The LI Lax Showcase lived up to the hype to say the least. I was in attendance for the 2025 game and the 2026's. Suffolk defeated Nassau 17-9 in the 2025 game, but Nassau won in the 2026 game 13-11. There were a lot of excellent prospects displaying their talent in these games. Read about my top performers from both Nassau and Suffolk in each age group.
Suffolk 2025’s
Jack Cavalieri (Middle Country)- The Co MVP of this game, Jack Cavalieri had a big time day. He netted 4 goals in the lopsided victory for Suffolk. Cavalieri had a variety of impressive goals. He cut off ball and scored through traffic for his first tally. Cavelieri had a beautiful extra man goal by coming up the hash and hammering it home. He also was a great asset on the ride. He’s an underrated prospect that will get more attention.
Jackson Thompson (Miller Place)- The other MVP of this one was Jackson Thompson. The Miller Place native put on a show. He showed off some high heat, as he had one of the best shots at the entire event. Thompson also showcased his size, the big righty was able to bulldoze past players. He was effective as both a catch and shoot player and as a dodger.
Luca Cuozzo (Walt Whitman) - He wasn’t on a powerhouse high school team, but Cuozzo showed that he is a future Division 1 faceoff specialist. He was excellent at the LI Lax Showcase. He was quick to the clamp and was able to win it to himself a ton during this game. He controlled his matchup at the X and at one point it felt like Suffolk was playing make it-take it lacrosse. Cuozzo and Nico Gichas out of Hills, were elite fogo’s for this Suffolk team.
Erik Heimlich (Islip)- The athletic long pole was consistently making plays for his team in this game. Heimlich was tenacious out there pressing out when he wanted to and throwing terrific checks. He was great defending on ball and off ball as he did a good job checking sticks on cutters and getting possession for his team. Heimlich also added a goal to his name, displaying how good of a stick he has.
Tommy Kline (Huntington)- One of the best short stick defensive middies I saw at the event. Kline has the scary combination of toughness and athleticism. He was able to stay with his guy relatively easily and he really got into hips. Kline was able to jam his guy and win a lot of his matchups. I’m expecting him to have a great summer with Team 91 Shock and a breakout season for Huntington as a junior.
Nicholas Kump (Hauppauge)- A throwback two way middie that made his presence felt. At the top 50 game, Kump had a highlight reel hit on defense and he brought the same aggression to the final game on Thursday. He showed his offensive ability by dancing past defenders and he had a terrific assist to James Bruno who had a great day scoring the ball.
Matt Triolo (John Glenn/Elwood)- He didn’t get as many touches as he did last year in this gamer, but Triolo made them count when he did. He did an excellent job creating enough separation to get his hands free. His first goal was an absolute rocket from deep and he followed it up with a highlight reel goal fighting through multiple defenders. Triolo has the knack for finding the net and he’ll be one of the best pure goal scorers in the 2025 class.
Nassau 2025’s
Luke LeSueur (Garden City) - The big defenseman out of Garden City seriously has a chance to have an excellent high school career with the Trojans. He has the measurables at 6’3 and 180 pounds. and the lacrosse IQ to be a high level player. He went toe to toe with some of the best attackmen on Long Island during this game and LeSueur did a great job. He is a close defenseman a lot of people should keep an eye on these next few years especially on a Garden City team that produces elite defenseman
Joe Filocamo (Island Trees)- One of the grittiest players on the field. He excelled on both sides of the field. He was outstanding as a short stick d middie. He was one of the strongest players on that side of the field and he also played well on offense. He bull dodged and fought through defenders for a nice goal. The energy he brought was exciting to watch.
Owen Wuchte (Garden City)- After two straight successful varsity seasons at SSDM, he showed why he’s one of the toughest players to dodge against. Wuchte was a big part of Garden City’s state title and he showed why he’s so valuable on defense. Despite being a little undersized, he has some of the quickest feet and he is a GB machine. I liked him on defense against some elite players from Suffolk.
Owen Donnellan (Plainedge)- One of the bright spots on this Nassau offense. Donnellan was an excellent attackman for an underrated Plainedge team. In this game, he had a nice day offensively. Donellean had a highlight reel behind the back goal after making a great cut off ball. He also had a textbook dodge from X as he easily lost his defender and he did a good job having his head up to set up his teammate for an easy goal.
Dylan Martini (Wantagh) - Easily one of the most athletic players on the field. Martini has a terrific motor and he looked good as a midfield dodger. His first step is great and he showed why he’s had two successful seasons for Wantagh. While his dodges didn’t translate into a ton of goals, you can tell that he is efficient at getting to his right hand and creating opportunities for the players around him.
Suffolk 2026’s
David Xavier (Rocky Point )- In the 2026 game, Nassau was firing a ton of shots, but David Xavier out of Rocky Point rose to the occasion. He was challenged early and often and he responded with a variety of impressive stops. He had a couple of saves on what looked to be sure goals. Xavier also did an amazing job stopping some high shots with a lot of heat on them. He showed off his athleticism a ton during the half he played.
Connor Rocchio (Comsewogue)- Fresh off of a player of the game performance at the All Long Island Games, Rocchio had another stellar performance. He is one of the stronger defenseman in this class here in Suffolk County and he also had great stick skills. Rocchio was good in the clear and he was solid in 1v1 defense. He’s got the typical toughness you see in Comsewogue defenders.
Jake DeGennaro (Islip)- One of the top overall players for the Suffolk team in this game. DeGennaro stepped up all over the field. He had a couple of impressive goals in this one and he also did the little things. DeGennaro is an aggressive player and he had a couple of nice clears in this one blazing past the opposition. He has the opportunity to have a big role on a good Islip team next year.
Luke Loiacono (Northport)- After a great freshman year, including a 5 goal performance in the playoffs against Ward Melville, Loiacono carried the momentum to the LI Lax Showcase. The Northport product had 2 lefty snipes on the run where the first goal included an ankle breaking move. The crafty midfielder has a bright future with the Tigers and he’s a 2026 prospect people will need to know in the near future.
Nassau 2026’s
Devin Paccione (Wantagh)- Easily the top player along with Brody Waxer in this game. Paccione has the makings of the next elite attackman from Wantagh. He was a true quarterback of the Nassau offense during this one. He was an excellent facilitator beating his defenders with an amazing first step and great explosiveness. Paccione did it as a goal scorer, a tremendous feeder and a gritty player on the ride. He’ll be a guy to watch for the next 3 years.
Brody Waxer (Syosset)- Named Co MVP with Devin Paccione, Waxer was in control the entire way of this game. He had a couple of excellent overhand shots that were high to low and stung corners. Waxer proved to be the best shooter in this game, his footwork was amazing and he seemed to be one step ahead of everybody else on the field. Waxer has that “it” factor and he’s in for a big summer with Express Channy.
Joe Nicholson (Wantagh) - The two way middie out of Wantagh is going to start to earn recognition with how hard he plays. Nicholson is effective on both sides of the ball. On offense he’s a great downhill dodger, either scoring or forcing slides. He is a strong D middie and showed that he can be effective in the clear game. Nicholson is a tremendous athlete and he’ll start getting on coaches' radars when the time comes.
Michael Galgano (Farmingdale)- Galgano had explosiveness written all over him. He was arguably the best pole on the field and he was making big plays for Nassau in this game. He was excellent on the clears and picking up GB’s. He has some pure speed and he really brought the intensity all over the field at the LI Lax Showcase. He is a must watch player for a Farmingdale team that breeds excellent defenseman.
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