Sachem North Lacrosse Survives Wild End, Advances to County Semis

A flurry of goals late in the fourth quarter made for some nervous stomachs, but the defense buckled down and the Sachem North boys lacrosse team hung on to secure an 11-10 victory over the Bay Shore Marauders in Tuesday's Class A Quarterfinals at home.

It was a fitting end for a North team that led with its defense all game long, repelling Bay Shore’s attack, holding them to the perimeters of the restraining box, and allowing only one goal each in the second and third quarters. Goalie John Quinn finished the game with 12 saves on the day.

“The kids did a great job defensively,” Flaming Arrows coach Jay Mauro said. “They limited the turnovers, they communicated with each other well, and they kept clearing the ball well.”

Senior midfielder Cody Petillo led Sachem North’s offense, scoring four goals, one of them on a heads-up play, scooping up a loose ball while Bay Shore was in transition, and racing to the net for a one-on-one with goalie Aaron Lewis. Senior attack Kyle Rhatigan notched two goals as well, including what proved to be the game-winner: the only Sachem North goal of a Bay Shore-dominated final quarter.

Down 10-5, the Marauders came storming back in the final 12 minutes, led by senior Griffin Rock, who notched three of his six goals in the last quarter, and assisted in a fourth goal that got Bay Shore within two with just minutes to play.

Bay Shore, hoping to dish out a little payback after losing in the final seconds to Sachem North earlier this month, had possession of the ball with six seconds to go, but was denied when the potentially tying shot went wide left. For Bay Shore head coach Tim Cox, the end of his team’s season was a case of bad déjà vu.

“That’s the way it was last time,” Cox said. “We didn’t expect anything different. We battled all day, and kept battling. Coming back is nothing new to us, but earlier in the game, our shots didn’t fall and theirs did, and that’s the difference.”

Also scoring for Sachem North was Eric Talbot with two goals. Joseph Caridi, Shawn Murphy, and defenseman Corey Gamblin had one goal each. The unsung star of the offense came from the stick of Jack Gannon, who had four assists on the day.

“It was a great team win, a great team effort,” coach Mauro said. “The kids dug in and played hard, played focused, and they did a good job.”

The Flaming Arrows will take on the No. 1 seeded West Islip Lions at West Islip High School on Friday at 4 p.m. for a ticket to the Suffolk County finals.