Girls Lacrosse Beats Eastport-South Manor, 11-8, In Overtime

The Hauppauge girls lacrosse team will advance to the Suffolk County Class B championship after narrowly beating Eastport-South Manor, 11-9, in overtime on Tuesday evening.

The Lady Eagles watched their first half lead, 5-3, be obliterated by Eastport's offense minutes into the second half. Eastport attackers Dene' DiMartino and Lisa Terry scored back-to-back goals in less than 30 seconds to tie the game at 5.

Hauppauge was forced to play down one man after receiving three yellow cards in the first half.

The Lady Eagles faced an uphill battle to remain in the game. The lead bounced back and forth until Hauppauge was down, 8-7, with less than five minutes remaining.

It appeared that Eastport-South Manor was going to upset No. 1 Hauppauge after the Lady Eagles missed two foul shots, and Eastport's goalkeeper saved a shot from Hauppauge senior attacker Jen Porretto. 

"Our girls played unreal, even [the Hauppauge] coach said we outplayed them," said Eastport-South Manor head coach Becky Thorn. "Our mistakes killed us. We are a very young team, so it's something to build on."

The Heroes: Hauppauge attacker Lindsay Alfano scored, assisted by Lauren Descalzo, with 28.3 seconds left in the second half to tie the score at 8 and force the match into overtime.

Porretto scored a goal less than a minute into the first overtime period to put Hauppauge ahead of Eastport, 9-8. She scored two goals in overtime to seal Hauppauge's victory.

Alfano led Hauppauge's offense in the victory scoring three goals and making one assist on Tuesday. Porretto and Taylor Ranfle both scored two goals and made two assists.

The Quote: "My honest opinion is this is the first time we have been challenged all season," said Hauppauge head coach Abigail Zetlmann. "All I can say of my girls is they have the hearts of champions."

The Bottom Line: Eastport-South Manor gave the Hauppauge girls lacrosse team a run for their money on Tuesday afternoon, nearly eliminating the undefeated Lady Eagles from playoffs after previously falling to them 13-1 on March 30. The near loss sent served as wake-up call for Hauppauge as they head into the county playoffs.

Key Stat: Eastport-South Manor goalkeeper Sam Giacolone, an eighth-grader, made 16 saves in Tuesday's game.

Who's Next? The Lady Eagles will compete in the finals of the Suffolk County Class B Championships against the winner of the Sayville vs. Shoreham-Wading River match on June 2 at the Dowling Sports Complex at 5:30 p.m.

Box Score: