbar on a rocket with 3:24 left in the first half. The Comets also had a goal disallowed on an offside call in a well-played, highly-physical final.

"I did feel [a goal] coming. I believed the whole game," Massapequa midfielder Thomas O’Neil said. "We are such a fit team that I thought in overtime we would take over."

That was the exact message he and Massapequa heard from their coach.

"These guys are just incredible," coach Matthew Burke said. "I told them before overtime, ‘You’re built for this.’ And they just figured out a way to do it."

Leach recalled being moving up to the varsity during Massapequa's 2019 playoff run.

"I was pulled up as a JV player, and to witness that [2019] Massapequa squad winning it was great," he said. "My coach told me, ‘You’re going to be back [in the final] in these moments and you have to be ready for them,’ and it came true."

As usual for Leach and Massapequa, in dramatic fashion.