Hewlett's journey ends in semis

After a dominant effort in its playoff opener, No. 3 Hewlett boys’ lacrosse saw its postseason journey end abruptly on May 24 against No. 2 Garden City, with a 14-2 loss in the Nassau Class B semifinals. Despite the disappointing finish for the Bulldogs, the season as a whole left plenty to be pleased with, according to head coach Jesse Corben.  

 “I’m extremely proud of the team,” he said. “I told them all after they lost that they needed to have their heads up high. The boys have done everything they’ve been asked to do and have gone above and beyond that.” 

Hewlett finished with an 11-5 overall record, and went 7-3 in conference play. The Bulldogs followed up a successful regular season with a 16-5 thrashing of No. 6 Long Beach in the quarterfinal round of the playoffs. Leading the way for Hewlett in the contest was the duo of senior Ethan Grossman and junior Alex Vardaro, which combined for 15 points. 

“Those are the guys you want to have the ball on their sticks,” Corben said. “They make plays happen and make everyone else around them better. In that game, those two did the same things they have been doing all season. (Long Beach) tried to double lock them, and single lock them, but we were prepared for everything we saw.”

The win over Long Beach set up a semifinals date with the Spartans, a team the Bulldogs had lost to by just a goal earlier in the month. Their rematch with Garden City proved to be much less competitive. 

“They got up on us early, and that really hurt,” Corben said. “We wanted to control time of possession, and that wasn’t possible with us not winning faceoffs and ground balls. They are a fantastic, well-coached, disciplined team. We wanted to compete with them, but didn’t have as much luck as we did the first time we played them.”

While it was a tough day for Hewlett overall, defenseman Gavin Adler put forth a strong effort against the Spartans, holding the dangerous Jamie Atkinson to just a goal. According to Corben this is nothing new for the junior. 

“He’s been our best defenseman, and will frequently shut down the best player on the opposing team,” he said. 

Senior midfielder Jake Levitz was another standout for Hewlett this season, shining with his versatility and durability. The Bulldogs also got terrific play in net from underclassman Max May. 

 “He stepped in as a sophomore and played like an all-county goalie,” Corben said. “He kept us in and won us games.”

Hewlett will be graduating nine seniors from its club this spring, leaving some large holes in the team’s lineup. 

“We’re definitely losing some talent at spots that will be hard to fill, but we’re also a very young team, and have some great young kids coming up,” Corben said. “We just need to continue to work hard, and put in our time in the offseason. There’s no reason why we can’t get to this same place again next year and maybe go further.”