Lynbrook Defeats Hewlett, 11-3

Three players had hat tricks for host Lynbrook (2-2)as the Owls rolled to an 11-3 victory over Conference III rival Hewlett (2-1) on Wednesday at .

Owls' attack-man Anthony Rainone, attack-man Steven Marrandino, and midfielder Luke Spitzer combined for nine of Lynbrook's 11 goals, and Lynbrook goaltender Ethan Mirenberg stopped 12 of 15 shots.

Lynbrook had suffered a heartbreaking , and coach Bill Leighley said he thinks his players used it as motivation to beat up on their cross-border rivals.

"The energy was different," he said. "We just decided to put a chip on our shoulder … and this is just a big rivalry. The kids may gotten up a little more for this game than they did against Long Beach. It's a big rivalry, and we love that it is."

Hewlett actually controlled the ball for much of the 1st quarter, but Lynbrook's defense was on point, keeping the Bulldogs away from the front of the net.

Hewlett did break through once in the first quarter, taking a 1-0 lead with 2:23 remaining as Zach Richman found a wide-open Josh Rivin in front. But Hewlett didn't score again until six minutes into the third quarter. By that time, Lynbrook had already scored eight goals of its own, powered by two goals apiece from Marrandino, Spitzer and Palmine.

Hewlett coach Chris Passuello said he was disappointed with his team's effort.

"We didn't play well at all — we got out-toughed, out-ground balled," he said. "I'm disappointed because I think we're better than that. We gotta move forward, and we still got a lot to play."

Leighley, who had been splitting playing time among Mirenberg and his other goaltender, Jake Siciliano, decided to play one — Mirenberg — for the first time this season, citing a desire to remain consistent. He wasn't disappointed.

"I'm going to give two game balls out — one to [Mirenberg] and one to the other goalie — because the energy the other goalie was sending from the sidelines was just spectacular," Leighley said.

Lynbrook travels to Bethpage on Saturday at 11 a.m. Hewlett will host Holy Trinity on Saturday at 7 p.m.