Hopes for a county championship came to a screeching halt as the varsity boys lacrosse team fell to the Syosset Braves 14-7 on May 20.
The Vikings entered the postseason as the third-seeded team and showed that it was a team to be taken seriously.
“Although we didn’t get the result we would have wanted this season, I am re- ally proud of all of the guys on the team
and couldn’t have asked for a better group of teammates,” said senior captain Joey Froccaro, who will be taking his talents to Villanova University upon graduation.
After what they considered to be a successful season with an overall record of 13-4, the Vikings beat the Oceanside Sailors 13-10 on May 13 before losing to Syosset in the semifinals. Despite the loss, the mood among the players remains op- timistic for future years.
“This playoff ride set the precedent for Port Washington Lacrosse,” said junior at- tackman Chris Athanasian.
Much of the playoff success over the last few years can be attributed to Head Coach Mr. Tom Rooney, and his assistant coaches Mr. Isaac Neal, and Mr. Henry Stanziale. The additional dedication of volunteer coaches Mr. Jake Froccaro and Mr. Tom Schreiber helped give the team an edge, providing skills and tactics used at the collegiate level. This year, the team has achieved its best overall and in-con- ference records, 13-4 and 8-2, respective- ly, over the past four seasons.
The team will lose senior talent fol- lowing graduation, and these players will leave behind large shoes to fill. Younger players to watch next year are sophomores Robbie Connors and Brian Crawley and freshman John Athanasian.
These players performed at a high level than during the season; Crawley scored a handful of goals on attack, and Connors provided a powerful offensive attack with his shooting skills and ability to drive to the net.
J. Athanasian, who made the varsity team this season as a freshman, received a lot of playing time which serves as good experience for next season. His physical- ity on attack allowed for him to dodge players and take on bigger defensemen.
The core of the team came from the leadership and consistent performance of senior captains Froccaro, Luke Cum- mings, Conor Jenkinson, John Neil, and Charlie Scharf.
“The senior leadership this year was a big part of our team, and with all of them leaving, we are going to need to fill the holes. Some players are going to need to step up,” said C. Athanasian.
Froccaro had an exceptional season, even in light of the sky-high expectations that were put upon him, scoring 52 goals. This puts him in the top ten overall in number of goals tallied in Nassau County. Since his first year on varsity as an eighth grader, Froccaro has shown that he could play at a high level and help lead the team.
“We had a strong midfield this year, which helped us get our offense moving,” said Athanasian.
Scharf and Neil will leave the defensive side of the field open. They both started and finished most games, holding down the defense and preventing other teams from getting too close to the net.
“We are losing a lot of great seniors, such as the whole starting midfield and
defense. This leaves us with many gaps to fill and will only push us harder to get back to what we had,” said junior Aidan Finnerty.
Despite the loss of these seniors at many positions, one thing the team will not need to worry about is goaltending.
Junior Nick Ferrero has been the back- bone of the team for four years, and will be manning the net for his fifth consecutive season next year. A veteran in the net will be vital in helping younger defensemen rise to the occasion.
The only thing left for the team to do is to look ahead and focus on next season. “We want to make it further into the playoffs next spring, but in order to do so we need to work hard at what we were weak at and come ready to play. The ul- timate goal for us now is to win county
championships,” said Finnerty.