East Lax Sent Packing In Class A First Round

With each lost face-off, the Sachem East boys lacrosse team lost ground. When it lost possession, it lost even more. On another day, the Arrows might have been able to stay stride for stride with No. 7 Smithtown East, but as each side vied for a spot in the Suffolk County Class A quarterfinals, the underdogs simply weren't as sharp as it needed to be against the higher-seeded club.

The Bulls seized advantage with a seven-goal second quarter that all but sealed the 10th seed's fate. Sean Dwyer and Ryan DeSimone each notched hat tricks for the host squad, and their efforts helped Smithtown coast to a 13-4 first-round victory at Nicholas Schroeder Field.

Smithtown East (10-7) advances to face Ward Melville in the quarterfinals on Tuesday (4:30 p.m.). The Patriots (14-2) received the second seed and a first-round bye in the playoffs. Sachem, on the other hand, watched its season conclude at 9-8, the playoff berth still showing signs of considerable progress at East.

"We were the 13 seed coming into the season and made it to 10," Arrows head coach Rob Murphy said. "We did better than expected. The kids played hard. They gave us a lot. Sometimes it works out; sometimes it doesn't work out."

The Bulls' lead was just 5-3 when the wheels began to come off for Sachem. Sean Dwyer and Adam Hull scored just 18 seconds apart to push the advantage to four. The real dagger came with just over two minutes remaining as Smithtown ran off three goals in 21 seconds to make it 10-3 with 2:12 left in the period.

The challenge then for Murphy was not just to find ways to close the gap, but get his side to believe that it could.

"We didn't play hard in the second quarter," Murphy said. "That's not how we're used to playing. I told the team that it would turn really ugly if we didn't wake up, and they came out fired up again."

Sachem was able to keep the hosts off the board for 10 minutes in the third, but the Bulls nevertheless added to their lead. The Arrows' first goal of the second half didn't come until 1:34 remained in the game, as Walsh snuck in and scored his third goal of the day just outside the crease.

The Arrows, making their first playoff appearance since 2007 when they were ousted by Smithtown East in the quarters, put together the kind of first quarter that suggested that they could avenge that defeat as well as the 15-5 loss at the same site just three weeks before. Walsh's laser at the 6:28 mark knotted the score at 1, and after Smithtown went back ahead, Garrett Smith dodged left and fired a bullet past Bryan Martin to make it 2-2. However, a Sachem goal with one second remaining – "we just weren't paying attention," Murphy said – provided the Bulls with momentum that carried over into the second half.

"They have good sticks and move the ball well," Murphy said of Smithtown East. "They possess it and work for their shots. They kept us playing defense for a long time."

Eric Martin also found the scorebook for Sachem, assisting on the first of Walsh's two goals. Craig Goodermote and Dan Grebe combined for nine saves, while Anthony Vaccaro led the Arrows with seven groundballs. Dwyer and Ryan DeSimone led the charge for Smithtown with three goals apiece.