A Heartbreaking Battle
The Mount Sinai Mustangs defeated Manhasset in the Class C Long Island Championship on Saturday afternoon in a heartbreaker, bringing the Indians’ undefeated season to an end. The game was a back-and-forth battle, hard fought to the end, with a final score of 14-13.
Arguably the two finest public high school lacrosse teams battled it out to prove who is the best on Long Island, and Mount Sinai came out on top. Both teams are named in USA Lacrosse Magazine’s National Top 25 boys high school lacrosse rankings, with Manhasset (15-1) ranked No. 2 and Mount Sinai (16-1) at 14.
Spallina Guides His Team to the Top
Mount Sinai ‘s junior attacker and Long Island’s leader in points (with 121 in 17 games) Joey Spallina, scored the game winning goal with 13 seconds remaining in regulation to bring the final score to 14-13. Spallina had 6 goals in the LIC and a number of assists, as the Mustangs collected 14 total goals from 7 different scorers.
“It feels awesome to win,” the Syracuse commit said. “So pumped. And to be able to win it with my brothers and my best friends is awesome.” Earlier in the season, Spallina broke the Suffolk County record for most assists in a single game, with 13.
The class of 2022’s No. 1 recruit had one of his best performances of the season on Saturday in front of his future head coach and lacrosse legend, Gary Gait. “It was awesome to play in front of my future coach,” Spallina said, clarifying that he was excited and not nervous. “It was great to be able to see him.”
Game Recap
From the second the first whistle blew it was a true contest. At no point could the crowd tell who would walk away triumphant.
To open the game, Manhasset was the first to put a point on the board in the pouring rain, with a goal from Cornell commit and junior attacker, Matt Perfetto. From then on, both teams went back and forth, trading goals throughout the first quarter before Nolan Garcia closed it 4-3, his team trailing the Mustangs by one.
After a contentious first quarter, Perfetto scored his second goal, with an assist from Joey Terenzi, to open the second quarter with the first tie of the game, 4-4. The second quarter continued throughout a torrential downpour under the lights as Mount Sinai was able to get ahead with two goals each by Lucas LaForge and Spallina.
“I think winning the Suffolk County Class C championship relieved a lot of the pressure,” LaForge, the freshman attacker said. “But we all knew coming in that we all had to be on our A game in order to beat a powerhouse like Manhasset’s program.” LaForge earned himself a hat trick in the LIC, tallying 55 points for the year with 48 goals and 7 assists as a freshman starter.
Within 8 seconds of Spallina’s last goal, his teammate and junior FOGO, Austin Opponheimer, won the following face-off to take the ball all the way to the back of the net. Mount Sinai ended the first half with a 9-6 lead.
Coming Back From the Half
Mount Sinai continued their lead after halftime with goals from juniors Patrick Deckert and Gavin Takacs, separating the score by 5.
With only 2:39 left in the fourth quarter, Manhasset senior attacker Rory Connor tied the game 13-13. “These are the games and moments that I play for,” the Colgate commit said following their win at counties. “I love being in these close games that could go either way.”
In the last 25 seconds of the game, Mount Sinai’s junior defender Michael Trepeta suffered an injury and was quickly replaced by Brett Spallina to finish the game.
Despite Manhasset’s last efforts, Mount Sinai ended the final two minutes with possession, allowing for Spallina to bury the game winner to the back of the net in the last 13 seconds. The Mustangs stormed the field to celebrate their championship win in the pouring rain as the Indians suffered their first loss of the season
What’s Next?
Following a happy ending to their monster season, Mount Sinai is going on the up and up.
“What’s next is for us to be right back in the LIC and winning it for a second year in a row,” Spallina said. He’s looking forward to next year and “taking the next step and winning states.”
The Mustangs last won NYSPHAA states in 2008 at Hofstra University and are looking to bring home another state title this year.
Mount Sinai is losing 5 of their seniors this year, so this young team is looking to come back even more impressive next year, if that’s even possible.
“We need to build on the momentum we have right now,” LaForge said. “We are losing a lot of great senior leaders but we have a lot of guys in line ready to step up.” As a freshman, LaForge will continue to be a great leader for the Mustangs over the next three years.
