Springtime is right around the corner and high school teams across Long Island are preparing for the 2023 season. As we look ahead to another year of lacrosse, there are plenty of competitive teams looking to make a name for themselves in the new season. Are you looking to catch up on everything you need to know for some of the teams across the Island? Well, we’ve got you covered. Here is part one featuring 14 teams to watch going into the upcoming season!
Commack Cougars
Beginning with Suffolk County, the Commack Cougars finished the 2022 season as the sixth seed with a record of 10-6 and were eliminated after a loss in the first round of playoffs. First-year Varsity Head Coach, Jason Fluger, called this year’s team a group of “gritty athletes” looking for a chance to compete in Division I Lacrosse. The squad has some key losses from the ‘22 season in Jay LaMay, Tristan McMahon, Chris Catusco and Christian Baldi; however, all key losses go hand-in-hand with key returners including Ethan Dalland (Attack), Brandon Berozi (Attack), Cameron Clark (Midfield), Mike McClain (Midfield) and James Pagano (Midfield). Keep an eye out on Sophomore Attack, Zach Fishman as he could be in for some quality playing time, according to Coach Fluger.
Hauppauge Eagles
Transitioning east, Hauppauge High School ended the 2022 season at 7-9 missing the playoffs. The Eagles are sure to be looking for a rebound year and with eight of their starters returning in 2023, the chemistry from last season’s team will carry into this year. Team leading point and goal scorer, Steven Dezelic won’t be returning this season, but there is plenty of talent coming back with Joe Valenza (Captain, LSM), Jojo Provenzano (Captain, Defenseman), Frank Pagnotta (Captain, Midfield), Grant Faber (Captain, Attack), Nick Uzakewicz (Attack), Kole Lemke (Attack), Cole Orehosky (Goalie), Rob Gennari (Fogo) and Nick Kump (Midfielder). This season’s player to watch for Hauppauge is Sophomore Nick Kump, an explosive two-way midfielder that’s looking to create an impact on the field.
Elwood-John Glenn High School Knights
Next up on our preview features John Glenn High School, which concluded the 2022 season with a 5-11 record ultimately missing the playoffs for the third consecutive season. The 2023 Knights however are ready to make some noise.
“I think we built a solid foundation last year and came out and competed in almost every game,” Second-year Head Coach, Sean Collins told the Long Island Lacrosse Journal. “If each game ended at halftime we would have been 10-6. The challenge this year is to be able to do that for four quarters. The team is fired up for this season because we saw how close we were to a breakthrough.”
With Chris Franzese (Attack), Matt Triolo (Midfield), Brady Madden (Midfield), Cole Madden (Midfield) and Sean Faraci (Defense) returning, the Knights are looking to achieve their first playoff berth since 2019. Some young guns on this season’s roster include Freshman Jake Piacentini (Midfield) and eighth grader Grayden Aebisher (Midfield).
Miller Place Panthers
Miller Place is next up on the list and they ended their season at 10-6 while losing in the first round of the playoffs. Miller Place is looking to pick up where it left off with another strong season this spring, but Head Coach Nick Belvedere noted that it’s going to be important to see how the returning players develop chemistry with the new positions that are to be filled. Some of those returning players are headlined by Joe’ll Spagnuolo (LSM), Robbie Cunningham (Midfield), Nick Oliva (Midfield) and Matthew Petrie (Defense). However, the team lost many key players including Anthony Bartolotto, Max Weisman, Devon Duchnowski, Kenny Leen and James Sternberg. Some of the up-and-coming guys include Jackson Thompson (Attack), Braeden Murphy (Midfield) and Cameron Golding (Defense). It will for sure be interesting to see how Miller Place adjusts this coming season.
Patchogue-Medford Raiders
Up next, the Patchogue-Medford Raiders made the playoffs in 2022 with an 8-8 record. The team lost Jacob Feldman (Goalie), but they are looking to repeat the same fortune this spring with key returners Zachary Maggiacomo (Defense) and Dylan Ruland (Attack) leading the team.
Riverhead Blue Waves
Looking over at Riverhead, the team ended the 2022 season with a 5-11 record and missed the playoffs. After some key losses with Ryken Kutner and Danny Squiresead, Head Coach Vic Guadagnino is optimistic about this coming season.
“Hopefully we continue to improve even with the large exodus of players from our school district,” Guadagnino said to LILJ. “We have a solid Junior class.”
Coach Guadagnino will be looking at Captains Danny Healy (Defense) and Griffin Sumwalt (Attack) to lead the team to a strong season. Keep an eye out on young guns Nathan Nentwich and Kevin Qualey (Defense) this Spring.
Sachem North Flaming Arrows
Next up is Sachem North. They finished last season at 8-6 (regular season) and 9-9 (playoffs). They beat rival Sachem East in the first round by a final score of 10-8 and are looking to follow suit this Spring. Coach Anthony Muratore described his team as a “very tight-knit group” and has several key players returning with Nick Meoni (Midfield), James Reid (Attack), Cody Shur (Attack), Shane Marconti (Attack) and Alex Singh (Defense), though they will be without Alex Pfeiffer (Midfield), AJ Martino (Attack) and Nick Naccarato (Attack). Nevertheless, Sachem North is ready to get back on the field this Spring.
West Babylon Eagles
Heading out to West Babylon High School, the Eagles are looking to make their first playoff push since 2018. Overall, they finished last season with an 8-8 record just barely missing the playoffs by one spot, but the team is looking to expand this coming season. They did lose some key players like Colin Reese (Midfielder), Blake Reese (FOGO), Andrew Collora (Goalie) and Brenden Barnes (Defense), but will be seeing key returns and Head Coach Marcelo Sandoval is excited about this season’s group of guys.
“The 2023 West Babylon Varsity will be returning some key offensive players,” Sandoval said to LILJ. “We will be very strong defensively. Many of the young players played vital roles and will be relied on to lead the team along with the core of seniors. We’re very excited about the upcoming season and hope to make a playoff run.”
Returning players include Drew McKittrick (Midfielder), Brandon Lee (Captain, Midfielder), Anthony Raccomandato (Captain, Defenseman), Chris Graham (LSM), Thomas Raccomandato (Captain, Attackman), CJ Apuzzo (Captain, Defenseman), Liam Henshaw (Midfielder) and Nick Serrano (SSDM). Make sure to look out for Sophomore Matt Mills (Midfielder), Freshman Andrew Bothe (Midfielder) and Sophomore Nolan Graham (FOGO) to possibly make a strong impact on the field this season.
New Hyde Park Gladiators
Next on our preview list is the New Hyde Park Gladiators. The Gladiators finished last Spring at an 8-8 record missing the playoffs. Head Coach, Michael Milio said the team has a great group of guys back this year to continue building on last year. Some of those players coming back are Aidan Garvey (Attack), Nicholas Rios (Attack), Peter Lener (Attack), Walter Reyes (LSM) and Anthony LaSala (Defense). With Garvey and Rios previously being All-County players, the team should only get better in 2023. Watch out for young guns Nicholas Garofalo and Logan Hargrove to make a quick impact this year with their first year on Varsity.
North Shore Vikings
Next, we will highlight the North Shore Vikings as they are hungry for a rebound season after a 5-11 record. Head Coach, John Pace says the team is working hard and ready for the season.
“We are excited after seeing the work the guys put in during the preseason,” Pace told LILJ. “We are looking for that to carry over into the Spring.”
Though the team lost its third-leading goal scorer from 2022 in Will Feldmann, the team is getting another crack at it with Jack Kaufman, Matthew D’Aversa, Sawyer DeSeve, Athanasios Alafogiannis and Cole Gibstein. Look out for the Vikings to be poised for a playoff run this Spring.
Oyster Bay Baymen
The Oyster Bay Baymen is next on our list and they have an interesting season coming up this Spring. After a 3-12 record in 2022, it is sure that the Bayman are looking for a bounce-back year.
“We started nine freshmen or sophomores last season,” Head Coach, Brian Soper said to LILJ. “We are hoping that the experience gained last year will allow us to take the next step as a program. There is renewed energy inside the program. We will have strong leadership returning and hope it will translate into more wins with a very competitive schedule.”
Some of that leadership returning includes Jake Macri (Captain, Midfield), Oliver Pytell (Midfield), Jagger Romano (Attack), Joe Gotti (Attack) Chris Lingen (Defense), Joe Sapienza (Defense), Jackson Kelly (Defense) and Mike Olivero (Defense). And that leadership will come in handy for eighth grader, Peter Sapienza (Attack), as he’ll get a taste of higher competition early.
“The success of Oyster Bay will be based on health and the ability to gain more offensive possessions,” Soper added. “We will be looking for more and more ways to generate offense, especially off the ride.”
Port Washington Vikings
Next, we have the Port Washington Vikings, which won its first county championship in 27 years last season following a strong 13-4 record. The Vikings are looking to repeat with another county championship this season and an LIC appearance, but they will be missing many key players this time around. Those not returning include Henry Haberman, Ben Krefetz, Gavin Jacobsen, Andy Feinstein, Anthony Bellomo, Matt Freeman, Bradley Hamroff and Gavin Duran. Despite losing many key players, the Vikings will return with Luke Meyer (Attack/Midfield), John McCarthy (Midfield), Matt Hillman (Defense), Stamati Gargas (Defense) and Cal Gober (Midfield).
“We are excited to get back on the field,” Head Coach, Isaac Neal said. “The keys to success will be establishing new roles on a new roster and developing our identity.”
Some players to look out for feature Joe and Steve Braunschweiger, Jack Marcus, and Chase Pastolove. We’ll see if the Vikings can repeat another great season despite having a revamped roster.
Wheatley/Carle Place
The next team we are highlighting is Wheatley/Carle Place. They finished last season at 8-7 and are a considerably younger team this season. Head Coach Paul Selhorn, said the team consists of sophomores and juniors with lots of athleticism and knowledge of the game. The team will see a return with the likes of Nick Pascarella (Midfield/Attack), James Demakopoulos (Goalie), JJ Gagliardo (LPM), Black Lyons (Midfield) and Anthony Terrone (Defense). With the team’s last playoff appearance in 2021, they are poised to make a return to the stage this season.
Kellenberg Firebirds
The final boy’s preview on this list features the Kellenberg Firebirds. They ended their season with a final record of 8-10 in 2022, and with a new coaching staff on the scene, Kellenberg is a team to keep an eye on this Spring.
“The coaching staff is excited about this year,” Head Coach, Kevin Fechtmann said. “We have a lot of new eager players getting involved on the offensive side of the ball while the defense returns most of our core players. Our biggest key to success is to limit momentum swings, which hurt us last year down the stretch.”
There will be some key players returning to the field this season with Owen Fitzgerald (All-League, Defense), Chris Moore (Defense), Owen McDevitt (Defense), Nick Johnson (Defense), Charlie Villa (All-League, Goalie) Michael Felicetti (Attack), James Lavarra (Attack), Jack Madson (Attack), Mike Anzelone (Midfield), Jake Grimm (Midfield), Peter Sluka (Midfield), Michael McQuaid (Midfield) and James Rosellon (FOGO). The team already has some strong talent and will have several young guns on this year’s team with Maverick Chernoff (Attack/Midfield), Jack Crotty (Attack/Midfield), Cody McClean (Attack/Midfield), Thomas Jack (Attack/Midfield) and Sean Richards (Defense). Under this new coaching and strong group of players, look for the Firebirds to do some damage in 2023.
Across the 14 different teams that we highlighted, all are getting ready for another competitive season in 2023 as some look to showcase their talent for this season and beyond. Make sure to keep up with LILJ’s coverage all season long with all the information you’ll need to stay up-to-date with these teams. Good luck to everyone as they embark on yet another great season for Long Island Lacrosse!
You guys should check out Lynbrook this year. Squad has some quality players. Srs. Fagan and Dantona leading returners at middie, Lunati in goal, O’Brien on defense. Jrs Capitali at attack, Hendrickson and O’Doherty at middie and back up goalie Lung. Team might surprise