Lady Cyclones Lax Loses to Wantagh on Senior Day, 12-9

On a day that the community gathered to celebrate the South Side girls lacrosse senior class, the Lady Cyclones fell to Wantagh, 12-9. 

Senior Jackie Cifarelli finished with a hat trick and two assists for South Side during Friday's Senior Day, but Wantagh senior captain Paula Schmidt led the Warriors with five goals and an assist.

South Side head coach Meagan Healey said she knew it would be tough for her team to contain Schmidt, who is one of the most talented attack players they have faced this season.

“They have some excellent players, and [Schmidt] is definitely one of them,” she said. “We tried to contain her, but she did a good job with our doubles and slides.”

Wantagh controlled the game from the beginning, winning 14 of 21 face-offs and dominating the game's time of possession. The Warriors put three balls in the cage in the first 13:04, which prompted Healey to call a timeout to slow down the Warriors attack.

Wantagh coach Bobbi Colavita said their strategy was to control the game's pace and wait for an opening in South Side's defense.

“We had to worry about possession of the game and controlling the pace," she said. "We were a little stronger and faster, and just tried to keep it away from them. We tried to concentrate and move the ball, and we waited for the defense to slip.”

South Side went on an offensive run after the timeout as Cifarelli scored on a fast-break and Micheala Lynch added two goals of her own to tie the game at 3. That was as close as South Side would get to taking the lead. Wantagh responded with two goals in the final minute to give them a three-goal edge at 6-3.

“We were able to play with one of the top-ranked teams in the whole state,” Healey said. “This game is going to build confidence for the kids, knowing that they can play with these teams. If we see them again in the playoffs, we’ll be ready.”

South Side had too many unforced errors in the second half, which led to several scoring chances for Wantagh against senior Lady Cyclones goalie Kelsey Gregerson, who finished with eight saves on 22 shots.

“Our first three possessions in the second half, we got down in their end but we couldn’t get any shots off,” Healey said. “We were a little unfocused, and that was the big difference in this one.  It’s hard enough when they do it to you, but when it’s your own errors; it just makes it even more difficult. In a close game like this, our unforced errors were the difference.”

Though the the game ended on a sour note, the team's seniors  – Dana Ahern, Leah Beaudet, Cifarelli, Emily Considine, Lizzie Cozier, Beth Gidicsin, Gregerson, Brianna McNally – were celebrated as a group for their achievements on a day dedicated to their four years at South Side.

“It was great to see the seniors honored, and most of them have been with us for four years.  It’s great that we can bring the young kids from Rockville Centre youth lacrosse together with the high school seniors at the top,” Healey said. “These kids were great leaders and role models. I think the underclassmen learned a lot from them, and their efforts this year is going to help this team going forward.”