20th Ranked Wantagh Warriors Team Preview

Starting off the boys LILJ Preseason Top 20 Rankings, we begin with the Wantagh Warriors coming in at No. 20. In 2022 they went 11-7 overall and appeared in the Nassau County Class C Semifinals where they were defeated by Manhasset. Head Coach James Polo who has been at the helm for past five seasons says “team work and leadership are essential ingredients to have success in the program.”

The team has many key returning upperclassmen who were instrumental in last season’s deep playoff run. Headlining their attack unit are seniors Anthony Tsakos and Danny Fisenne. Tsakos the LIU commit was Wantagh’s leader in points last year 55, scoring 34 goals along with 21 assists. Fisenne who’s committed to Adelphi was second in points with 47, tallying 23 goals and 24 assists. In addition to the two returning seniors, sophomore attackman Dylan Martini should also be in store for a huge 2023 after a breakout freshman year where he recorded 24 goals and eight assists. The Warriors’ production from the midfield starts with Cornell bound Jake Martini who enters his junior season. Martini is very shifty and is quick on his feet as a two-way middie that can score goals but also does the little things that make a difference like hunting the 50/50 ground balls. He had a stat line last season of 21 goals and 11 assists. Among their key returning players joining him at midfield are seniors Nick Cupelli, Joe Martin, and Brian Doherty. One of the biggest keys going into the season is going to be the battle at the face-off X with the return of junior Will Greaves who will be opposing some of the top FOGO’s in Nassau County. Wantagh’s offense averaged 11.7 goals per game last year, good for third in the conference On the defensive side one of the anchors of this unit is Air Force commit Thomas Conway who is part of a defense that allowed a shade under eight goals per game in 2022. Starting in the net this year will likely be junior goaltender Kyle Conklin. Last year he briefly saw time behind Cavit Ireland and made 24 saves. Naturally every team graduates a group of players that were key to the team’s success the prior season. This year they are without Tyler Martini, Sean Carlo, Troy Donaghy, and Mark Maniet. This will present new opportunities for each returning player on the roster to further enhance their role. On the schedule for Wantagh this season are a number of high level teams inside and outside of the conference. The most notable league game is May 11th at home against Manhasset who has consistently been at the top of Class C. The slate of non-league games for Wantagh include matchups against Bayport (3/23), Rocky Point (3/25), Kellenberg (3/29), Farmingdale (3/31), Comsewogue (4/8), Mamaroneck, South Side (4/21), and Port Washington (4/28). This year Wantagh will look to change the tide and turn those close games in their favor. Of their seven defeats last year four of them were decided by a single goal with another decided by two goals. If those close games go their way this year then they will surely have an even better winning percentage and will find themselves right in the thick of things come playoff time looking to make another deep run.