Nyack Boys Lacrosse Preview

The Top Spot:

Last year the Nyack Indians and Head Coach Eamon DePeter enjoyed a very successful year. The team finished the year 13-4 and went undefeated in league play winning League IV-B. The team also did well close to home as Nyack went 7-2 against Rockland County Teams.

Patch recently caught up with Coach DePeter to discuss this year’s lacrosse season.

As far as age and, more importantly experience goes, what type of team do you expect to have this season?

“We graduated 16 seniors last year. We have only 7 returning varsity players (3 seniors, 4 juniors).  We have a large number of Juniors and first year playing seniors. (We have 6 players who have never played before.)”

What were some of the weaknesses your team had last year that you hope to improve upon this season?

“Our defense was good but not very aggressive.  We are looking to utilize our athletic ability to be more aggressive on defense and hopefully create many turnovers.

We would also like to improve our extra man offense productivity.”

Who are some of your returning players coming back who you see being big contributors?

“Chris Woodburn (Junior) will be starting his third consecutive year at close defense.  Peter Turner (Junior) will look to play more close defense this year.  Kevin Nugent (Senior) and Zach Soriano (Junior) both team captains, will have to pick up the slack from a very dominant first line offensive midfield unit that graduated last year.  Brennen Ramos (Junior) will lead the attack.”

Who are some of your new players you are expecting to thrust into a larger role on the team?

“Max Sprauer (Junior) is a big, strong dodging midfielder.  Andrew Quigley (Junior) and Daniel Minunni (Junior) will be playing a large role on our first line attack unit.  Kessler Felix (Junior) and Frank Blum (Junior) will be picking up the face off duties.”

How has the team been preparing in the off-season?

“The players have done a lot of work on their own in the offseason.  There is a very driven core group of guys who love to play and have been playing together for many years.  We have had a few new players who have never played before come out for the first time.  They are mainly football players who I think will help our defensive unit and add the extra aggressiveness to help us get ground balls.”

What are your goals for the season as a team?

“Our goals every year are to win our league, be the top team in Rockland County, win at least 10 games and have a great time playing in all of them.”

Are there one or two games circled on the schedule this season?

“Every County game is very important (an early test vs. Suffern on 4/2 at 7pm @ Suffern, Clarkstown South is always a tough, good game-last few years has been settled by 1 goal, and TZ has become a big rivalry within our league.)”

What are you personally looking forward to this season?

“I am looking forward to seeing the first line midfield unit and attack unit mesh into a powerful scoring force (5 juniors and 1 senior).  I am looking to see how fast our new guys can pick up the game and how fast our defense can be.  I am looking forward to seeing 24 guys come together as a team by playing hard, pushing each other and having fun.”

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College Sports Notebook:

Suffern’s Steinberg Sizzles at Rutgers

The Rutgers University women’s lacrosse team, coming of a 13-7 victory over Monmouth, will play three of the next four games at home, starting with Saint Joseph’s on Wednesday night.

Game time is set for 7 p.m. at the RU Turf Field inside the Stadium Complex in Piscataway, NJ. It will be the first home game under the lights for the Scarlet Knights.

Rutgers reached the .500 level at 3-3 following the victory over the Hawks (1-6), a game in which senior midfielder Ali Steinberg of Suffern had a career day with five goals and two assists.

Annie McGinley of Moorestown, NJ, aided the effort of the Scarlet Knights (3-3) with three goals and one assist. For Steinberg, it marked the 10th hat trick of her career, including fourth this season.

Seven Scarlet Knights posted at least a point, with five scoring at least one goal, in another solid team effort. The Hawks (1-6) were led by Sam Lillo of Short Hills, NJ, with three scores.

Junior goalie Lily Kalata of Nesconset earned the win with nine saves, while junior Aimee Chotikul of Baltimore, MD, also saw action in the net for the Scarlet Knights.

Mortarboard musings

• Joe Clinton, athletics director at Dominican College, has announced that assistant coach Colin Hodge has been named to replace head coach John Campbell, who resigned last month after seven years at the helm. Hodge, who was a two-year starting defender for the Chargers and was an assistant coach the last four seasons, currently coaches U-10 and U-13 Boys teams in the Clarkstown Soccer Club.

• The Manhattan College baseball team, coming off a 13-11 victory over Big East member West Virginia in Morgantown, W.VA, welcomes Hofstra on Wednesday at 3 p.m. in the Jaspers’ home opener at Van Cortlandt Park in Riverdale. Senior reliever Taylor Sewitt of Highland Mills earned his second win of the season.

• After picking up two wins and leading the Manhattanville College softball team to a victory over nationally ranked Coast Guard, junior Katie Pitcher of Cold Spring was honored as the Freedom Conference pitcher of the week.

• The Dominican College baseball team (3-11), coming off a split at Wilmington University, meets Nyack College in a doubleheader today at 3 p.m. at Provident Bank Park (PBP) in Pomona. The Chargers then challenge another local rival, St. Thomas Aquinas College, in a single game on Wednesday at PBP at 3 p.m.

• Senior Kevin Earlie of Moriches, who went the distance as the Nyack College baseball team (7-6) defeated St. Michael’s College, 12-0, was named Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference pitcher of the week. Earlie picked up his fourth win at the Palm Beach Challenge in Lake Worth, FL.

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Weekly Sports Poll:

This week, the Daily Sports Digest Weekly Poll looks at the New York Knicks and the . Tell us if you would like to see John Calipari, Phil Jackson, Jerry Sloan, Mike Woodson or someone else on the bench next year and feel free to add your comments to an already lively debate.

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