Iannetta, Lovett lead Wantagh girls' win
Wantagh attack Paula Schmidt #19 moves the ball past Mount Sinai midfield Marisa Colacino #13. (May 7, 2011) Credit: George A. Faella
Dictionary.com defines the word undaunted as "not forced to abandon purpose or effort." In a Wantagh lacrosse thesaurus, though, "Colleen Lovett" and "April Iannetta" might turn up as synonyms.
Assistant coach Ody Slovos "likes to say it means, 'Come get some,' Iannetta said of the SAT word emblazoned in uppercase on the backs of the Warriors' warm-up shirts. "It means we're ready and we're not afraid."
Before each season, the coaches come up with a phrase that serves as the girls lacrosse team's mantra. "Despite the trials of facing tough competition," Slovos said, "we won't back down."
Its use in a sentence: Iannetta and Lovett, undaunted by Mount Sinai's pressure defense and home crowd, exploded offensively to lead Wantagh to a 15-11 victory Saturday in the Long Island Challenge.
Iannetta, who was named game MVP, had three goals and four assists, and Lovett had five goals and four assists. Paula Schmidt and Sabrina Mattera each added three goals and Kelly Keenan made 11 saves.
"To me it means that just because we don't have a bunch of big names doesn't mean we aren't up there with the best teams," Lovett said, referring to conference rivals Garden City and Manhasset.
Iannetta put Wantagh (12-2) on the board 48 seconds into the game off a quick flip from Lovett. They never relinquished that lead.
"The offense was just clicking," Warriors coach Bobbi Colavitto said. "We played the style of offense we like to play and it came together."
Caroline Fitzgerald had four goals, Shayna Pirreca and Kasey Mitchell each had two goals and an assist, and Julia Michaels made nine saves for Mt. Sinai (9-3).
The Warriors, who boast a high-scoring offense, entered having outscored their previous two opponents by a combined 14 goals. So, all things considered, they were held in check . . . relatively. Alas, beating Wantagh is proving to be a daunting task.
"Yeah," Iannetta said with a laugh. "Come get some."
Trojans win. Garden City has left little room for doubt about their standing in L.I. this season. The Trojans solidified it with a 17-7 win over Northport in the nightcap at Mt. Sinai.
Senior Barbara Sullivan scored a career-high five goals and had an assist to lead Garden City (13-0), which entered ranked No. 2 in the nation by ESPN Rise. Alexandra Bruno added three goals and four assists and Kelly Weis made seven saves. Shannon Gilroy had four goals for Northport (11-2), which was the No. 15 team.
The teams had faced each other in 2007 and 2009, with the Tigers winning both.
"We have a friendly rivalry with them and two years ago we got spanked," said Sullivan, who was named game MVP. "Our goal for this game was to prove our dominance in Long Island."
'Why am I giving up my Friday night to listen to this?' A Newsday analysis shows the number of referees and umpires has declined 25.2% in Nassau and 18.1% in Suffolk since 2011-12. Officials and administrators say the main reason is spectator behavior. NewsdayTV's Carissa Kellman reports.
'Why am I giving up my Friday night to listen to this?' A Newsday analysis shows the number of referees and umpires has declined 25.2% in Nassau and 18.1% in Suffolk since 2011-12. Officials and administrators say the main reason is spectator behavior. NewsdayTV's Carissa Kellman reports.
