Tuckers girls lax squad takes step closer to county crown with win over Red Devils
With a spot in the Suffolk County Class D lacrosse final one step closer, the Mattituck/Greenport/Southold girls brought their A game against Center Moriches.
Actually, make it their A+ game.
After surrendering the opening goal, the Tuckers dominated the Red Devils en route to an impressive 19-6 triumph at Southold High School on Wednesday, May 21.
Head coach Logan McGinn could not have asked for a better performance.
“We are getting hot at the right time,” he said. “We’re winning, and now we’re firing on all cylinders. Our offense is fine, flying around, and we’re able to score from anywhere with anybody. And our defense has stepped up.
“We’ve come into the playoffs with the saying, ‘We are going to be undeniable.’ We want a county title. It’s not going to be denied from us. That is kind of the mentality we have. Every ground ball, every pass, we’re flying around and playing aggressively. It’s fun to see. It’s easy to coach.”
The Tuckers’ next challenge will be against defending champion Babylon — the team that defeated Mattituck in last year’s county final — at Smithtown West High on Saturday, May 31 at 9 a.m.
“I’m so excited,” said junior midfielder Gianna Calise, who finished with two goals, one assist and two key first-half interceptions. “Last year it didn’t go in our favor, but I really think this year we are ready. We’re prepared. If we play like how we know how to play, they’ll have nothing on us.”
Junior midfielder Page Kellershon paced the Tuckers (9-8) with six goals and two assists. She also played some tough defense with two ground balls and a couple of interceptions.
“Every game is her best game,” McGinn replied when asked about Kellershon’s performance. “Every time she steps on the field, she’s automatically one of the top kids. She was a top 100 Long Island player. She really is just next level. She is the ultimate team player. It’s hard not to root for a kid like that.”
Kellershon had plenty of help. Junior Claire McKenzie contributed four goals and three assists. Juniors Oliva Zehil added a hat-trick and Grace Quinn added a goal and five assists. Sophomores Reece McKenna, Victoria Winter and eight-grader Henley Tuthill had one goal each. Eight-grader Ellie McKenna added an assist as McGinn made sure every player saw action.
The game saw three big momentum shifts.
After Babylon attacker Payton Noack scored 1:54 into the game, Quinn equalized at 2:30 before goalie Piper Noack frustrated the hosts with several big saves. Standing behind the net, Quinn sent a high pass to McKenzie, who swooped it home. That happened twice within a 34-second span, the second goal at 6:55 to give the Tuckers a 3-1 lead they never relinquished.
“Grace and I always work on that in practice,” McKenzie said. “We’re best friends, so we have really great chemistry. I just cut right behind my defender when they’re not looking. Usually, the goalie is turned around. So, it’s really hard for them to catch me in time.”
The second moment came 30 seconds into the second quarter. Kellershon scored from close range off a McKenzie feed. After winning the ensuing face-off, Calise passed to Kellershon, who connected eight seconds later for a 6-2 advantage.
“That gave us a lot of momentum. It really amped us up,” Calise said. “A lot of the time, people think we’ll slow it down once we’re up a little bit. But that wasn’t the scenario today. I feel like it really just made us assured that we’re going do amazing for the rest of the game.”
The third moment came at 8:43 of the second period with the Tuckers holding a 9-4 lead and the Red Devils (8-9) trying to claw their way back. Babylon’s Noack attempted a penalty shot that sophomore goalie Emily Manwaring saved to stifle a potential momentum shift.
“It’s definitely a close shot, so it’s a little weird sometimes and scary, but if I just put my body to it, I’m fine,” said Manwaring, who made six saves.
“We all love seeing Emily make saves, and especially in those big moments,” Kellershon said. “Seeing Emily, a new goalie, step up definitely gave us all motivation to step up and make those big-time plays.”
Mattituck’s defense was relentless. It’s back four of Aly De La Noval, Ruby Villani, McKenna Clark and Madison Smith and several late-game substitutes blanked Center Moriches through the final stanza.
Clark limited Noack (51 goals, 19 assists) to a pair of goals and one assist.
“I’m so proud of each and every one of them,” Calise said. “From McKenna face-guarding on number seven, it was amazing.”
