At number 14 in the top 24 preseason rankings are the Wantagh Warriors of Nassau Class C. The Warriors are one of the teams that has been on the doorstep the last few years of bringing home a county championship, and last season they were one of the final four teams in Class C but were defeated in the semifinals by Manhasset. This year they enter the season as arguably the favorites to win the county championship with the move of Manhasset to Class B. Entering her second season as head coach is Lauren Ruppert who shared what it will take from her team if they want to win a championship.
“Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win Championships.”– Michael Jordan “This quote sums up perfectly what I expect from the girls and what they are going to give. Individually, they all have so much talent, but together, they are a force.”
Among their talented returning players includes senior midfielder Sienna Diglio (UMass), and junior midfielder Juliana Cerasi (JMU), headlining their first midfield line. This athletic tandem will impact the game on both ends of the field as true two-way middies, and already gave a preview of what’s to come this spring with their play in the LILJ HSWL where Cerasi was their leading scorer with 17 points through five games, and Diglio tied for second with 13 points in five games. In the sophomore class midfielder Sabrina Asadurian will see an elevated role this season in year three on varsity and in the winter league she found the back of the net seven times and totaled nine points.
Wantagh’s attack will be very different this season without 2023 graduates Madison Alaimo and Eva Ingrilli, but they have two juniors in Bella Sandoval and Riley Forthofer who are primed for a big spring season. Sandoval the Binghamton commit was an impact player her sophomore year with 20 goals, and was tied for the team lead in goals this winter with 12. Forthofer the Albany commit comes off a huge output her sophomore year, filling up the box score with 20 goals and 18 assists for 38 points. In the 2026 class Madeline Drago is one who could see more minutes this season on the attack, as a quick attacker with a powerful shot.
Defensively they welcome back their two seniors Brighid Smith (Wagner) and Paige Martin (Scranton) as well as junior Lyla Ingrilli (Maryland) to a defense that allowed just under nine goals per game last year. Also look for sophomore Katelyn Baudo to potentially see more playing time this season as coach Ruppert saw a huge boost in both her confidence and skill towards the end of last season. In the net will likely be their sophomore goalie Madeline Gonzalez who according to coach Ruppert has shown tremendous growth during the offseason.
Wantagh will be an exciting watch this season as they hope that this is the year that they’ll be the team at the top of Nassau Class C with a county championship and a chance to play for a Long Island Championship and a trip to Cortland.
