The Wildcats won 11-10 on a goal by Kaitlyn Brosco, assisted by Kaitlin Rochler, with 45 seconds left in second overtime.
A real big win for the Wildcats and their first against Rocky Point since what was the small school championship in '05. This takes any pressure off the undefeated Wildcats heading into Saturday's game against defending state champion Garden City.
As for Rocky Point, well, this is the team's second loss of the season. Both have come by one goal. The Eagles also fell to Farmingdale.
That stat that really jumps out in this one is the saves. SWR's Michelle Verbeeck: 11. RP's Brianne LoManto: 6. Coach Bob Vlahakis has rotated goalies in all season, but in a tight contest against a very talented team, he stuck with Verbeeck throughout and she delivered. Verbeeck may not be as well-known as LoManto, especially since she rarely plays a full game, but in a big game, this girl seems to come through. We saw it last year in the state championship run and it looks like come playoff time, Verbeeck will be the goalie Vlahakis turns to.
We'll see now if Vlahakis sticks with her Saturday against Garden City. This is a test on a whole other level. Garden City is 3-0 lifetime against Shoreham, but every game has been close.
Rocky Point will need to rebound against Northport Saturday and prove it can beat a top-notch team. Northport is ranked third in the state on the laxpower.com rankings, below only West Genesee and Garden City. For the Eagles, though, maybe these few losses are a good thing. After all, they were 19-0 the past two years going into the LI title game. Maybe this year, with a couple losses, it'll be the year they can win it. Things work out funny that way sometimes.
If the Wildcats can in fact get past Garden City Saturday, the potential is there for them to run the table. If they're looking for a way to top last year's state title, well, that would be it. Of course, getting past Garden City is something no team the past few years has figured out how to do.
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