Top Performers: Iona Prep vs Kellenberg (5/22/23)

On Monday, I was doing color commentary on Varsity Media for the downstate championship game between Kellenberg and Iona Prep. It was an intense game between both squads and it featured some very talented players. Iona Prep got the best of Kellenberg by the score of 12-6 and they will face the Buffalo winner for the AA state championship. Checkout my top performers from the game. 

Iona Prep

Brandon Blenk- The senior headed to Siena was named the game MVP after finishing with 4 goals on the day. The speedster caused so many problems for the Kellenberg defense as he proved to be a talented dodging threat. Blenk had the strength to withstand contact and have a second burst to blow by defenders. This one of the younger Iona Prep teams, and it was evident that he was a leader on the field

Blaise New- The captain was one of the best pure athletes on the field. The UMass bound senior was a lockdown short stick defensive midfielder. He would guard his offensive player all the way out to the parking lot. He had the speed and strength where he simply wouldn’t get beat. Kellenberg had some physical dodgers but that played right into New’s favor as he delivered terrific jams and would constantly win his matchups. He also played well offensively as a true two way player for the Gales

Rocco Portante- When the lights are bright, Portante comes to play. The goaltender followed up his 8 save first quarter against Archbishop Stepinac with another incredible outing in the opening frame vs Kellenberg. Portatne had three saves on the opening possession to set the tone. He made several point blank saves showing off his athleticism. He held Kellenberg scoreless in the first quarter and to just one goal in the entire first half.

Tim Plunkett- It's hard to believe he’s just a freshman. Plunkett was a mature leader from behind the cage and was a true X attackman. Just like all year, he did a good job quarterbacking the offense. He always had his head up and made great decisions to find his teammates. The duo he has created with fellow freshman Billy Haggerty is a special one. Plunkett’s feeding ability and Haggerty’s shooting is going to terrorize teams for years to come.

Crew Davis- Another freshman for this Iona Prep squad, had a big day all over the field. He is an elite two way midfielder for the Gales. Already at 6 foot and 180 pounds he’s a terrific athlete and is very strong defensively. He did well in his 1v1 matchups and he also had key hustle plays and did a great job sprinting back on defense to prevent transition. On offense, he was a nightmare for short stick, as he easily got down the alley for a goal. Davis also had a beautiful hitch in the fourth quarter, he’s one of the most athletic 2026’s in New York.

Will Scala- He’s a guy that could be left on his own island out there. The Villanova bound senior has impeccable quickness and he wasn’t getting beat 1v1. He did a great job on ground balls and he was easily one of the most skilled players on the field as a long pole. He was the rock of this defensive unit that played outstanding against a good Kellenberg offense. The physicality and aggressiveness between him and junior Ryan Lunstead caused issues all game. 

Kellenberg

Charlie Villa- Recently named team MVP, Villa was the general out there for the Firebirds. He was challenged with a very good Iona Prep offense and he made some quality saves for Kellenberg. The Tampa commit is one of the more athletic goalies on the island, being able to drop down to shots while also being able to handle high heat. His leadership for the Firebirds defense was evident and Villa is going to do great things at the next level

Owen Fitzgerald- The senior long pole was one of the most effective players for the Firebirds. He was one of the fastest players on the field and he made plays clearing the ball and picking up GB’s. I really liked him on the wing and he was a difference maker in transition to put pressure on this Iona Prep. He was also physical and threw solid checks, he was one of the top players all season long for Kellenberg.

Michael Anzelone- The quick two handy midfielder was the top dodger for Kellenberg. He was a good initiator and he was winning some of his matchups and he drew very quick slides. He got the offense moving during this one and he finished with a goal and an assist. He could’ve easily had more if Rocco Portante didn’t make some tough saves. Anzelone did a good job getting other juniors involved like Michael Felcetti who had 3 assists and Maverick Chernoff who is a great step down shooter.

James Rosellon- The faceoff specialist headed to Pace outperformed expectations by having a big day at the X. He was able to win a number of faceoffs to himself and secure possession for his team. What was really impressive was the size and strength Rosellon has. When he won the clamp, his power was too much and he did a good job handling the ball and didn’t let pressure phase him. 

Top Performers: Port Washington vs Syosset (5/12/23)

Last night we had a boys lacrosse instant classic between Port Washington and Syosset. It was the rematch of the Nassau County Class A title, and Port Washington had an incredible come from behind 8-7 victory over the Braves. After trailing 5-1 at the half, the Vikings battled back and pulled off the win.The game went down to the wire and iit featured so many playmakers on both teams. Checkout my top performers from each team during this contest.

Port Washington 

Luke Meyer- The captain stepped up in the second half and led the Vikings to a comeback win. Meyer’s physical style of dodging wore down the opposition. After lowering the shoulder into his defender, Meyer kept his head up where he made good decisions to set up his teammates. He also found the back of the net twice in the third quarter. His speed following his bull dodge was something special as Meyer was a freight train for one of his goals and on the other one, he used his physicality to get good body positioning where he snuck home a well placed shot. He is one of the most exciting players to watch in Nassau County.

Max Eynon- The eighth grader was phenomenal on the big stage under the lights. In the 4th quarter, Syosset had a couple of big chances and Eynon stood tall. The timeliness of his saves were impeccable. Syosset went up 5-1 in this game and there was a chance it would get out of hand. But Eynon had multiple stops on the doorstep to keep his squad in this one. When Port had a 7-6 lead, he made a save on a fast break which led to the Vikings taking an 8-6 lead. It looked like an upperclassman was in net with how athletic and poised he looked in the 2nd half.

John McCarthy- The big midfielder had two key goals for the Vikings. He is able to play anywhere on the field for Port Washington and he was a leader on friday night. He had the eventual game winner in the fourth quarter after getting under his defender and he went to the middle of the field and ripped a laser.  He was a good player in between the lines and gave the Syosset defense some issues while dodging. 

Cal Gober- One of the unsung heroes for Port Washington. Gober knew his role and he played it perfectly. He was a clearing machine for Port Washington all night long. He ran through double teams easily and he always made the smart pass and earned his team some important offensive possessions. Gober was also stout defensively when he was on the field. In the fourth quarter he stripped a red hot David Disque and went the other way with the ball. Gober ended up blocking the game tying shot attempt which put a cap on his terrific performance 

Matthew Hillman- The senior defender was steady throughout the entire game and did a great job applying pressure. Anyone that he guarded felt his stick up in their gloves. Nothing easy came against Hillman and he was a reliable 1v1 defender, especially during the second half. Hillman showed that he was very skilled and picked up several GB’s to help his team out. He formed a terrific duo with Stamati Gargas to hold down this Syosset attack unit and limited their team to just two goals in the second half.

Chase Pastolove- The lefty attackman quietly had a really good game for the Vikings. He stopped the bleeding by scoring the first goal for Port. He was a terrific off ball player, both of his goals came from him knowing where to be and he put himself in a position to succeed. He placed the ball well whenever he shot it and he accompanied Meyer very well on this attack unit. In future games when teams slide hard to Meyer, look for Pastolove to score a lot of goals.

Syosset 

Dylan Stadler- The senior midfielder headed to Marist was one of the most explosive players on the field. When the Braves were down by two goals late, he stepped up and delivered an amazing righty speed dodge over the top and scored a big time goal. He was all over the field for Syosset and had a transition goal for the Braves as well. Down the line, he will be an important offensive piece if this team wants to make a run for the Nassau County title 

David Disque- The junior midfielder had a monster day scoring three goals for Syosset. His size gave the Vikings defense a lot of issues. He looked like a box player out there, powering his way through defenders but having such great field awareness where he was able to string together some great shots. His strength allowed him to be a dangerous downhill dodger and that's how he was able to score his third goal on a flashy finish. He’s one of the more intriguing prospects in the ‘24 class, he’s got the strength and skill to give the opposition issues. 

Zach Finklestien- Another big time performance by the Braves goaltender. Outside shots simply had no chance of getting by him in the first half. He has an experienced presence in the cage and his athleticism guided him to some big saves against some really good shooters. He continued to prove that he is one of the most reliable goalies on the island as no team has scored double digits on him since March. 

Aj Zuleta- The anchor for the Syosset defense had another solid game. He had a couple of caused turnovers and ground balls. He was steady for the most part and he had a nice combination of strength and quickness which enabled him to do his job 1 on 1. In the first half he had some great help defense and he led a relentless Braves squad to holding Port to just 1 first half goal 

Top Performers of the St Anthony's vs Chaminade lacrosse game 5/10/23

 St Anthony's and Chaminade went to battle for the second time this season on Wednesday. The game was televised on ESPNU and the legendary rivalry lived up to the hype. We saw stars on both ends play amazing in this game. St Anthony's edged out Chaminade by the score of 17-11 and won their 4th straight Catholic League title. Checkout my top performers from both teams in this contest. 

St Anthony's 

Jackson Greene (Harvard Commit)- The senior midfielder had another amazing championship performance. Greene had 4 goals and they were all right handed shots on the run. It didn't matter who guarded him, he sped by defenders and got his hands free constantly. His shot on the run was automatic and he was able to shoot through contact. His speed let him be an excellent downhill dodger and Chaminade simply didn't have an answer for him

Joey Rice (Stony Brook Commit)- The goaltender for the Friars had a big responsibility in this one. The way the Flyers were gonna win was if Rice had a sub par day, but that wasn't the case. Rice was named the MVP of the game as he came away with 14 huge saves. He had a couple of timely impressive stops that helped keep St Anthony's in control. He was poised in the clear game and posted a save percentage of well over 50 percent.

Owen Duffy (North Carolina Commit)- It was simple, Chaminade attempted to completely lock off Duffy the entire game. But the few instances he had the ball he made plays. Two times, Duffy took the ball off the end line and drew a slide, where he'd find Luke Breslin twice for a pair of goals. When Chaminade came out in a zone out of a timeout, Duffy got the ball on the wing and beat a defender and snuck home a quick shot. He had 3 points on the day and still made a great impact.

Luke Breslin (Lehigh Commit)- The junior attackman had a big day recording 5 points on the evening. He had a beautiful handle and inside finish in the first half and then followed it up with a laser that went top shelf at the end of the third quarter. Breslin did a great job distributing as well, he was active behind the cage finding Pat Carraigher for an early goal and would end up having 3 assists on the day. He will be one of the top 2024's in the country. 

Kevin Kearns/Cole Aasheim (Michigan Commit/UNC Commit)- The senior defenders led the Friars all evening and made plays for St Anthony's. Kearns was the anchor of the defense and made plays whether it was picking off passes or playing solid help defense. Cole Aasheim easily showed he was one of the most athletic players on the field. He did well in his 1v1 matchups with his combination of size and quickness. Aasheim also took off downfield with his speed and recorded an assist in transition. He was all over the field making plays and was efficient during the clears. 

Chaminade

Brendan Riley (Amherst Commit)- The lefty attackman had three big first half goals to keep Chaminade right there with the Friars. He utilized his great lacrosse IQ to put himself in terrific positions to make plays. Riley placed the ball extremely well as all three of his goals were low stingers past Rice. He had 4 points to lead the Flyers in this one. 

Pat Flaherty (Navy Commit)- The senior midfielder had a hat trick for Chaminade in this one. He cashed in on a time and room shot and absolutely hammered the ball in the cage. He followed it up with an incredible behind the back shot to give Chaminade momentum. He caught the ball on the crease and fought off contact before the flashy finish. Flaherty was easily one of the best athletes and he was an issue for the Friars to guard in this one. 

Jack Tully (uncommitted)- The junior midfielder was one of the biggest standouts in this game. He was a terrific athlete that made a difference in the clearing game. He was able to blaze by the opposition and make clears look easy to help Chaminade secure possessions. Tully created chances and gave sparks to his team with some explosive plays in between the lines

Gary Correa (Stony Brook Commit)- Another midfielder that played well for the Flyers and really kept them in it. He had two timely goals for Chaminade in their comeback attempt. Correa was one of the most physical players on the field and he used when he was dodging hard to the cage and making plays.