Changing landscape in girls soccer

The more things change the more they stay the same. While the Nassau conferences have been reorganized from ability-based groupings to enrollment-based, the powers that have ruled Nassau continue to churn out talented and strong teams.

Massapequa has won Class AA seven straight times; South Side had won Class A 10 straight; Cold Spring Harbor has three straight Class B titles; Friends Academy is an eight-time winner in Class C.

But those dominant teams won't go unopposed in 2010, with plenty of talented underclassmen seeing their potential transformed into results and numerous upperclassmen taking one last swipe at a Nassau title.

Four of the five Long Island representatives at the state tournament in Cortland last season - West Islip, Center Moriches, Stony Brook, and Smithtown Christian - were a product of Suffolk County.

With a new season just under way, determining which representatives will emerge from the county later this fall has become harder to predict. Many coaches attribute the unpredictability of the upcoming season to the parity and competitiveness that has developed throughout the county in recent years. The disparity between teams has closed considerably and many leagues are available for the taking.

It makes for what should be an intriguing road through Suffolk County to Cortland.