Class A state semifinal: Yorktown vs. Syosset
-
- June
- 12
Hey folks. I arrived here at Hofstra’s James M. Shuart Stadium about 20 minutes ago, about two minutes before Yorktown’s coach bus pulled in. The players were very business-like as they made their way onto the turf field.They’re there now warming up as I am setting up shop in the press box.
We have a little more than an hour before the start of the game, so if you folks have any questions, then fire away.
I will be back, of course, with scoring updates, starting with the 3:30 Class A semifinal between Syosset and Yorktown.
CLASS A UPDATES: Yorktown vs. Syosset
First quarter
UPDATE 1:
We’re just under way. Syosset wins the faceoff and Michael Bonitatibus makes a nice save on a shot by Jeff Cohen. Yorktown has possession.
UPDATE 2:
Brendan Kurpis scores on a blast off a Rocky Bonitatibus feed seconds after the official indicated a penalty would be called against Syosset. Yorktown leads 1-0 with 8:57 left in the first quarter.
UPDATE 3:
Brendan Brunelle is called for a push with 7:17 left in the first. Yorktown will be a man down for 30 seconds.
UPDATE 4:
Yorktown kills off the penalty. The ‘Huskers still lead 1-0.
UPDATE 5:
Kurpis scores his second goal of the game — unassisted — to give Yorktown a 2-0 lead with 4:48 remaining. Syosset calls for timeout.
UPDATE 6:
Syosset takes advantage of a two-man up opportunity (push and interference) as Matt Albert scored from Jared Leverne. Yorktown now leads 2-1 with two minutes left in the first quarter.
UPDATE 7:
Yorktown leads 2-1 after the first quarter.Note: Jeff Cohen, who was held scoreless in the first half, had five shots on net. He is being defended by Yorktown’s John Fennessy. The entire ‘Husker D, including Brendan Brunelle, Jack Farrell, Ethan Fox and Brett Cabriele has been looking good.
Second quarter
UPDATE 8:
A blast by John Froats bounded out of the cage after hitting the crossbar. Yorktown’s coaches are arguing it should be ruled a goal. It’s still 2-1 Yorktown three minutes into the second quarter.
UPDATE 9:
A shot by Syosset’s Doug Tesorieo hits the post. Both goalies are playing well. Evan Cohen especially has come up big for the Braves.
UPDATE 10:
Jared Leverne scores off a feed from Adam Wachler with seven minutes left in the period. We’re tied at 2-2.
UPDATE 11:
Michael Bonitatibus is a bit shaken up after taking a shot to the groin area.
UPDATE 12:
Yorktown has been controlling possession but has been unable to score.
Canandaigua leads West Genny 1-0 after one quarter in the other state semi.
UPDATE 13:
It’s tied 2-2 at the half. I’ll be back with some stats shortly.
Halftime stats:
Shots — Syosset 15, Yorktown 14
Shots on goal — 7 for each team
Faceoffs — Syosset has won 4 of 6
Clears — Yorktown 10-11, Syosett 7-8
Goalie saves — Bonitatibus 5, Evan Cohen 5
Third quarter:
UPDATE 14:
Yorktown takes a 3-2 lead on an unassisted goal by John Ranagan at the 10:34 mark. It was a lefty cannon from about 15 yards out.
UPDATE 15:
Kevin Interlicchio splits through a double team and scores off a feed from Rocky Bonitatibus to give the ‘Huskers a 4-2 lead at the nine-minute mark.
UPDATE 16:
Interlicchio scores again from almost the exact same spot — about 10 yards out to the left of goalie Cohen — this time off a feed from Ranagan. Yorktown has started the second half with a 3-0 run and now leads 5-2 with 8:12 remaining in the period. Syosset calls timeout.
UPDATE 17:
Michael Bonitatibus makes a save from point-blank range on a shot from just outside the crease by senior middie Jeff Lee. Yorktown still leads 5-2. There is 6:05 left in the third quarter.
UPDATE 18:
Interlicchio scores again. Yorktown has stretched the lead to four. It’s 6-2 with just over three minutes left in the third quarter.
UPDATE 19:
Matt Albert scores off a feed Adam Wachler to end Yorktown’s 4-0 run. It’s 6-3 Yorktown with less than two minutes left here in the third period.
UPDATE 20: Yorktown leads 6-3 after three.
Fourth quarter
UPDATE 21:
Zach Fuss scores for Syosset 26 seconds into the quarter. It’s a 6-4 game. If the Lions can get some scoring from Jeff Cohen, the all-time leading scorer in LI history before long, it could be an interesting finish. Cohen has been shut down by Yorktown junior defender John Fennessy.
UPDATE 22:
Michael Bonitatibus easily makes a save on a shot by Jeff Cohen from about 10 yards. Yorktown leads 6-4 with 8:42 remaining in regulation.
UPDATE 23:
Evan Cohen makes a nice shot on a blast by Ranagan and clears the ball himself. Syosset calls timeout as Cohen sprints to midfield. It’s 6-4 Yorktown with 5:25 to go.
In the other Class A semi, West Genny leads Canadaigua 11-10 with three minutes remaining.
UPDATE 24: Adam Wachler scores unassisted with 3:19 left to cut Yorktown’s lead to 6-5.
Yorktown is also called for a slash and will be down a man for a minute. Fasten your seatbelts, gang.
UPDATE 25:
Jeff Cohen, Long Island’s all-time leading goal scorer, scores off the ensuing faceoff on a low shot in the left corner of the net. It’s tied 6-6 with 3:03 left and Syosett is on a 4-0 run.
UPDATE 26: Jared Laverne scores off a feed from Jeff Lee from about 10 yards out with 1:20 remaining to give Syosset a 7-6 lead — its first lead of the game. Syosset got possession after Yorktown was called for a loose-ball push.
West Genny beats Canadaigua 11-10.
UPDATE 27: Yorktown has the ball with 41 seconds remaining and calls a timeout.
UPDATE 28: A shot by John Froats goes wide as time expires. Syosset wins 7-6. The Braves, who scored the last four goals of the game, scored three goals in the span of 1:58 late in the game. Yorktown had gone up 6-3 with 3:21 left in the third.
Final stats:
Shots — Yorktown 35, Syosset 29
Ground balls — Syosset 29, Yorktown 18
Faceoffs — Syosset — 9 of 17
Clears — Yorktown 16-19; Syosset: 14-19
Penalties — Yorktown 7/5:00; Syosset 3/2:00
Saves — Syosset (Evan Cohen) 12; Yorktown (Bonitatibus) 11
This entry was posted
on Thursday, June 12th, 2008 at 2:21 pm by Joe Lombardi.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
Share and Enjoy: Digg Google StumbleUpon Technorati Yahoo! | 
Print This Post
| 
Email
Quick note, folks.
All three state championship games on Saturday will be broadcast on MSG in high definition on Sunday, beginning at 9 a.m. The games will be shown in the order they're played Saturday.
Jimmy Cavallo will call the play-by-play, Eamon McAnaney will provide color commentary and Maggie Gray is the sideline reporter.
joe, what are your thoughts about the game while you watch yorktown warm up. you said they were business like, is that a good thing or bad thing in your mind? also predictions? lastly will you be quick on the updates as you have been from Westchester.
no one – I think it's a good thing. You don't want to be anything but business-like walking onto the field for the state semis. I should add though they appeared loose as they were warming up. (They wrapped up warmups about 15 minutes ago and Syosset is now on the field.)
As far as the game, obviously a key will be how well Yorktown does defending against Jeff Cohen, the all-time leading goal scorer in Long Island history. Cohen is a lefty attackman with good size. I project Yorktown will have John Fennessy on him.
Another key will be the goalie matchup. Evan Cohen (no relation to Jeff) came up huge for Syosset last night against West Islip. And we all know how well Michael Bonitatibus has been playing for Yorktown.
Also – look for the updates in the body of this main thread. I will be as quick as I can.
joe, thanks, just riding you a bit, you do a great job getting the scores out. as a person who has missed most of the playoffs due to working 2 jobs i have been very happy with the updates. how is the crowd for yorktown shapping up? expect that a bunch will be there.
Joe –
Will Syosset be able to create team offense around Cohen to compete with Ytown's team defense style?
Is the Syosset defense prepared to take on the offensive firepower of the big strong Town attack and mid?
will the msg brodcasting be live on saturday
Thanks in advance for the updates, Joe. A lot of lax fans from upstate will be following your reports.
GOAL—Yorktown goal. Yorktown leads 1-0. From the following:http://weblogs.newsday.com/sports/highschool/lacrosse/
2-0 town
Can. 1
West Genesee 0
End of 1st Quarter.
2-1 town
You can get live updates in the body of this message. Just scroll up.
End of 1st Qtr 2-1 Town
Yorktown leads 2-1 after one.
elliot we have Joe updates no need for Newsday!!!!!
joe- any predictions for the rye game
W. Genny 6
Canandaigua 5
Halftime
2-2 at half on the island. I would guess that is not the type of game town wants to be in with syosset.
7-7 with 3 min left in the thrid for the genny game
W. Genny 8
Canandaigua 7
"Latter part of the 3rd".
W. Genny 8
Canandaigua 8
Still in the 3rd.
W. Genny 9
Canandaigua 8
End of 3rd.
any predictions for the john jay/rocky point game up next?
have the updates run dry?
I think no news is good news for Yorktown at this point. I hope Joe doesn't need to mkae another update until the end of the game.
W. Genny 10
Canandaigua 9
4 minutes left in the 4th.
Wow,suprised to hear Fennessey was matched up with Cohen and held him scoreless.It just shows how great of a athlete he is bc he hasnt been playing lacrosse for very long.
W. Genny 11
Canandaigua 10
3:35 left in the 4th.
W. Genny 11
Canandaigua 10
2 mins. left in the 4th.
I know Nylax 8 min 6-4,let's all hope Town hangs on and sets the tone for the other two games.
After seeing some of the garbage and bs people write on here I'm happy to see someone like John Jay write that as I also nervously hope Town hangs on.
all tied up with 3 to go
6-6 with 3 to go. someone got a rolaids?
lets get all section 1 teams to finals! and hopefully bring home 3 state champions!!
W. Genny 11
Canandaigua 10
Final in regulation.
Cmon town! you have North Salem fans sitting, reading and hoping for you
COME ON TOWNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
syosset up 7-6 with 1:21 to go
7-6 syosset with 1:21 to go
According to Laxpower fourms, Syosset tied it at 6, Cohen had the goal
Town ball with 41 seconds
good season town.
Syosset wins…
LET'S GO TOWN!!!!!!!!!
good season boys—
good season townn
wow… i really thought town had it…
good season boys
i heard the rye game is at 8:30—can anyone confirm?
so… whats are everyones thoughts forthe jay/rocky game up next?
Joe- Are you going to have a live feed and blog for the JJ vs. Rocky Point game? Prior commitments leave us in Westchester, but we are pulling for our JJ boys led by #12.
Come on Joe! I think the game started at 5:30. We are on pins and needles. Please Please update!!
LETS GO JAY!
Let's hope the next game is offiated a little better, that was brutal! Congrats to Town on a great season, they played their hearts out.
game starts a 6 now…. go to this page for news feed on the game!
http://boyslacrosse.lohudblogs.com/2008/06/12/class-b-state-semifinal-john-jay-vs-rocky-point/
I think i'm the only one here pulling for the Boys of RP.
Great season Town you should all be proud, I did not see game , I was teaching a training Seminar all day. However I was sent many a text the the Officals were Brutal? Can anyone Confirm?. Let's go JohnJay and Rye.
I like Jay 12-9
ya i heard the refs were pretty rough
i was at the YTown/syosett game..
while i was actually leaning towards wanting yorktown to win, i honestly have never seen such bad offcials in a state playoff game
the game was stolen from yorktown by the ref's
offcials were terrible, its a shame to lose like that, you would rather get outplayed and lose by 20 then give it your all and have it taken from you
i cant believe i just watched that game
you cant blame syosset for just playing but those ref's could have been the worse officials i've ever seen
even the most easy call…mikey b out runs 2 defenders has a good 3-6 feet on them…syosset gets the ball and scores to cut the lead down or maybe even tie it…im not sure
its a shame yorktown lost that way
At the game and I find it hard to say but Yorktown had that game taken away from them. Went into the game wanting to see them go down but the section 1 in me came out. Good season anyway.
somers, i guess we were watching a different game..heres a conversation i had with the security guard at hofstra
officer-you from yorktown?
me-yeah..terrible way to lose, you familar with lacrosse
officer- yep, played about 100 years ago ( insert laughing)
me- what did you think about the ref's
officer- I'm from long island, but i can honestly say that, it was not right what those ref's did
as written by joe
"UPDATE 8: A blast by John Froats bounded out of the cage after hitting the crossbar. Yorktown’s coaches are arguing it should be ruled a goal. It’s still 2-1 Yorktown three minutes into the second quarter."
this shot was a legit goal..it happend fast but i think it was evident enough it was a goal..yorktown players and fans celebrated..not only did it hit the underside of the crossbar, it ended up bouncing in the goal and because of the spin from the contact with the crossbar, the ball boucned out
section1fan- whats the point of your guard post?
that even someone from LI agreed that the game was unfair
its pretty clear
That was my point as well. I think you missunderstood my post. To get beat by the other team is one thing but Town had the refs aginst them as well today.
i read your post completly wrong… i apologize sincerly hahaha
it really was taken from them
The Yorktown and JJ games were eerily similar (though I didn't see them). Nice season boys hope Rye ends up on top. Was anyone at the JJ game? Were the refs good? Was that interference a good call? Pretty disappointing that Town and JJ let up 4th quarter leads I thought they both would take it and the state championship. Whatever, JJ wins 11-10 a year ago now they lose 11-10.
Guys,
This will be the only thing I say about this issue for the rest of the night. I know it's frustrating as all hell, but leave the officiating out of any Yorktown-related posts. No. I wasn't at the game. If I had been I'd probably be as frustrated as many of you are. But I've always felt that screaming about officiating is about as poor and unprofessional a way to behave in the aftermatch of a bad loss as there is.
Just leave it alone and hold your heads up high because Yorktown had a truly great season. They'll be a force next year as well.
Good luck to all the Rye fans.
i usually swear to myself i wont blame it on the ref's..
granted syosset started to turn it on at the end, but the reasons why 3 goals reached the back of the net was because the ref's gave them back the ball many times
syracuse, if you were at the game you'd understand i think
even old yorktown alumni lost their cool yelling at how bad the ref's were
Great season JJ 2008. We will be back next year!
Whatever anybody will say, that game was BS. The refs completely controlled the game when they wanted to and how they wanted to. There was a push call made from 30 yards away when there had been a ref 5 yards from it. C'mon.
i agree with strongisland 100%. the refs completely blew the game for yorktown. Poor job on the refs part. Good season Yorktown. See ya next year
It's very difficult to not talk about how unbelieveably bad the officiating was. Every spring lacrosse becomes all of these Yorktown boys lives and every year they have all have the same goal in mind, to win a state championship. This year they had all the potential in the world to do that and they've displayed that in plenty of games. It's so upsetting to see that the goal they all share is taken out of their hands because of these horrible refs. No matter what team you were cheering, it was obvious that the refs made absolutely ridiculous calls and robbed Yorktown of this game. Amazing season boys, we love you.
If that's true then that's pretty upsetting, was the JJ game fair at least?
I am a John Jay fan, I was at the game and it is absolutely absurd that you can have that kind of officiating in a state semifinal game. It just stinks to lose that way, those kids played their hearts out.
Different offials for the Jay game, they did a good job. Tough loss, we had our chances but could not finish. Good luck to the seniors who are off to college and good luck to the players that will be returning next year.
Simple Question: were the refs for the Yorktown game played on Long Island from L.I.? If yes, that is a major problem and will always open the door to claims of favoritism. (in this case they clearly called a terrible game)...For games that are this important they should always bring in refs from a neutral location. Yorktown had a great year and I truly enjoyed watching them all year. Good luck to Rocky, John Froats and the rest of the seniors. For the rest of the team, see ya next year.
JOE,
Please tell us YOUR opinion of todays 'TOWN game
yeah joe i would love to hear (read) your reaction to the town game
What do our boys take away from this game?
There is something to be learned from every game, but these young men put their heart & soul into this game & it was taken away, relentlessly by that referee
JOE, what are your thoughts?
Boy you guys wrong. chuck cohen doesn't have a grudge against yorktown. i've even heard him to say he likes town. How can he be a bad official. He's done the NCAA D1 final in 2001. The World games finals in 1984. The 2000 D1 and 2003 D3 North south Games. and two NYS Championships plus other numerous games. Just becasue DAVE MARR doesn't like him make him a bad official. I was at the game and his calls were tough but fair and he even leaned more towards town than the guy from albany. These refs are selected from ratrings from coaches and other officials. I don't get the yorktown coaches. not scoring a goal or getting a quality shot in the last 10 minutes killed it. Not the officiating
I was at both Town & Jay games. The officiating at the Town game was absolutely terrible. They kept making numerous bad calls and very inconsistent and very one sided.
In the Jay game, the officiating wasn't as bad, but it
was not good. They went the other way and called nothing.
Again very inconsistent and very one sided.
Great season guys.
Colby, this is meant with respect to you, but you are completely wrong. I do not like to ever blame refs for outcomes of games, but this was truly a disgrace to the honest referees and a blatant disrespect towards the Ytown team.
No sour grapes, simply the truth.
Joe, are you there? We haven't heard from you. Please give us your insight on this game
Maybe if they had saved up some of the firepower used on Valley Central? Too much whining about the refs – especially one from your OWN section!!! Out play and out score the other team. Heck – in many games at this level the officials let a lot of stuff go. It is all bad karma from some here hating on sections 2 and 9!
Calls don't make or break a game, at least I thought so… until today. Go watch the video tape, game will be on tv this weekend. There is no question that there were questionable calls in this game. Sure, Town should have capitalized on a number of scoring opportunities in the 2nd 1/2 and Syosset took man-up (given) opporunities to the bank. Yorktown boys left it all on the field and Syosset fought every step of the way. 'Town boys have worn their colors well. I am proud of their team effort and team bite – until the bitter end. Great season – from boys to men. Well done.
Hey folks –
Sorry I haven't posted any comments since the Mount Sinai/Rye game ended. I was driving back from Hofstra.
I will be doing a video report with my thoughts on all three finals.
But for now, as far as the questions about officiating, I would say there were definitely some borderline calls in the Yorktown-Syosset game.
For instance, it appeared to me John Froats' shot late in the second quarter that was ruled to be a no goal may have caught the inside part of the net under the cross bar. Am I sure? No. But again – borderline.
The refs did have a tight whistle in that game, and did not in the John Jay-Rocky Point game.
So there was some inconsistency in that regard — at least from game to game.
As we all know, lacrosse is a very subjective game to call. A lot is that comes down to individual interpretation. So unless there is a call or calls that was clearly incorrect, it's really tough to ever say the officiating cost a team a game.
At that same time, a big call in a key spot can be huge and can really shift momentum.
The final penalty stats in the Class A semi were: Yorktown – seven penalties, 5:00; Syosset, three penalties, 2:00.
I was at the semi-final game. There were 3 calls in particular that I feel really changed the outcome of the game. The first was John Froat's shot that did hit the net and was a goal, but was not ruled one. The second was when Mike B. clearly, clearly beat 2 offensive players from syosset to the sideline. During that possesion, Syosset scored. The final play was when Brenden Kurpis checked a defender from Syosset in the arm to knock out the ball and gain possesion, and the referee 5 yards away from the play signaled it was a fair clean play, until the referee 30 yards away ran in to call the foul on Kurpis, which was clearly the wrong call. I'm not sure if Syosset scored on that exact possesion, but taking the possesion away from Yorkown that late in the game was crucial. One ref single handedly blew the game for Yorktown. I look foward to seeing this game on TV so people can understand that this time, the complaints about the referees are not excuses, they truly cost the game for town.
nisky was better, genny dodges a Bullet! Town was ready – life goes on
C'mon.
1. The ball has to completely pass the goalline. With the speeds today – very hard to judge at times.
2. The team playing catch-up or on defense more trying to getthe ball/prevent scores often draws more penalties.
Games over – no sweep. Ur – rather Strong Island sweep!!!
Absolutely right. the ball has to pass completely past the back of the pipe in order for it to be a goal. Was the ref in position to make that call. See the reply he was 5 yards from the goal right on the line. the ball hit the pipe and bounced 35 yards away. how can anyone in his right mind say that was a goal.
Colby, The ball hit the upper crossbar and net, bounced straight down behind the goalie, and the incredible opposite spin sent the ball onto the field 35 yards. (were you watching?) The question is did it bounce behind the goal line, the shot was so hard and it happened so fast only a replay can say for sure. Because the net moved my guess is that the replay will show that ball hitting the ground behind the goal line.
Strongisland as usual a crybaby. Game is over as in all sports give both teams credit.Ytown plays a physical game and gets away with it. So just take the loss and move on with your life.Good season guys
Stew
I still don't think it was a goal. The ref was right there. But like you say let's see the replay
colby are you serious??
the ball hit the bottom of the crossbar(along with some net) and then the ball went downwards with a spin on it so when it hit the ground it clearly bounced out…kev interlicchio had the best view and that kid always plays hard til the whisle and when he saw that shot he celebrated the goal…because its a goal.
also theres nothing like ref's 40 yards away making calls, the closer ref even tried to call him off but still made a call
mikey b should of sat on the ball out of bounds while the d was 6 feet behind him to show how much farther out he was
When is the yorktown game going to be replayed on t.v?
S1Lax:
Don't believe the semi-finals are going to be on TV. My understanding is that MSG was taping the Finals only, for replay beginning on Sunday.
Colby:
I was not at the game, so I can not give an opinion on what may have happened on the Froats shot. But two things I would consider:
1. A shot by Froats that bounces back his way is an opportunity for John to get another ground ball. He has 90+ groundballs on the year, and he would be the first to move towards the ball if it were not a goal.
2. Froats shoots almost straight overhand, which means his shot has aggressive backspin. If his shot hit the crossbar head-on (at a 90 degree angle), the rotation on the ball would have drawn the ball toward the ground, and not out 35 feet. However, if his shot hit the underside of the crossbar, the ball would move downward because of the backward rotation, but the ball would still move forward (becasuse it was not a direct hit on the crossbar). Once the ball hit the turf, the backward rotation would have kicked the ball back onto the field.
Think of how a super ball reacts when you use backward spin when tossing it in front of you—the backward spin causes the ball to come back to you, eventhough you tossed the super ball away from you !!
The question that needs to be answered: As the ball was leaving the crease, was it on an angled trajectory moving straight to the ground, or was there a somewhat "looping effect", as if the ball was moving from the turf, up into the air, and then back to the turf ?
Listen, I don't believe this shot was the reason Town lost the game. However, when you start to look at the number of things that happened to go against Town, it is easy to become frustrated with the last 15 minutes of the game.
With all that, this team achieved success that was not anticipated when the 2007 season ended. To finish the 2007 season and be ranked in the 150's by Laxpower, and come back and be ranked as high at 17th in 2008—that is a great accomplishment. All the parents and fans should be in awe of what these boys (and their coaches)have done. I tip my cap to each and everyone of them.
To those graduating seniors, good luck in college, but more importantly, good luck with life. If lacrosse is in your future, have a blast with it. This is an awesome game.
For those players and coaches who will be back next year, I wish you only the best next year. I can't wait for next March to arrive !!
Joe,
Congratulations to the Yorktown boys. They played the game as hard as they could and left it all on the field.
The referees made some questionable calls (Mike B. not gaining possession on a wide shot and the slashing call against Brendan K.called by the ref furthest from the play while the official next to the play indicated no foul).
Ironically, I have not heard any mention of the fact that Syosset looked stronger and faster in the 4th quarter than Yorktown, particularly at midfield. It seemed that Yorktown's middies were exhausted and were burned in transition a few times. Yorktown's o-middies got caught in transition several times and were fatigued on the defensive end.
Hasn't depth and physical size at middie been Yorktown's achilles heel in their losses to LI over the years? I honestly thought this year would be different.
Credit the Syosset coach for keeping his team focused until they could make a run. They never quit and seemed to pick up every groundball in the last quarter.
Aside from man-up/man-down special teams, I think Yorktown used subs as follows: attack 1, o-middie 2 (of which 1 was solely used on clears), d-middie 1, and defense 0. Playing their challenging second game in two days in hot weather probably took its toll on them.
Huskers,
Boys hold your heads high. Your seniors gave you great leadership and you have a strong group of underclassmen to build around.
Lax Fan is right on. I am greatly disappointed because the Yorktown team had the talent and depth to win a state title. Unfortunately, I could see this coming throughout this season as the talented reserves were rarely used.
On Wednesday, the Yorktown team should have pressured Niskayuna's defense. Niskayuna's first string was solid, but they lacked the depth of Yorktown. When Yorktown jumped out to an early lead of 3-0, Niskayuna slowed down the pace of the game and, strangely, Yorktown played right into their hands. Yorktown should have used its depth to continue to pressure Niskayuna, while giving its first string some rest. This would have stressed Niskayuna without slowing the tempo of the game. This strategy would have allowed Yorktown's first string to reenter the game, rested, and able to maintain their dominance. It would also have put less pressure on the starters since it was probable that they would have to play again the next day.
In Thursday's game, the coach played the first string almost exclusively. When it was clear that they were exhausted, the coach should have selectively substituted for the middies and the defense, which would have kept the field players sharp and the first string rested (it did work for the attack which went 4 deep), without compromising the level of play. Unfortunately, the talented depth of the Huskers remained on the sidellines and never became a factor. Yes, the officiating was flawed, but it could have been mitigated by better decisions on the part of the Yorktown coaches.
The one or two steps lost during several fourth quarter possessions, due to player fatigue, cost Yorktown a state title.
My hat is off to all the Yorktown players. They performed well and gave their all. We are proud of you!
First off, I think there has been enough talk about this shot by Froats. I was not at the game but from what I have read here it was not bad officiating but a nearly impossible call, we have seen it happen several times in PROFESSIONAL baseball recently. This exact thing also happened two years ago in the section finals against Jay when Tim Curtin had a similar shot. Also although I am a Yorktown fan all of this complaining about bad officiating seems to overshadow the fact that the team was up 6-2 late in the third, if it was a close game it would be one thing but the fact that they blew a big lead just makes it look more like excuses. They had a great season (personally I think they will come back even stronger next year) but don't cheapen that with all of this complaining.
My God. Here come the Monday morning quarterbacks. Yeah, you saw this coming. You saw Yorktown blow a 6-2 lead with 15 minutes to go in the state semifinals against a very good Long Island team because the talented reserves weren't being utilized.
Whatever man.
Syracuse,
Syosset is an excellent team. They certainly had more speed than Yorktown late in the game.
Either they are better conditioned or better coached.
Lax Fan,
I am not saying Syosset wasn't a great team. I'm just trying to ward off the inevitable second guessers of the Yorktown coaching staff. Because every time Town loses, these "experts" come out of the woodwork. We never hear from them otherwise.
yeah
when yorktown wins its " the starters are great and were fresh and hustled..without them playing, they would have lost this game"
when they lose…."the starters were tired and werent good…should have subbed them out"
thats more ridiculous then the calls that were made at the game on thursday
Ranking of 6 teams I watched.. #1 Yorktown #2 Rocky Point #3 John Jay #4 Syosett #5 Mt Saini #6 Rye
strong, ltl, or any ytown faithful.. do we know where mike b ranagan fennesy or brunelle or looking at college?
Town brings back Mike B, whole starting D, Ranagan, Interlicchio, Casey and Lieberman plus a few second line middies who should develop. I say things are looking promising. Hopefully they begin thinking about it and making prepping in the offseason part of their mission statement.
You don't replace Rocky B, Kurpis and Froats right away but Town could be even better next year.
RP 12-5 late 3rd
Ranagan is Hopkins bound
Congrats to him!
Congrats to Ranagan, well deserved, cant wait to get him down here to HomeWood Field!
Ranagan is going to Hopkins, Fennessy had towson scouts looking at him and talking to him at the games, no idea on brunelle, and mike b should be going anywhere he wants, besides hopkins. Mistake they made with him.
Congratulations to Yorktown. You have ascended to the upper echelon again.
I sincerely believe that you should have defeated Syosset. This is not Monday morning quarterbacking but stting an obvious development late in this game: Town was spent and could not pick up a single ground ball late in the game.
Was it the heat? Was it two highly competitive games on consecutive days? Was it a failure to use the bench?
Guess we will never know. Unfortunately, Town ran out of gas at the most inopportune time.
Yorktown 2009 Mens Lacrosse Captains:
John Ranagan-sr
Ethan Fox-sr
John Fennessy-sr
Michael B.-sr
Kevin Interlicchio-jr
All of the captains chosen for Town are great kids! We look forwared to all the new college bound boys in February and look forward, always, to next years season. Good kids, good program, good support system. Have a great summer and enjoy yourselves! This is the time of your lives boys!
It is true that Yorktown has never won a state championship in Class A? If they would have gotten by Syosset, would they have beaten West Genessee?
? I doubt that's true.
It is true. Yorktown's 1984 state title came prior to classifications. If there had been classifications, both Yorktown and West Genny would have been A schools, but as it happened classifications did not begin until 1986.
Yorktown's other five state titles—1989, 91, 92, 93 and 2003 were all in B.
Joe,
while I was looking up the 1984 Yorktown vs West Genny question, I came across some striking knowledge. Kevin Interlicchio who was a sophmore this year, now has 110 points in his carreer. If he puts up 80 for the next two years like he did this year (I hope he puts up more however!), he will be 5th all time leading scorer only behind, Tom Nelson (393 insane), Tim Nelson (392, what did they feed those boys), Rob Kavovit (310), and Dave Marr (304). Any word on where Kevin is going to attend College?
college coaches aren't allowed to contact kids until september 1st of their junior year.
classifications began in 89. all luck of draw, ask 03 somers team, 96 pac team team was SHUTOUT 7-0 to town yet took A, if town was B this year they roll to title
thanks donaghy! god knows how many titles town would own if there were "classifications" from 78-89. 80-87 town teams were nasty!
Classifications actually started in 1986, with JD beating Elmont in the first Class B state title game. The Class C state title game was first held in 2000 with Lynbrook beating Lafayette.
The first time Section I sent a Class B rep to the state tournament was in 1986 when Nyack received a bye in the first round and then lost to Elmont at Hofstra.
This is unbelievable you guys have convinced yourselves that if you were in B this year Yorktown would roll to a state championship. I am astonished at almost everything that has been posted on this thread, according to you guys year in and year our your the best team in the nation. Even if Yorktown was in B this year what makes you think you would roll through JOHN JAY who you squeaked by at home in a tsunami and then go on to beat the best team on long island this year, ROCKY POINT. Every year Yorktown does not win the BIG ONE, it's someone else's fault, either the refs or the coaching staff. It is despicable that Yorktown fans would come on this blog and second guess Dave Marr. The fact is the guy has won many games with a less talented team from top to bottom. Jay in 04, Jay in 08. He is the best coach around and is the reason you guys are still a very tough team year in and year out, period. Lastly please enough about the refs, maybe they were terrible in this semifinal but the refs DID NOT bury 5 goals on you guys in the fourth quarter. Teams have always had to deal with bad refs but you guys are the kings of placing blame, just move on and try and get one next season. Thank you.
JJ07..no one said what you just said in your post…lol
i think your just blowing a bit of steem off
your making yourself and who you represent not intelligent, just stop
JJ07…no one said anything about what your saying in your post lol
stop representing yourself and your town like that
Where are these references to Yorktown "rolling through B"? I see one. What the heck are you talking about?
yeah i agree with syracuse…ive seen one having to do with it and your acting like thats all were talking about
it seems your frustrated jj07
jj07- get your homework done, have your cookies and milk, and go to bed
yes, it is very clear who is frustrated here guys and it ain't me….
jj07 refer back to your post..and then see if atleast half the things we "supposdely said", we actually did
im just saying
awhole paragraph of ranting about yorktown and putting words in peoples mouths…
i think it is pretty evident whos frustrated
Lets all stop ripping on JJ07. He said a mistake let it go, he is obvisly frustrated. All JJ fans are frustrated, knowing that if you held that 2 goal league then you would had a clear win of the state finals, how can you not be frustrated. Let's all calm down, you too town fans, he said something totally irrelevant, just let it go!
from above comment, supposed to say lead not league….sorry
sorry JJ07, 'Town did not "squeak by" JJ during the great tsunami of '08 – I believe they held the lead most of the game – are you saying if it hadn't rained 'Town would not have won? indicated by what factors? silly….. It was a great game played by both teams under tough circumstances, but no one has said JJ was the better team..except you.
& laxin – no baseball talk on this blog, please!!!!
JJ07,
You are correct about the Syosset comeback against Yorktown. It was painful to watch as the tide began to turn in the late 3rd quarter and early 4th quarter. The play that should have alarmed the Yorktown coaches had nothing to do with the officiating. The 4th quarter face off was won by Syosset and the player who picked up the ground ball weaved his way through an exhausted Yorktown team to score a goal; he simply ran around the middies and no defender challenged him. It was not a straight run to the goal.
This twenty-something second journey should have prompted the Yorktown coaches to selectively substitute a few players to give their middies and defensemen a rest. They had a deep bench of talented, fast players who stood by witnessing the game slip away.
The proof of the pudding comes on ground balls. I believe the stats show a Syosset advantage of 29 – 18. A more telling ground ball statistic would be the 4th quarter which I am sure was heavily lopsided in Syosset's favor.
The officiating was pathetic but the Yorktown coaching was as bad if not worse.
I truly believe that Yorktown could have won the state title this year with the talent they had on this team. They had a great balance of senior leadership, offensive punch and depth. They players left Hofstra as warriors only to have their trip to the state finals robbed by their coaches, not the officials.
Empire Team,
Congratulations on earning your bronze medal. You played well and were close to taking it all the way.
Have a great summer.