2022 HERALD High School Lacrosse Preview
OCEANSIDE Senior-led Sailors seek rebound By GARRETT D. URIBE
S
ideswiped by the pandemic last season, the Sailors boys’ lacrosse team was blown adrift – finishing an eighth-place 2-11 in Nassau Conference A with a first-round loss to fourth seed Massapequa in the Class A playoffs. Its close-knit core of underclassmen now matured into seasoned seniors, Oceanside, said coach Rob Blount, is ripe and ready to set to work on a course correction the skipper feels is at hand. “Last year was a tough year for the program with light numbers, late start to the 2021 spring season and little time for development,” said Blount, whose team welcomes 19 returners – 15 seniors – as it heads back to Conference A. “This team’s had lots of ups and downs as a group, playing together since they were freshmen and sophomores. I’m glad they’re at the point now to show what a finished product they are.” All-County goalkeeper Ryan Collins – a SUNY Oneonta commit – is back to head Oceanside’s defense, joined by fellow award-winning senior Brian Brennan, a Pace University-bound, Honorable Mention All-County long stick middie. Co-captain Collins ranked seventh in Nassau posting 116 saves. “Ryan did a tremendous job keeping us in games,” said Blount. “Very stable between the hoops.” On the attack, Honorable Mention All-County senior co-captain Ronnie Kraemer – whose 17 goals and 46 points led Oceanside – returns along with seniors Vincent McCabe – the Sailors’ assist leader (12) – and Dylan
Nardone (seven goals, nine assists). At midfield Michael Mecca – tied for 10th in Nassau last season with 32 ground balls – returns as a senior co-captain, with juniors Nicky Cairo and Jake Perinchief both set to start a second season. “We should be one of the top teams in Class A,” Blount said. “Looking to crack the door and get into the semifinals. Excited to have the opportunity to compete and get to Hofstra.”
Oceanside features mix of veterans, newcomers Oceanside’s 2021 season was a seesaw. Out of the gate the Sailors plunged to 1-5 in Conference 2
Ryan Collins
girls’ lacrosse, then swung back up with a 5-2 run to end the regular season. Oceanside’s stat lines also tended to tip towards either extreme, as the Sailors boasted the league’s stingiest defense (9.0 goals against average), while scoring at the second-lowest rate in the conference (8.8 goals per game). Peaking late, the pendulum’s upswing carried the Sailors to the Class A semifinals, where they fell to top-seeded Syosset, Class A’s eventual runner-up. As team scoring leader Lily Johnson returns to head a cadre of Oceanside veterans, sixth-year Sailors coach Ralph Montera Jr. said his club’s many fresh faces this season will get early on-the-job training, as Oceanside looks to keep its roll alive returning to Conference 2 action. “Lily’s a senior we’ll rely on to show new players the ropes,” Montera Jr. said of the All-County attacker and Springfield College (Mass.) commit. “Over half our roster’s first-year varsity players. It’s nice having some seniors to lead the way.” Alongside Johnson, fellow senior and Sailors co-captain Izzy Weintraub (Wesleyan University) will be looked to for continued leadership, and more. The AllConference fourth-year goalkeeper had a career-high 101 saves last season (10th in Nassau), and has shown an increasing propensity to extend defensive services beyond the crease. “Izzy’s much more than a goaltender,” Montera Jr. said. “She’ll come out of the cage and pick off passes. She’s a backbone of the whole team.” Mikayla Danon and Izzy’s sister Sam Weintraub – both seniors – return as fourth-year defenders, while senior Cassidy Reicherter becomes a first-year-starting attacker for Oceanside.
Izzy Weintrab
“Like last year, we hope we’re playing best when the playoffs come,” Montera Jr. said. “We preach getting better each day. Hopefully, our new players get stronger as the season goes on.”
Conference Schedules April
BOYS
6 19 27 30
@ Hicksville @ Hempstead Farmingdale Freeport
5:00 p.m. 4:45 p.m. 6:00 p.m. 10:00 a.m.
3 6 11 14 18
@ Massapequa @ East Meadow Plainview Port Washington @ Syosset
5:00 p.m. 5:00 p.m. 6:00 p.m. 10:00 a.m. 5:00 p.m.
May
March
GIRLS
26 29
@ Locust Valley 5:00 p.m. @ Friends Academy 5:00 p.m.
1 8 11 26 30
Calhoun @ Carle Place Farmingdale Seaford @ Bethpage
4 7
Port Washington @ Lynbrook
April
May
4:30 p.m. 5:00 p.m. 5:00 p.m. 4:45 p.m. 10:00 a.m. 5:00 p.m. 3:00 p.m.
Photos by Eric Dunetz
36 — April 14, 2022
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