It’s a game of runs. Northport’s boys lacrosse team just made sure to make theirs count.
Starting the third quarter down 2-0 to Smithtown East, the No. 3-seeded Tigers (16-3) scored once, then twice, and kept applying the pressure en route to a 5-2 win for the program’s third straight Suffolk County Class A title.
“We wanted to move the ball as much as possible and try to take advantage of our transition and put our athletes in good positions, and we really executed in the second half,” senior Andrew Miller said. “We’ve been in positions where we’ve been at a loss. We’ve been down before, and we know we have to come together and play better as a unit, and we did that.”
Senior midfielder Brendon Marz gave Smithtown East (12-7) a 1-0 lead off a shot with 6:11 remaining in the first half. The Bulls’ zone defense prevented Northport from finding a way to the crease, and sophomore Brendan Carroll stood on his head to block shot after shot on the way to 12 saves.
Senior midfielder Garrett Mangels hit freshman attack Cameron James for Smithtown East to open the second half up 2-0, then, sophomore attack Jack Deliberti and junior midfielder Luca Elmaleh rocked the back of the cage — the second goal coming off a feed from junior midfielder Quinn Reynolds — between a flurry of Carroll stops to make it a new game heading into the fourth quarter. There, Northport sophomore midfielder Dylan Baumgarth secured the faceoff wins the Tigers needed, helping control the time of possession that eventually lead to sophomore Logan Cash’s bounce shot and Miller’s lefthanded sniper from 15 yards out.
“I saw their defense move all the way into the box and some were picking up Giancarlo Valenti,” Miller said. “He made a great pass and I just took an open shot and hit it. I thought that was the one. We needed to extend our lead, and it felt great.”
Northport rode that momentum as it ran away with the ball for the next three minutes. Elmaleh (two goals, one assist) iced it with his second score with 25 seconds left on the clock. Senior Michael Tittmann made six saves.
“Our defense put up an amazing first half and our offense needed to come through. I was just doing my job,” Elmaleh said. “We started to implement more of a wheel going into the second half and it definitely drew the defense out more for looks on the crease.”
No. 5 Smithtown East knocked out No. 4 Huntington and No. 1 Connetquot to reach the county final, but Northport senior Nick Tzimas was key — playing lockdown defense against Bulls top scorer Ryan Rooney.
“Our boys worked so hard. I can’t think of anybody who deserves it more,” Elmaleh said. “It’s a game of momentum. We got it, and the rest is history.”
Northport will face Farmingdale (16-3) next in the Long Island Championship game at Stony Brook University Saturday, June 2, at 3 p.m.
“Hopefully we’re not done yet,” Miller said. “I love this team and I love the energy they bring every day in practice and I can’t wait to keep playing with them. This is just a reward for all of the hard work everyone has put in. I’m very confident in this group and I can’t wait to see where we go.”
