Lions Defend Turf, Move On To County Championship

The West Islip Lions took care of business Friday and defeated the Connetquot Thunderbirds 13-9 to advance to the Suffolk County Class A finals. It was yet another step forward for the Lions, who are seeking consecutive state titles.

Friday's semifinal matchup featured a physical first half with both teams eager to take the early lead. Junior midfielder Mike Sagl stepped up for the Lions and netted three goals before the end of the first half.

"We executed the offense very well in the first half," said Sagl.

The Lions offense was running on all cylinders early when All-American attackman Nicky Galasso threaded a beautiful pass through the Thunderbirds defense to set up senior Matt Gebhardt for an easy goal.

With 5:30 remaining in the first half, West Islip senior midfielder Rob Moore showed off his athletic ability when he netted a lefty goal in the bottom corner of the net. A few minutes later, he would strike again, this time with a bounce shot.

During halftime, Lions coach Scott Craig offered some words of encouragement to his players along the sideline. Craig's advice seemed to pay off in the second half as senior midfielder Andrew Hodgson recorded two goals for the Lions in the third quarter. 

Connetquot would not go down without a fight. The Thunderbirds would score three straight goals in just over two minutes to cut the Lions lead to 11-9. But, the Lions offense would respond when Moore assisted Galasso to turn the momentum back in West Islip's favor. Junior attackman Drew Federico secured the Lions victory with three minutes left when he connected with a goal.

The Lions had six different players record goals in the last home game at West Islip High School for the 2010 season. "Balanced scoring helps a lot," Hodgson said after the game. "Certain players excel in goal scoring and others with assists."

West Islip will play for the county title on June 3 at 8 p.m. at Stony Brook University against second-ranked Ward Melville.

Despite the win, coach Craig feels the Lions are capable of better play. "Offensively, I thought we played decent, but not great. We turned ball over way to much. Defensively, I thought we played one of the poorer games we played this year. We weren't crisp today really on either end of the field," he said. "When we had open shots, we didn't shoot badly, but we just threw the ball away too much."

With games from here on out in neutral locations, West Islip seniors have played their final game at their home school. "Playing in West Islip, there's nothing better," Moore said.