It was the type of game Northport hadn’t seen in nearly two decades, but the Tigers knew they had all the tools necessary to win it. They had a full arsenal of attacks, a dominant faceoff specialist and a rock in goal, plus a new head coach. All of the pieces of the puzzle fit perfectly together for Northport’s first Long Island Class A championship win, an 11-10 victory over Syosset Saturday, since 2002.
“We’ve never been in a game like this before — it’s crazy to get the opportunity,” said senior Tristan Triolo. “It was a crazy moment. You have all your teammates, the people in the stands cheering for you. We worked so hard for this.”
Northport (15-3) got to work early with a big save by senior goalkeeper Andrew Tittmann, which junior Jack Helrigel (two goals) repaid him for with a goal on the other end. Junior Tyler Kuprianchik won the ensuing faceoff, and senior Ryan McCarthy turned that possession into a 2-0 lead at the 8:20 mark.
“We knew they pressed out, but we knew we had good stick skills. We had to spread out, move the ball, make the smart pass and put it in the back of the cage to finish this game — and that’s what we did,” McCarthy said. “It’s hard to cover six to eight studs out there — anyone can put it in the back of the net.”
Besides being dominant in the circle Kuprianchik can score, too. After Syosset (12-3) cut the lead to one he won yet another faceoff and took the ball all the way down the field before rocketing a shot into the upper right corner of the cage. Mike Meyer (two goals) scored in transition off an assist from McCarthy with 3:21 left in the first to put Northport ahead 6-2, the largest lead of the game.
“Tyler Kuprianchik is the heart and soul of our team, but the variety and the way our entire offense moves the ball and finishes is amazing,” Tittmann said. “This is the best they’ve played all season.”
What got the team motivated most this time around, though, happened much later. After the Tigers knotted the score at 9 with 5:49 left in the third, Triolo scored his second goal of the game to give Northport a lead it would not relinquish. After Tittmann scooped up the ball in the crease, he fed a defender, who passed to senior Emerson Payne in transition. While Payne was darting downfield, making his way to the front of the cage with just over two minutes left in regulation, the senior said it looked like a normal fast break — with no defenders in sight — but after his eventual game-winning goal he was stunned by a hit that laid him on his back. His teammates rushed to his sides not so much to celebrate, but see how their teammate was doing.
“It was a close game and it looked like an empty net,” Payne said. “I told myself: ‘This is my chance.’ I just knew that I had to put the ball in.”
As he hobbled to the bench his name was being cheered from the stands, and his teammates felt the need to put the game away more than ever.
“Emerson getting laid out got us pumped,” Triolo said. “We knew we had to get back in it and win.”
Syosset managed one final goal, but the Tigers defense stymied the Braves from making any forward progress. The teams traded possession in the final minute-and-a-half before time expired.
“They couldn’t keep up with us,” Triolo said. “We worked so hard for this, have great coaching — we deserved it.”
McCarthy and Tittmann both said words couldn’t describe how they felt, but there was one phrase they did manage to get out: “It was a team effort.”
“This is surreal. We’re kings of the Island,” Tittmann said. “We battled through when it got tough.”
