Making the top five of our top 20 teams to start the season are the Garden City Trojans who aim to defend their Class B New York State Championship. They are one of Long Island’s most decorated programs with such a rich history and they come back this year looking to add to the legacy of this program. Head Coach Steve Finnell who has been at the helm since 2007 says that they have several experienced players returning that were a part of their success in both 2021 and 2022.
Taking a look at two of their most prolific players, the offense will be bolstered by senior midfielders Stevie Finnell and Jack Archer. Finnell the soon to be Duke Blue Devil will certainly have the ball in his stick a lot this season and will be quite a handful for the opposition. Archer the senior heading to LeHigh had a standout junior season, scoring 34 goals with 29 assists for 63 points. Archer is going to have defenses on their toes with his ability to score from virtually any angle. He also knows how to get to his spots at ease. Adding to this midfield as a key returner is junior Aidan Considine who saw the field as a sophomore and contributed with 10 points. The primary difference is that they graduated Jack Casacadden at the face-off X as well as midfielder Luke Schmitt, leaving a void that will soon be filled.
Shifting to their attack one of their top returning attackmen is senior Henry Gibbons who comes back on the heels of a junior season that saw him find the back of the 17 times. With some key losses at attack like Mike Fargione and Jay Ottomanelli, Gibbons will likely provide an even bigger scoring punch this year.
Defensively the Trojans always hang their hat on this end of the field and this year will look to be no different. Their starting defense will feature seniors Cole Webber (UVA), and Tristian Mullahey (Navy), and junior Matt Kephart (Princeton). Adding to this mix are two short stick defensive middies in sophomores Owen Wuchte and Blake Cascadden. On the roster are three goaltenders in Denis Fargione (Villanova), Patrick Blum (Lafayette), and Rocco D’Amelio as this group will fill the void of last year’s senior Chris Allen. Statistically they only allowed 5.2 goals per game in 2022. Although this will be a very vaunted defense once again, they will be without 2022 graduate Brendan Staub who’s his presence will surely be missed.
According to Coach Finnell, two young guns that could be in the mix this season to see playing time are Michael Berkery and Dan Medjid, both in the class of 2025.
This season Garden City opens up the regular season with a highly anticipated non-league game against Mt. Sinai on March 25th. Some of their other marquee games on the slate this season include Syosset (3/29), Ward Melville (4/1), Radnor (4/4), Cold Spring Harbor (4/8), Manhasset (4/29), and South Side (5/3).
