Oceanside wins playoff thriller

Oceanside failed to protect a five-goal advantage it built in the first half and squandered a pair of one-goal leads late in the second half but dug deep in a frantic final minute to pull out a thrilling 13-12 win at Farmingdale in a Nassau Class A girls’ lacrosse quarterfinal playoff matchup on May 17.

Christina McCabe scored a dynamic go-ahead goal with 57 seconds remaining and the defense withstood constant pressure in what proved to be the game’s last possession. McCabe, Alison Schwasnick and Kaitlyn Rapp, all seniors, had three goals apiece and senior goaltender Allie Long made three of her 12 saves in crunch time as the fifth-seeded Lady Sailors (9-6) kept their first season under coach Ralph Montera Jr. alive.

“We never lost confidence,” McCabe said. “Even though they kept coming back and tied it a few times, we never let them take the lead. It was probably the wildest game I’ve played in.”

Senior Kelsey Williams added two goals for Oceanside, which faces No. 1 Massapequa in the semifinals at Adelphi University at 4 p.m. Thursday. Caroline Bleck scored six goals — three in each half — and Cailee Perettine added two goals and two assists to lead fourth-seeded Farmingdale.

“They’re a physical and fast team and started to wear us down, but our girls were resilient,” Montera Jr. said. “We stood up to the pressure and kept our composure. It’s a great win.”

The Lady Dalers scored five unanswered goals, the first just before the horn sounded to end the opening half, to pull even after junior Payton McMahon gave Oceanside a 10-5 lead at the 22:26 mark. “That goal right before halftime hurt,” Montera Jr. said. “It gave them a little momentum and they came out really aggressive in the second half.”

Kelly Bergensen found the net 24 seconds into the second half and Farmingdale’s success on draws and in transition led to three more tallies over the next six minutes and suddenly it was 10-10. “It was a hot day and we were trying our best to keep our midfielders fresh,” Montera Jr. said. “Give Farmingdale credit for coming at us as hard as they did.”

Schwasnick put the Lady Sailors back in front with 17:17 left, but Olivia Mott re-tied it just over three minutes later. McCabe made it 12-11 with 10:56 to go, but Perettine answered with 7:28 remaining.  

With the score still knotted at 12 thanks to two key stops by Long, Montera Jr. called timeout to talk strategy with 3:38 to go. “I wanted to make sure we didn’t force anything,” he said.

McCabe, who had two assists, was thinking pass when she possessed the ball behind the cage with just over a minute left. “They were doubling me throughout the game and usually I look to pass to an open cutter when that happens,” she said. “The defense didn’t slide quick enough, so I took the opportunity to shoot.”