South Side splits OT games

South Side tasted a thrilling victory and an agonizing defeat in consecutive playoff games that left the Cyclones one win shy of competing for a county title. 

William Pickett scored with 1:08 left in overtime to catapult No. 3 South Side over Calhoun, 9-8, in a Nassau B boys’ lacrosse quarterfinal showdown on May 22. The dramatic win helped the Cyclones storm into the semifinal round, where four days later second-seeded Garden City ended their playoff run with a 3-2 overtime triumph.

Pickett set the stage for last Friday’s heartbreaking finish when the sophomore attackman scored after teammate Jack Kimmel appeared to have lost the ball, but drew a push call to maintain possession. When play resumed, Kimmel passed to Pickett on the left wing, where he dodged a defender, netted his shot and was mobbed by his teammates.

“To see your teammates come running at you, it’s pretty cool,” said an otherwise speechless Pickett about the post-game celebration.  

No. 6 Calhoun led the entire game before sophomore midfielder Tim Mann tied the score at 8-8 on a feed from Kimmel with 3:46 left in regulation.

The Colts took a 3-1 lead in the first period on goals by senior attackman Chris Marrapodi, junior midfielder Ryan Padro and junior attackman Nick Turrini. They led 5-2 at halftime.

“I just told my players to keep chipping away, one goal at a time, and to not give up and keep fighting,” South Side coach Steve DiPietro said.

South Side defeated Calhoun 12-5 late in the regular season, and DiPietro was unfazed by the three-point halftime deficit last week, given his team’s ability to score multiple goals in any given period.

“I give Calhoun a ton of credit, though, they played us hard and much tougher than they did the first time around, for sure,” he said.

Senior midfielder Cameron Dunn scored South Side’s first four goals, including a pair in the third period when the back-and-forth pace of the game picked up.

Turini scored late in the third period to push Calhoun’s lead to 7-5. He then deposited another goal early in the fourth period.

“With all the guys that we lost and everything that’s gone on, for them to continue to battle and pull it out, I can’t say how proud I am of them,” DiPietro said about his players.

Turrini led Calhoun with three goals, followed by Padro and senior midfielder Dylan Barry, who both contributed two scores. Calhoun goalie Kyle Munson tallied 12 saves. 

“I thought my kids played really hard,” Calhoun coach Jim Femminella said. “For a third-and-sixth-seed game, we showed that we had the upset potential, that we should be a final four team, and we’ll be there next year.”

Against Garden City in the semis at Hofstra on May 25, Pickett scored South Side’s only two goals, both in the first half. The Cyclones bid at an upset was ended by a goal from Garden City’s Liam Curtin 1:04 into overtime.