LIVE: Girls Lax State Finals

Here we are again, the Class C state finals with the Shoreham-Wading River girls lacrosse team at SUNY Cortland. The 'Summer of 69' is blasting over the speakers as we get ready for the championship game. The Wildcats hope to add the 'Summer of '09' to '08 and '07 with title No. 3.

The Wildcats, after a very impressive 21-11 win against Carthage yesterday, will take on Honeoye Falls-Lima, 18-6 winners against Nyack. Honeoye Falls comes into the game with a 19-2 record and having not allowed more than 10 goals this season in any one game. Can the Wildcats do it today? The first draw is set for 9:30 a.m.

The key for the Wildcats will be a strong first half. If the Wildcats can take a lead into halftime, even if it's minimal like two goals yesterday, they've always shown a tendency to wear teams down over a game. So for Honeoye Falls (Section V) to have a chance, it'd be wise for them to take a lead into halftime and have the Wildcats chasing.

I'm led to believe Honeoye Falls is good at controlling possessions and not giving the opposition many scoring chances. No matter how good your defense is, if the other team has the ball enough, it will score. So to have not given up more than 10 goals this season means Honeoye Falls doesn't give the opposition a ton of chances.

The Wildcats were excellent on draws yesterday, especially in the second half which allowed them to build up the lead.

The leading scorer yesterday for Honeoye Falls was Lindsey Powell. She scored six goals with an assist. Jill Maier and Maggie Stankaitis both scored three. Amanda Willison had five assists.

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Here's the starting lineups:

HF-L

Attack: Taylor Burgart, Nora Stambaugh, Maggie Stankaitis, Trisha Schunk

Middies: Jill Maier, Anna Legrett, Amanda Willison

Defense: Hillary Cox, Ashley Moyer, Erin York, Maggie Wilk

Goalie: Emily Stankaitis

SWR

Attack: Jen DeVito, Megan Gersbeck, Rachel Wiederkehr, Codi Mullen

Middies: Stephanie Anderson, Chelsey Newman, Kaitlyn Brosco

Defense: Julie Hudecek, Isabelle Mahoney, Alex Franck, Sam Villafranca

Goalie: Michelle Verbeeck

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Stephanie Anderson is on the opening draw for SWR. Falls wills the draw but SWR gets it back on a turnover. The Wildcats first shot goes out of bounds and Falls gets it back.

Rachel Wiederkehr has a shot saved at 22:30. Falls takes over. Wildcats regain on turnover.

Wiederkehr misses on a free position at 21:40. Wildcats keep possession.

1-0 SWR. Wiederkehr converts this time as the Wildcats go ahead at 21:29. Credit DeVito with the assist.

2-0 SWR. Anderson leaps in front to catch a feed from Brosco and scores at 20:00

Falls gets the draw. SWR gets it back after a charge.

DeLea misses a free position at 19:35.

2-1. Lindsey Powell converts a free position at 18:10 to put Honeoye on the board.

Falls wins the draw.

2-2. Powell ties it with her second straight goal at 16:44

Falls wins its fourth draw in five tries.

3-2 HFL. Sierra Sarkis scores and the Wildcats trail by one at 16:10

Wildcats win the draw.

3-3. Newman scores her first on a bounce shot to tie the game at 15:42.

Wildcats on the draw.

DeLea shoots and misses and the Falls goalie is closest so the Wildcats lose it.

Verbeeck makes her first big save at 14:00.

We have a time-out at 12:40. Looks like a TV timeout. SWR has possession.

4-3. Wildcats regain the lead when Anderson scores in front after catching a feed from behind the cage from Gersbeck at 11:31.

Wildcats on the draw.

5-3 Newman scores again on a feed from Brosco to equal the biggest lead at 9:56.

Falls on the draw.

Wildcats defense forces a turnover and the Wildcats are trying to clear with under 9:30 to go.

This game has a much more deliberate pace than the start of yesterday's game .

6-3. Brosco scores her first to give the Wildcats their biggest lead at three with 6:32 to play.

Time-out on the field at 6:32. Looks like a Falls time-out.

Wildcats on the draw. But they lose it and Falls comes the other way.

6-4. Anna Legrett scores in transition to get the Cougars back into the game at 4:12.

6-5. Just like that it's back to a one-goal game when Powell scores her third on a free position at 3:40.

Wildcats get the draw and will look to expand their lead.

7-5. DeLea does just that with an open look in front. Give the assist to Brosco at 3:10.

Brosco scores but the goal is waved off because of a charge call at 2:40. Falls ball.

8-5. After an initial save on DeLea, DeVito gets in and puts it in with 1:05 to go. A huge goal there.

8-6. Falls scores with :03 to go when Amanda Wilson converts in front a feed from Powell.

HALFTIME:

SWR 8, HF-L 6

So the Wildcats have a two-goal lead going into the second half, the same margin as yesterday. The Wildcats offense has proved up to the task against this tough defense. They're on pace for 16 goals at this rate, which would shatter the high mark allowed by the Cougars this year, which is 10. 

Halftime Stats:

SWR Goals—

Anderson, 2 goals

Newman, 2 goals

Wiederkehr, 1 goal

Brosco, 1 goal

DeVito, 1 goal

DeLea, 1 goal

SWR Saves—

Verbeeck, 2

H-FL Goals—

Powell, 3 goals

Sarkis, 1 goal

Legrett, 1 goal

Willison, 1 goal

H-FL Saves—

Stankaitis, 6

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2nd HALF

The opening draw of the second half goes to Shoreham.

A yellow card on HFL has the Wildcats with a man-advantage with 24:48.

9-6. Anderson scores right away as the Wildcats equal their biggest lead again at 24:43.

Verbeeck with a save on a free position and the Wildcats come the other way.

A DeVito goal is waved off for a charge at 17:35. But SWR gets it back.

The pace has slowed here with under 14:00 to play.

Falls is in transition and Powell misses a golden opportunity one-on-one with Verbeeck. She simply lost control of the ball before she could shoot.

The clock stops at 12:41 as Codi Mullen is down on the turf. Trainer's come out to check on her.

She's being carried off the field. She's hobbling off without putting any pressure on her left leg. So we hope she's OK and can maybe come back in the final minutes.

10-6 Wiederkehr scores in front on an assist from Anderson with 12:15 to go and the Wildcats have their biggest lead.

Falls gets the draw and needs to get something going right away. But Franck forces a turnover, scoops a ground ball and the Wildcats clear.

11-6. Wiederkehr scores again on a feed from DeVito with 11:30 to go. But another SWR player is down on the ground. It's Brosco and she is able to walk off the field on her own.

11-7. Powell scores right off the draw to get the Cougars back into it. There's 11:08 to go.

Cougars win the draw.

Big save for Verbeeck at 10:50.

Another save for Verbeeck on a low shot. Wildcats looking to clear. Newman brings it across midfield and the Wildcats set up. SWR turns it over and Falls has it under 7:30 to play.

Verbeeck denies another shot. Wildcats come the other way.

12-7. Wiederkehr scores her third straight for SWR at 6:38 on a feed from Brosco.

Time-out on the field.

SWR wins the draw with Anderson. The Wildcats can't score and Falls clears the other way.

12-8 The Cougars inch closer with 5:36 to play on a goal by Powell.

We're approaching the 4 minute mark. Wildcats ball.

13-8 DeVito with a nice spin in front and she bounces the ball in with 3:51 to go. Give the assist to Ali Davis.

Wildcats get in on a turnover but then give it right back with under 2:20 to go.

Now SWR ball with 2:00 to go.

13-9 Powell scores her sixth with 1:22 to go.

Time-out on the field with 1:22.

Wildcats win the draw and will look to kill the clock on a third straight state title.

But Falls forces a turnover and charges the other way.

13-10 Legrett scores with :51 but is there enough time for Falls? Doesn't look like it.

Falls wins the draw for a little intrigue in the final minute.

13-11 Here's another goal! Maier scores off the draw off an assist from Willison with :38 to go.

Falls drives but the ball ends in Verbeeck's stick and that's it.

SWR 13, H-FL 11

FINAL SCORE

LIVE: Class C State Semifinals

Game time for the Class C state semifinals between Shoreham-Wading River and Carthage is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Both teams are on the field warming up and after a lot rain fell last night, it looks to be OK this morning. It's an overcast sky, but nothing that looks too threatening. 

The Wildcats haven't played many games this early and I'd guess neither has Carthage. It'll be interesting to see if the early start has any effect. I'm sure at this point in the season both teams are ready to go even if they started the game at 2 a.m.

The first half of the semifinals last year was the toughest stretch the Wildcats had in Cortland last year. The Wildcats have been able to come back when needed, but they'd be smart not to fall behind again. Especially against a Carthage team that has put up huge offensive numbers this year.

The starting lineups:

SWR—

Attack: Megan Gersbeck, Codi Mullen, Jen DeVito, Rachel Wiederkehr

Middies: Chelsey Newman, Kate Brosco, Steph Anderson

Defense: Isabelle Mahoney, Julie Hudecek, Alex Franck, Sam Villafranca

Goalie: Michelle Verbeeck

Carthage—

Attack: Katie Ferris, Alexis Egeberg

Middies: Kailah Kempney, Megan Serota, Emily Sauter, Gabrielle Kamide, Amy Tiernan, Katherine Deronda

Defense: Joelle Percy, Olivia Roggie, Kara Fahsel

Goalie: Ellyse Richardson

Well, only two players were announced as attack for Carthage, so we'll see who else ends up playing there...

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We're ready for the opening draw. It'll be Steph Anderson against Katie Ferris. The draw goes to SWR.

1-0 Right off the draw the Wildcats score on a goal by Chelsey Newman at 24:50. Wow.

2-0. Jen DeVito scores in front and the Wildcats are rolling to start. The goal at 24:33.

Carthage wins its first draw and sets up possession. Villafranca forces a turnover and the Wildcats get the ball.

Brosco turns it over at 23:12. 

2-1 Ferris scores in front in transition on a feed from Gabrielle Kamide at 23:00

Carthage takes its second draw.

2-2 Katherine Deronda splits two defenders and scores to tie the game at 21:58

Carthage takes the next draw.

3-2 Carthage. Ferris scores on a feed from Deronda at 21:47.

4-2. Right off the draw Ferris scores again at 21:38.

The Wildcats get possession after Carthage loses it out of bounds after the draw.

The Wildcats hit back-to-back pipes. Both Wiederkehr sisters hit the right post.

4-3. Brittany DeLea scores on a free position to get the Wildcats back within one at 19:38

Carthage takes the draw. 

5-3. Ferris drills a shot on the free position a step in for her fourth goal at 18:57.

5-4. Anderson scores in front on a feed from Rachel Wiederkehr who caused a turnover and kept the ball in bounds off the endline at 18:14

Wildcats win the draw and set up possession.

5-5. DeVito scores in front on an assist from DeLea at 17:38.

Comets on the draw. Verbeeck makes her first save of the game at 16:55.

6-5 SWR. Brosco scores on the free position at 16:00.

Amy Tiernan with a great play on defense to force a turnover with under 13:10 to play.

Comets turn it over on the other end and the Wildcats clear.

7-5. Anderson scores on a free position at 11:43.

Verbeeck with a great save in front at 10:35.

Ferris has gotten some good looks in front but has missed high or wide on a couple shots.

Wildcats turn it over and the Comets are coming the other way. The scoring has finally slowed a tad from the electric start.

Verbeeck with her third save at under 9:00. She's come up big after allowing the initial string of goals.

Verbeeck with back-to-back saves and she's been the difference so far.

7-6 Ferris scores in transition on a feed from Kamide at 4:40.

The Wildcats win the draw.

Anderson on a drive to the cage gets hit and she's down and slow to get up.

She takes a few deep breaths and will stay on the field. It's Carthage ball, however.

The Wildcats force a turnover when Carthage's goalie throws away a clearing pass.

8-6. Wiederkehr scores a super quick shot on an assist from Newman at 1:27

Carthage goalie comes up with her first save in the final seconds.

That's halftime:

SWR 8, Carthage 6

The winner of this game will face Honeoye Falls-Lima, which leads Nyack 13-2 at halftime.

Halftime Tally:

SWR Goals:

Anderson, 2 goals

DeVito, 2 goals

Newman, 1 goal, 1 assist

DeLea, 1 goal

Wiederkehr, 1 goal, 1 assist

Brosco, 1 goal

Carthage:

Ferris, 5 goals

Deronda, 1 goal, 1 assist

Kamide, 2 assists

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2nd Half

Wildcats win the opening draw.

9-6. Wiederkehr scores again in front on an assist from Brosco and the Wildcats have their biggest lead of the game at 24:01.

Verbeeck with her first save on Kempney.

10-6. DeVito scores to put the Wildcats ahead by four on a feed from Wiederkehr.

The Comets need a time-out. Carthage hasn't substituted at all that I can recall, so the Wildcats depth should wear the Comets down here in the second half. We've seen it time and time again. Carthage's goalie has struggled so far and the backup, Valerie McGuire, a freshman, is warming up.

10-7. Ferris leaps in front and almost slam-dunks the ball into the cage on a feed from Kamide at 21:55.

Wildcats win the draw, their third of the second half.

Big save against Anderson and the Comets are flying the other way. But Verbeeck comes up with a save the other way.

Mahoney with a great play on defense to force a turnover at 18:20.

11-7. Wiederkehr scores on a feed from Anderson as Vlahakis screamed "Rachel!" as the play developed. There's 17:49 to go.

It's the Wildcats on the draw.

12-7. DeVito scores what might be a back-breaker as she catches a feed on the left side off a free position from Wiederkehr at 17:12.

Wildcats win the draw.

13-7. Anderson scores on a free position and the Wildcats are starting to run away with it now. There's 16:31 to go.

14-7. Brosco scores on the free position and the Wildcats have doubled Carthage with 15:32 to go.

The Comets have pulled their goalie and it'll be McGuire in.

Carthage gets the draw, only its second of the second half.

14-8. Ferris scores on a feed from Deronda at 14:21. That's her seventh goal.

The Wildcats have outscored the Comets 6-2 in the second half.

SWR will call a time-out at 14:21.

Verbeeck makes her ninth save at 13:51.  She then makes a save on a low shot on the free position by Kempney.

15-8 DeVito scores on a free position feed from Newman, just like earlier when she connected with Wiederkehr. 12:39 to play.

Ferris gets a yellow card at 12:28.

16-8 DeLea scores unassisted at 12:12.

17-8 Brosco with a great shot inside the top-left corner at 11:58

17-9 Deronda scores at 11:41

Draw goes to SWR.

18-9. Anderson scores on the free position at 10:53 and that equals the most goals Carthage has allowed this season.

19-9 DeVito scores on a low roller after catching the feed in front from Brosco at 9:29. We're into running time.

Wiederkehr gets whistled for a yellow at 8:46.

Vlahakis has put in a lot of the bench players to get everyone some experience on the big stage.

19-10. Tiernan scores on a feed from behind the cage from Kamide at 6:11.

19-11. Kempney scores at 3:34

Verbeeck will take a seat for Sara Bates and leaves to a loud ovation from the SWR fans.

20-11. Corinne Wiederkehr scores her first on a feed from Caitlin King at 3:03

21-11 Gersbeck scores her first after the ball was initially saved but it bounced out of the goalie's stick and went in. This is the most goals they've scored this season.

LIVE: L.I. Class C Finals

It's time for the Class C Long Island championship between defending state champion Mount Sinai and Manhasset. The opening face-off is scheduled for 3 p.m.

The Mustangs, coming off a win against John Glenn last Thursday, have their hands full against a very talented Manhasset team that comes in as the favorite. The Indians are the No. 1 ranked team in the state in Class C with a 17-1 record. Their only loss came against Comsewogue in non-league back in April, 11-10, in overtime.

Last year the Mustangs' defense overwhelmed Cold Spring Harbor, and while their defense is strong again, it'll be a lot tougher this year against Manhasset. The Mustangs don't have much depth and were able to overcome it against Glenn in the finals. We'll see if they can do it again.

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Manhasset has a number of offensive weapons, led by senior attack Connor English. He has 65 goals on the season with 16 assists. The Indians have seven additional players with double figure goals this year.

The starters for Manhasset:

Attack: Zac Koufakis, Kevin Heenan, Connor English

Middies: Drew Belinsky, Jeff Izzo, Jeff Molinari

Defense: Brad Cappellini, Kevin Coleman

Goalie: Jack Meyer

Mount Sinai:

Attack: Chad Marino, Jon Hoeg, Ryan Maurer

Middies: James Dawson, Shane Henry, Joe Bongiorno

Defense: Casey Stroh, Connor McPartland, Connor Stroh

Goalie: Matt Poillon

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The opening face-off goes to Mount Sinai.

The Mustangs are off to a deliberate start here offensively and Joe Bongiorno fires the first shot and misses. But the Mustangs regain possession. Hoeg also gets a good shot that doesn't get through and the Indians set up their first possession with under 10:00 to play in the first quarter.

Drew Belinsky fires a shot that's saved by Poillon, his first attempt.

Poillon makes his second save, this time on English. Good start for the Mount Sinai sophomore.

A fastbreak for Manhasset is converted by Kevin Heenan from Jeff Izzo with 7:24 to play. 

1-0 Manhasset.

2-0. Manhasset's English makes it 2-0 with an unassisted goal with 7:06 to play.

Manhasset turns it over on a stall. They take it out of the box and must give it back to Mount Sinai. But the Indians come right back the other way. Poillon makes a save on Heenan, his third of the game.

2-1. Bongiorno puts the Mustangs on the board with a shot from the right side that snuck inside the left post with 4:51 to go.

Another save by Poillon, who's had a terrific start to the first quarter.

3-1 Zac Koufakis scores on a feed from Izzo with 2:31 to play.

The Indians win the next face-off. They've been dominant so far.

Poillon makes his fifth save with 2:00 to play.

4-1. Glen Tompkins scores his first goal on a feed from Koufakis with :58.3 to play.

That's the end of the first quarter. It's 4-1 Manhasset. The Indians had 8 shots on goal compared to 1 for Mount Sinai. Manhasset had 15 shots total.

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Manhasset controls the face-off of the second quarter.

We have our first penalty of the game. Mount Sinai's Henry gets called for a cross-check with 10:45 to play. He'll sit for a minute.

Poillon makes a save on English and then clears it across midfield, but he loses it out of bounds and the Indians take over. There's 10:08 to play. 

The Mustangs kill off the man advantage.

The Indians turn it over and the Mustangs take over with 9:15 to play.

Mount Sinai calls its first time-out with 8:52 to go. There's also a penalty on Heenan for offside. It's a 30-sec. penalty.

4-2. Bongiorno slices the Manhasset lead, scoring off a feed from Chad Marino with 8:27 to go.

5-2. A great feed from English to Molinari makes it 5-2.

6-2. Right off the face-off the Indians strike again. This time it's Heenan from Koufakis at 7:07.

Poillon nearly scored a goal. He charged straight toward the goal on a clear and fired a shot that missed with under 6:00 to go.

A penalty on Brad Cappellini for a slash with 4:51 to go. It's a one-minute penalty. Let's see if Mount Sinai can convert.

6-3. Henry converts right away with his first goal on a feed from Ryan Maurer at 4:45.

It's a 9-2 lead for the Indians on face-offs behind Ricky Buhr.

Mount Sinai goes back on the man advantage after another slash penalty at 3:40.

The Mustangs will call a time-out and try to set up a big possession here, down by three.

6-4. Another goal for Mount Sinai and it's Ray Diaz cutting in front, catching a feed from Marino at 3:10. Just like that it's two-goal game.

The Indians turn it over right away and the Mustangs will try to cut it to one.

6-5. Bongiorno converts another tough shot, this time from the right side, he bounces it in just inside the left post. Henry gets the assist and we've got a ball game! The goal comes at 2:20.

The Indians get the face-off. A shot by Molinari is wide right and Poillon controls it. Hoeg gets pushed in transition but there's no call. The Indians control and Poillon makes a great save on English. It's Mount Sinai back the other way.

The Mustangs turn it over at :9.1

Poillon makes save, his eighth of the half, to end the second quarter.

END 2: Manhasset 6, Mount Sinai 5

The Mustangs trailed by four in this game at 6-2 before ending the half with three goals. The Mustangs held the Indians scoreless over the final 7:07.

Some halftime stats:

Face-offs: Manhasset 11, Mount Sinai 2

Shots: Manhasset 24, Mount Sinai 12

Saves: Poillon 8, Meyer 0

Ground Balls: Manhasset 20, Mount Sinai 7

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Great first half for the underdog Mustangs. Now we're ready for the third quarter.

Manhasset gets the opening face-off.

7-5 English with a great move around the cage skips a shot in to give the Indians a two-goal lead at 10:18.

The Mustangs turn it over but then get it back in Manhasset territory.

A shot by English is saved at 7:10 by Poillon. Manhasset has the ball. Connor Stroh is guarding English.

8-5 English scores his third and it's back to a three-goal lead at 6:47

Henry has a shot saved at 6:08 as he charged down the middle. It's his first save of the game.

Henry hits the cross-bar at 4:30 after a great spin move.

Mustangs turn it over after a solid defensive stand by the Indians.

9-5 AJ Diaz scores at the buzzer on a feed from English. A real tough way to end the third quarter as the Indians equal their biggest lead of the game.

END 3: Manhasset 9, Mount Sinai 5

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Manhasset wins the face-off and now holds a 14-3 advantage.

10-5. Koufakis rises high and scores his second to give the Indians their biggest lead of the game at 10:26. That's four straight Manhasset goals.

Drew Belinsky has a shot hit the right post for Manhasset at 8:45

Mount Sinai goes on the man advantage at 8:20 for a slash. The Mustangs are 3-for-3 on man-ups. 

10-6. Bongiorno scores his fourth on a long shot off an assist from Marino at 7:48.

Mount Sinai calls time-out at 6:00. Time is running out. The Mustangs need a quick goal here coming out of the break to give themselves a chance at the comeback.

Mount Sinai loses it after the break and the Indians set up the other way looking to kill clock.

The Indians appear on their way to the state semifinals as we're under 4:00 to play. Manhasset still holds a four-goal lead.

Manhasset calls a time-out at 3:27 and that should be it.

FINAL SCORE: Manhasset 10, Mount Sinai 6

Live: Girls Lacrosse Long Island Championship

We're here at Hofstra University where the Shoreham-Wading River girls lacrosse team is seeking its fourth straight Long Island championship. The Wildcats once again are playing the Manhasset Indians, who have been on the losing end of the last three meetings between the two schools.

A few notes before the game:

I spoke briefly with coach Bob Vlahakis and he said the girls are ready to go. Freshman Alyssa Fleming, who was injured at the end of the county championship game when struck by the stick of a Mount Sinai attacker on a shot attempt, had been cleared and is OK to go. Fleming plays on defense and while young, is an important member of that crew.

Another new face would can expect to see briefly is Ali Davis, a sophomore, who after a great preseason had a setback because of an injury that kept her out pretty much all year. Vlahakis said Codi Mullen has played a lot more in the midfield this year as opposed to attack to make up for Davis' absence. But Davis will get about a five-minute shift at some point today.

Another note: Manhasset only arrived on the field with about 15 minutes left on the clock before the announcements are scheduled to begin. Not sure if they delay in getting on the field will have any effect on the team. But the Wildcats were on the field for at least 15 more minutes warming up.

The crowd still filing in here at Hofstra. Only about 40 people in the bleachers with eight minutes to go before game-time.

As is always the case, the key for Shoreham is to win draws and maintain possessions. When the Wildcats have the ball, they will score often enough. The only way to beat the Wildcats is to have a lot more possessions and a lot more chances to score. Manhasset needs to get off to a fast start in this game I think.

We're mere moments away from the opening draw!

The opening draw will be between Stephanie Anderson and Ryan Wenk. It goes to Shoreham and we're off.

SWR turns it over on its first possession. Alex Franck intercepts a pass and shovels it over to Michelle Verbeeck in cage and the Wildcats are running. But the Wildcats turn it over themselves.

1-0 Manhasset, Wenk cuts across the middle, catches a feed and scores with 22:27 left.

Wildcats get the draw but turn it over again. Wildcats still have no shots.

2-0 Manhasset. Olivia Walters scores and it's the Indians ahead by two with 21:13 to play.

Wildcats win the draw behind Chelsey Newman. And Wenk gets whistled for a yellow card. Big call there. Let's see if the Wildcats can capitalize. 

Wildcats immediately turn it over again. A nice play by Newman on defense has the Wildcats running. Kate Boden is fouled and will get the free position. Her shot is saved.

Verbeeck makes her first save with 19:45 to play.

There's an injury time-out with 19:14 to play. Manhasset's Jenny Vlahos is helped off the field slowly.

Manhasset has the ball and a 2-0 lead. Verbeeck makes her second save and the Wildcats turn it over yet again trying to clear.

With 17:55 to play Verbeeck makes another save and is keeping this game close for Shoreham. The turnovers continue to pile up for SWR.

Steph Anderson will get a free position shot and it's saved with 16:10 to play. Manhasset gets the ball.

Rachel Wiederkehr is denied on a free position and the Wildcats are 0-3 thus far.

Anderson gets hit hard, there's no call, and she's down on the ground. She'll slowly walk off the field and Kait Brosco hustles in to replace her.

Manhasset is playing very physical against Shoreham and it's working so far.

Another free position, this time Brittany DeLea, is saved.

Under 12 minutes to play and the Wildcats are still scoreless.

3-0 Wenk scores her second on a low shot to the left corner and the Indians are rolling now with the three-goal advantage. There's 11:18 to play.

Wildcats are 4-0 on draws but it hasn't helped yet.

Another turnover for SWR with under 9:00 to play.

4-0 Wenk scores off a feed from Allie Perez with 8:22 to play.

The Wildcats need a time-out as the Manhasset fans give a standing ovation to the Indians.

At this point the Wildcats simply need a goal to try to get on some kind of a roll. The Indians defense has been phenomenal thus far and has forced the Wildcats into a ton of turnovers. And the Wildcats are 0-4 on free position attempts. Hard to believe.

This is familiar for Manhasset. The Indians haven't allowed more than four goals in an opening half since Farmingdale scored six April 23.

Manhasset wins its first draw with about 8:00 to go.

Anderson has checked back in for SWR.

Megan Markham for Manhasset gets called for a yellow card with 6:42 to play.

4-1. Brosco finally gets SWR on the board with a bounced shot on a free position and it's 4-1 with 6:40 to play.

Manhasset wins the draw. Brosco forces a turnover then assists in front to Jen DeVito and the Wildcats are back. 

4-2. DeVito from Brosco with 6:05 to play.

SWR wins the draw and will try to cut the deficit to one. But a turnover and the Indians control the other way.

5-2 Stephanie Shapiro scores and the Indians go back in front by two with 4:23.

The Wildcats win the draw and turn it over again.

The Wildcats will get possession with under 2:00 to play.

5-3. Anderson scores in front off a feed from DeVito with 1:13 to play.

Big draw coming up. If the Wildcats can get this to one before halftime they'll be feeling OK. But it's the Indians who come away with it. 

Newman forces a turnover with :47.5 to play and gets it out to Brosco. The Wildcats can't score, however, and the Indians get it with under :30 to play. A turnover, though, and DeVito feeds to Rachel Wiederkehr.

5-4 Wiederkehr from DeVito. A huge goal before halftime.

At halftime it's Manhasset 5, SWR 4

To start the second half it'll be Anderson vs. Wenk on the draw. The Wildcats have not led in this game.

Vlahakis will keep Verbeeck in the game to start the second half.

We're waiting for the TV to finish up before the second half begins....

Actually now it's Wiederkehr on the draw. Manhasset controls it.

The Indians turn it over on their first possession.

5-5. DeVito scores off a feed from Brosco and just like that the game is tied. 23:09 to play.

Manhasset wins the draw. Verbeeck makes a save and the Wildcats are rolling the other way.

6-5 SWR. Anderson scores off a feed from DeVito and now the Wildcats have their first lead of the game with 22:01 to play.

Manhasset gets the draw and is 3-0 to start the second. The Indians are looking to answer what's been four straight SWR goals.

6-6 Kerri Fleishhacker scores on a free position to tie the game with 21:02 to play.

SWR wins the draw.

7-6. DeVito takes it herself down the left side and scores to put the Wildcats back ahead with 19:52 to play.

SWR wins the draw and sets up the offense.

A yellow card on Manhasset and it's Maggie Reichenbach with 18:32 to play

SWR turns it over in front and the Indians clear with under 18:00 to play.

Jenny Vlahos loses it to Fleming and the Wildcats clear it.

8-6 Anderson scores down the middle off a feed from Codi Mullen and the Wildcats have their biggest lead of the game with 15:52 to play.

9-6. Wildcats win the draw behind Newman and DeVito charges down the middle and scores her fourth of the game with 15:43 to play. Brosco caught the feed on the draw and passed it to DeVito.

SWR wins another draw.

10-6 Wiederkehr scores on a free position and the Wildcats are dominating the action now with 14:50 to play.

This matches the biggest lead for either team. Since Manhasset led 4-0 it's been SWR outscoring the Indians 10-2.

11-6 Brosco bounced in a shot from about 10 yards and the Wildcats are pulling away now with 13:45 to play.

11-7 The Indians get back on the board with Fleishhacker scoring with 12:06 to play.

12-7 Brosco scores on the free position and it's the Wildcats back in front by five with 9:43 to play.

12-8 Wenk scores from Fleishhacker with 7:03 to play.

With under 4:00 to play the Wildcats are on their way back to Cortland.

I'm headed down to the field for the final minute.

Back with a final score in a bit.

12-8 IS THE FINAL

SWR OVER MANHASSET

LIVE: Boys Class C County Finals

Just arrived at Stony Brook for the Class C county championship after putting together Friday's paper that hits newstands tomorrow.

Mount Sinai currently holds a 4-3 lead in the first quarter after coming back from early 3-1 deficit.

Mount Sinai has a two-man advantage with under 3:45 to play. They score on a goal by Joe Bongiorno to go ahead 5-3 with 3:35 to play.

John Glenn cuts it to 5-4 with 1:40 to play.

To open the second half Jon Hoeg scores to put the Mustangs ahead 6-4 with 11:38 to play.

Mount Sinai goes a man-down for 30 seconds on a Hoeg penalty. Ken Meinsen scores on a tough shot assisted by Matt Gannon to make it 6-5 with 10:46 to play.

Bongiorno forces  a turnover and the Mustangs clear and set up possession with under 10 to play. A low shot by James Dawson is saved at 9:15 and Glenn takes over.

Donald Brown catches a feed to the left of the cage from Nick Meinsen and scores to tie the game with 7:31 to play.

Mount Sinai wins the face-off and Chad Marino scores on an assist from Hoeg, who had the ground ball off the face-off. It's 7-6 Mount Sinai with 7:22 to play.

Time-out on the field with 4:55 to play. Still 7-6 Mount Sinai.

The pace has slowed here. Mount Sinai calls a time-out even as a potential fast-break was developing. There's 2:41 left in the second quarter.

Henry scoops a ground ball in front of the cage and whips in to give the Mustangs an 8-6 lead with 1:50 to play.

Mount Sinai goes on a man-advantage with 1:10 to play for one minute after an illegal body check. The Mustangs turn it over and Glenn calls time-out with :58 to play.

Henry had a great chance in transition in the final seconds of the second quarter but shot was wide left on the bounce. Hoeg gets whistled for a push, 30 second, with :1.7 to go. He's shaken up on the play and is being helped off the field.

That's halftime: Mount Sinai 8, John Glenn 6

Glenn strikes right away with a goal by Tom Forsberg assisted by Matt Gannon to make it 8-7 with 11:43 to play. 

Bongiorno scores off an assist from Ryan Maurer and it's 9-7 with 10:24 to play.

A Glenn penalty is on Joseph Gannon for a slash with 8:24 to play. Big possession for Mount Sinai holding a two-goal lead. Henry converts a long shot off a feed from Hoeg and the Mustangs have their biggest lead of the game. It's 10-7 with 7:38 to play.

Gannon scores on a bounced shot that sneaks its way into the cage after coming up and hitting the crossbar and falling in to make it 10-8 with 5:40 to go.

Glenn gets the face-off on an illegal procedure.

John Glenn goes a man-down with 3:30 to play on a trip.

Bongiorno makes it a three-goal lead again after converting a feed from the left side from Henry. It's 11-8 Mount Sinai with 2:46 to play.

At the end of the third quarter it's Mount Sinai 11, John Glenn 8

Opening face-off goes to John Glenn in the fourth. 

The scoring has really slowed since a back-and-forth opening quarter. We have a time-out with 4:59 to play and Mount Sinai still holding a three-goal lead.

Henry hits the left post with 4:10 to go but Mount Sinai regains possession. A push gives it back to Glenn, which needs a goal fast with under 3:30 to play.

With 1:56 to play there's a time-out by Mount Sinai. Poillon came out of the cage to scoop a ground ball and carried it to near midfield before dumping it off. Barring a meltdown in the final two minutes, the Mustangs are on their way to a second straight county title and date with a powerhouse Manhasset team Tuesday back here at Stony Brook.

Mount Sinai turns it over with 1:06 to play. But the Mustangs regain it momentarily. Casey Stroh comes up with a big ground ball and the Mustangs clear with under :40 to play.

FINAL SCORE: MOUNT SINAI 11, JOHN GLENN 8

LIVE: Girls Lax County Finals

Now it's time for Rocky Point vs Sayville. The rain has slowed and it looks like we should get through this game without a hitch. Keep your fingers crossed.

Northport just won a thriller in the Class A game, coming from one goal down late to win it in the final seconds. We'll see if this game can match the excitement.

Draw control so important in girls lacrosse, was key for the Eagles in their regular season win. The Eagles jumped out to an 8-1 lead by controlling possession. If they can do that tonight they'll be on their way to a rematch with Garden City for the Long Island title Saturday.

It'll be Abigail Ross for Rocky Point against Kathrin Gallo for Sayville on the draw. Sayville wins it. DePompeo drives down field to start the game and feeds Emily Meier for the goal.

1-0 Sayville, 24:25. Meier from DePompeo

1-1. Caitlin Gargan weaves down the middle and scores to tie the game with 21:01 left.

Rocky Point defender Sara Davis gets whistled for a yellow card with 19:31 left. Gallo gets a free position shot and pulls it back out. A shot by Meier is saved by Rocky Point goalie Julie Nolan, her second of the game.

Another great save by Nolan as O'Reilly wrapped around the cage with under 18:00 to play.

2-1 Sayville. Connie Neilsen scores to put Sayville back ahead with 16:46 to play.

This game has not started the way Rocky Point would have hoped in terms of possession. It's been all Sayville with the ball.

3-1. DePompeo catches a feed in front of the cage from Meier, spins around a defender and puts it home with 15:11 to play.

Another yellow card for Rocky Point and it looks like Davis again, her second.

4-1 Gallo scores in transition from Kelly Santangelo after a Rocky Point turnover and the Golden Flashes are dominating play. The Eagles need a timeout with 12:32 to play.

Sayville wins another draw and the Flashes are back in the offensive zone.

5-1 Jordan Lite scores from a feed from Arielle Theofield and the Eagles are in serious trouble with 11:25 to play.

Sayville wins another draw and has a 5-2 advantage.

6-1 Lite scores again from Meier and now the Eagles are in danger of getting blown out here. There's 10:33 to play and it's been all Sayville.

On defense the Eagles are getting whistled for a lot of fouls. 

7-1 DePompeo converts on a free position with 9:54 left.

This is the worst I've seen Rocky Point get handled in a game since Northport dominated the Eagles in a regular season game last year. 

DePompeo got whacked pretty hard on the goal and has to come out of the game.

Come to think of it, this also pretty reminiscent to the Garden City game in the LIC last year.

Rocky Point needs to get this deficit down before halftime to a manageable margin.

Sayville's Olivia Cabral gets whistled for a yellow with 6:15 to play.

7-2 Jessica Hassett storms down field to finally score for the Eagles with 1:07 to play and halt the Sayville momentum.

Nolan makes a huge save in the final 10 seconds on a free position to keep the score at 7-2. 

The key for Sayville that half was draw control. It's been a problem in the playoffs for Rocky Point in years past and it's currently an 8-2 advantage for the Golden Flashes. If that doesn't change dramatically in the second half, the Eagles are going home.

The good news is Rocky Point held Sayville scoreless the final 9:54 of the half so perhaps the Eagles have gotten their defense together. But the first half was the exact opposite of the regular season meeting between the teams. In that game DePompeo and O'Reilly never seemed to have the ball. This time the same can be said for Mupo and Ross for Rocky Point.

As the second half begins it'll be Aimee Capps on the draw for Rocky Point as the Eagles look the shake things up.

Gallo won the draw easily but the Flashes turned it over to start.

8-2 Theofield converts the free position and the Flashes are back in front by six with 21:23 left.

Another yellow on Rocky Point. This time it's Gargan.

8-3 Mazzeo scores the first second-half goal for Rocky Point with 15:58 to play.

Sayville wins yet another draw and regains possession.

Another yellow and this time it's on the Rocky Point coach. 

A shot by Mupo, her first in a long time is saved with under 13:00 to play.

Another yellow card by Rocky Point and now it's Ross with 10:29 to play.

8-4 Mazzeo scores and Rocky Point needs to win every draw from here on out. There's 8:12 to play.

The Eagles will try Gargan on the draw this time. Sayville wins it after a long run for a ground ball...

Now it's Haley Sachnez for Rocky Point with a yellow card. 

We're under 4 minutes to play and Sayville appears on its way to a county title.

8-5 Mercier scores to cut it to three with 3:05 to play.

Sayville will call a time-out, but with the way the Flashes have dominated the draws, it's hard to envision Rocky Point getting enough possessions to tie the game with so little time left. If they can win this draw, though, it could be an interesting finish.

Sayville wins the draw and sets up possession looking to kill clock.

Gargan gets another yellow, her second. She's done.

8-6: Hassett flies down field and skips a shot in to make it a two-goal game with :59.3 to play.

Sayville wins the draw again and the Flashes are moments away from wrapping it up.

Another yellow on Rocky Point and it's Tracey Wandle.

8-7 Capps scores from Ross with 4:0 to go but only four seconds remain!

Sayville hangs on and wins it 8-7 

It was the first county title in school history for the Sayville girls.

..................................................

Live here from Dowling College for the girls lacrosse county championships starting with Class C: Shoreham-Wading River vs. Mount Sinai.

The teams are both being announced to the crowd and we're moments away from the start. Shoreham is seeking its sixth straight county title and fourth straight against Mount Sinai.

The Cablevision TV crew is here, first time I can remember a television crew covering a game on Long Island. I guess it goes to show the growing popularity of girls lacrosse. So keep in mind to look out for the game on TV whenever it's available.

The opening draw is Erin Fitzgerald for Mount Sinai against Stephanie Anderson for Shoreham.

Brittany DeLea is opening the game guarding Fitzgerald. I'm sure she'll see a lot of different people on her throughout the game. Kaitlyn Brosco did a great job against Fitzgerald in the county finals last year.

But she couldn't stop Fitzgerald on her first shot as she scores to put Mount Sinai ahead 1-0 with 22:03 left.

1-1. Brosco comes in, immediately catches a feed from Chelsey Newman and scores with 20:10 left.

2-1 SWR. Anderson charges down the middle after the draw and scores unassisted. 

3-1 SWR. Anderson converts on a free position with 19:08 left. 

Shoreham is 4-1 on draws so far. If you can't win draws against the Wildcats, you don't win.

4-1 SWR. Newman from Rachel Wiederkehr and the Wildcats are cruising with 18:12 left. 

5-1 SWR. DeLea bangs in a free position with 12:33 left.

Mount Sinai is struggling winning draws and clearing. The ground balls are all going to Shoreham.

6-1 SWR. Anderson charges down the middle again and scores on a low shot to the right corner with 10:23 left. Mount Sinai calls its first time-out.

Mount Sinai wins the draw, its first in a long time and only second of the game.

Brosco just got called for a yellow card with 9:17 left.

7-1 SWR. Anderson converts again, this time from a feed behind the cage by Kate Boden with 5:53 left.

Fitzgerald scores her second on a free position to break a 7-0 run. But a stick violation has nullified the goal. Shoreham gets possession.

8-1 SWR. Brosco scores again, this time on  a feed from behind the cage from Jen DeVito, her first assist with 1:53 left.

9-1 SWR. Wiederkehr scores on a free position and the Wildcats are in full control with :39 left in the half.

9-2. Fitzgerald scores on a free position and this time it counts with :28 left.

At the end of the half it's all SWR, 9-2

As the rain falls here at Dowling, the second half begins with Anderson winning the draw for Shoreham. 

Mount Sinai has two yellow cards to open the second half.

10-2. DeVito scores on a feed from DeLea in transition with 20:04 to play.

10-3. Fitzgerald scores on a terrific move down the left side. She ripped a rocket to the low right corner with 19:25 left.

11-3. Brosco scores right off the draw on a feed from DeVito to quickly halt any Mount Sinai momentum.

12-3.  Wiederkehr converts a free position and now we're one goal away from running time with 16:03 left.

12-4. Fitzgerald scores her fourth with 14:38 left. It's Fitzgerald or nothing for Mount Sinai.

13-4. DeVito caught a great feed high from Anderson and whipped it low into the cage with 11:57 left.

13-5. The first goal for Mount Sinai other than from Fitzgerald is scored by Catie Faulkner with 10:55 left.

13-6. Danielle DellaRocca, an eighth-grader, scores on a free position with 9:45 left.

14-6. Anderson again scores as the Wildcats are 4:38 away from another title.

Fitzgerald gets a yellow with 2:37 left on a hit to Alyssa Fleming, who's down on the field.

15-6. DeVito scores in transition from Brosco with 2:19 left.

With the win Shoreham advances to play Manhasset, surprise, surprise, Saturday in the Long Island championship at Hofstra. It'll be the sixth straight meeting between the two schools with Shoreham holding a 3-2 edge.

The final from Dowling is SWR 15, Mount Sinai 6.