JP Burnside fires a shot that goes over the head of Division goalie Tom McDevitt for a GC goal. See this photo at www.Newsphoto.com Sometimes in sports a team will click and play its best down the stretch as the big games arrive. Based on their performances in the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds of the Nassau County Class B Lacrosse playoffs, the Garden City Trojans could be just such a team. If they are, then the timing is perfect because they were scheduled to meet Wantagh for the county title on Wednesday. The Warriors (16-2) are the only Conference B team to beat GC (15-3) this year. That was a 10-9 double overtime decision a month ago. Since then, the Trojans have won 9 of 10 games, including their last eight in a row, The winner of the county championship game advances to play in the Long Island Championship at Hofstra at 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, June 8.

As Alex Castronovo makes a save on a shot by Division’s Tom Nuckel, Stephen Jahelka and Brian Fischer (behind Nuckel) defend. See this photo at www.Newsphoto.com “We’re playing with a lot of intensity,” said Coach Steve Finnell. “Our defense continues to play well and our offense has been scoring a lot of goals. We’re healthy and we’ve beaten some good teams. Wantagh is very good and presents a real challenge, but we are very happy to get another shot at them.”

Wantagh features a high scoring attack, including the county’s top scorer, Brandon Mangan who has 63 goals and 40 assists. He scored the winner when the teams met the first time. The key in that game was Warrior goalie Jake Gambitsky who made a season-high 21 saves. They beat Carey and Lynbrook last week to reach the final.

Devin Dwyer fends off a Division defenseman. See this photo at www.Newsphoto.com Garden City trounced Long Beach, 12-4, in the quarterfinals behind a true team effort on offense. Eleven different players scored points, with senior Matt Montgomery leading the way with 2 goals and 2 assists. Brian Coleman and Devin Dwyer also had two goals. The Trojans started slowly in the first 18 minutes but they turned it on from that point to outscore the Marines 9-2 with the kind of aggressive play that characterized their semifinal 12-4 win over Levittown Division.

Division came into the game seeded third with a 16-1 record. The Blue Dragons’ only loss came in the final game of the regular season to Garden City, 10-6. This time it wasn’t nearly as close as GC showed why it had been installed as the pre-season top seed. The semifinal was a defensive show, a virtual training film for the Trojans’ usual back line of Steve Jahelka, Brian Fischer and Billy Sweeney. But add three names to that list. J.P. Burnside, who was playing ice hockey during the last couple of football and lacrosse seasons, was a force on defense and even added his fourth goal of the season. Goalie Alex Castronovo was once again very solid, holding the high-scoring Blue Dragons to just four goals. Probably most unnoticed by the casual fan was the brilliant play of Matt Confort, a defensive midfield specialist. Matt shut down his man around the goal, executed a number of solo clears and picked up loose balls in big situations.

Kevin Dachille maneuvers out of the way of Division’s Tim Michels. See this photo at www.Newsphoto.com Tom Gordon, who leads the Trojans with 39 goals had three against Division and added two assists. Devin Dwyer had four assists to raise his team leading total to 44. He also leads in total points with 33-44-77. Rob Savage and Matt Montgomery had two goals each. Garden City led throughout, jumping out to a 4-1 lead. Division stayed in contention, trailing by 6-3 at halftime, but the Trojans blew the game open in the third period as Gordon and Rob Savage each scored twice.

After gaining possession after a faceoff, Jared Mitchell takes the ball upfield. See this photo at www.Newsphoto.com LAX NOTES: The Trojans were out to capture their fifth straight Nassau Class B Championship... It has been a busy time for Coach Steve Finnell, who did a great job preparing his team while at the same time becoming a father for the third time. Steve’s lovely wife Sue gave birth to their second son, Jeffrey Warren Finnell who checked in at a robust 10 pounds. Congratulations!

Stephen Jahelka stops a leaping Dylan Muller from gaining any ground. See this photo at www.Newsphoto.com
Brian Fischer defends against Division’s Tom Nuckel. See this photo at www.Newsphoto.com