Coming into the 2022 season the West Babylon Lady Eagles are ranked 14th in the LILJ preseason rankings. They were 10-4 and are the reigning Suffolk Class B champions but came up short in the LIC where they were defeated by Garden City. This season will be about trying to defend their county title and come away victorious in the LIC. West Babylon has made the playoffs 13 consecutive years, and Head Coach Colleen Kilgus will be looking to make it 14.
Their offense will be quarterbacked by junior All-County midfielder Lacey Downey (BC) who is one of the most elite players on Long Island. Last season she recorded 109 points which was by far the most points out of any female player. She scored 61 goals and dished out 48 assists. Her 31 ground balls also led the team. Downey also got it done on the defensive end, causing 15 turnovers. Her talent allows her single-handedly keep her team in a game. Emma Blloshmi (Ohio State) is also returning to the midfield unit this season. The offense scored double digit goals 11 times last season and averaged just under 11 goals per game. Maddie Hoisik was only a freshman last year and was the starting goalie. With a year of varsity experience under her belt look for her to have a strong sophomore season.
The team will be without key players that played a huge role in their success last year. Alyssa Apuzzo, Ellie Downey, and Marisa Moran combined for 102 points last season. Midfielders Tara Henshaw and Olivia Vergano totaled 48 points and 32 ground balls. The absence of these players on offensive end will certainly be felt this season.
West Babylon will play a lot of significant games this season against some of the top ranked teams in Suffolk as well as some elite teams in Nassau. Here are the notable matchups that West Babylon has on their schedule.
West Babylon @ Massapequa (3/25)
SWR @ West Babylon (3/29)
West Babylon @ Mt. Sinai (4/1)
West Babylon @ Rocky Point (4/9)
Sayville @ West Babylon (4/12)
Wantagh @ West Babylon (4/14)
Bayport @ West Babylon (4/19)
West Babylon @ Comsewogue (4/22)
West Babylon @ Westhampton (4/25)
ESM @ West Babylon (4/28)
Throughout the years West Babylon has seen a number of players come up through their program that went on to have outstanding collegiate careers. Shannon Smith was in the class of 2008 and holds the state record for goals (505) and points (729). She played collegiately at Northwestern and is currently the women’s head coach at Hofstra. Alyssa Murray (Syracuse) graduated from West Babylon in 2010 is the state record holder for assists (279). Sam Apuzzo was in the class of 2015 and was a two-time U.S. Lacrosse All-American, scoring 375 career goals before playing collegiately at Boston College. Christina Esposito (Northwestern) was a 2012 graduate and a two-time All-American. Samantha Geiersbach (Richmond) graduated in 2016 and was a two-time Under Armor All-American. Emily and Hannah Heller graduated in 2019 and are both current collegiate athletes. Emily plays at Florida while Hannah plays at UMass. Kayla Downey currently plays at Coastal Carolina and graduated in 2019 as a three-time All-County and a two-time MVP.
Boot camps, bowling, and a whole load of other physical activities may be on the list for team building. One of my workshop participants told me that her husband dreaded their annual team building event because it involved all kinds of physical competitions, and he used a wheelchair.