No. 20 Ranked Bayport Blue Point Phantoms Team Preview

At number 20 in the LILJ top 25 preseason rankings it’s the reigning Class C New York State Champions the Bayport Blue Point Phantoms. Their quest to the state championship saw them go 21-1 on the season as they proved to be the team to beat from start to finish. With a big 2024 graduating class, they’ll look for their returning players in the senior class to step into new leadership roles and also rely on their young guns who will have elevated roles this year. At the helm is Head Coach Doug Meehan in his seventh year, and he shared what excites him heading into the new season. ” We have an interesting mix of very young players who are highly skilled with seniors who have played and produced in the biggest games. Individual roles will be formed throughout the preseason and the team dynamic will have a new look. They are all eager to prove their worth.”

The Phantoms were an offensive juggernaut in 2024, averaging just under 12 goals per game which was the second most in all of Suffolk County. This year they will be spearheaded by senior Towson commit Connor Curran who is their leading scorer among their returning players. Curran is a lethal threat both as a scorer and facilitator, coming off of a 77 point junior year with 32 goals and 45 assists. The 45 assists was good for the fourth most in the county. Adding to their offense among their returners is seniors Traigh Tomassone (Wingate) and Dylan Craig. On the offensive end they will be without 2024 graduates Ben Morris, Ryan Hannaford, Danny Aiello, and Maclin Keyser who were instrumental in their state championship run.

Defensively they graduated Mikey Luce in the senior class of 2024 who also had plenty of offense in his game, but they return senior Ryan Athearn (Cortland) at LSM, senior defensman Sean Coffey, and sophomore defenseman Pat Ahern. With goalie Brady Smith also part of last year’s graduating class they will have a new face in the cage as the starting goaltender. Senior goalie Andrew Snyder returns to the roster this season.

This season will also see plenty of underclassmen who have a chance to be impact players in the program. Some names to look out for include sophomore midfielder Jack Raymond, freshman attacker Jamison Hawkins, freshman midfielder Josh Franchak, and freshmen defensemen Joey Balestra and Brayden Waldbauer.

Coach Meehan gave some of his keys to success this spring.

“Seniors stepping into new leadership roles and helping bring along the young guys, seniors taking over ownership of the defensive side and being the go to guys on offense, and young guys playing fearless and being patient in their development.”

Getting the regular season started they will open up with a non-league matchup against Sachem East on March 28th,  followed by their first league game against West Islip on April 1st.