Massapequa boys win state lacrosse championship

ROCHESTER – Thomas Greenblatt couldn’t quite wrap his mind around the moment.

The Massapequa senior midfielder said he’d been dreaming of winning a lacrosse championship since he was in second grade, but on Saturday morning every expectation he had disappeared as the Chiefs defeated Fairport 10-6 in the Class A state final at St. John Fisher College.

It wasn’t what Greenblatt planned exactly, because, he said, it was better.

“It’s amazing and I’ve been envisioning this for so long,” said Greenblatt, who led Massapequa with three goals and three assists. “It’s a little surreal right now. I don’t even have words, it’s awesome.”

It’s the first state championship for Massapequa since 2014.

Eamon Hall, Colin Gleason and Sam Lutfi added two goals each, while Angelo Petrakis won 15 of 20 faceoffs and Nicholas Squicciarini made nine saves.

“They’re a special group,” coach Tim Radomski said. “They played their hearts out every game, nothing worried them. Up goals, tie games, and they kept playing and working hard. That’s the type of kids they are.”

Massapequa (18-2) jumped out to an early lead, scoring the opening goal on Garrett Gibbon’s unassisted shot with 8:12 left in the first, and never looked back. Petrakis dominated at the ‘x’ throughout the first half, winning eight of 11, and the Chiefs controlled possession to take a 6-3 lead into the break.

“It’s crucial to get out to a fast start, get a lead early,” Petrakis said. “Once we’ve got that lead, I’m pretty confident at the faceoff ‘x,’ I’ll get my job done, and my teammates will do the rest.”

Massapequa padded its lead down the stretch, but it was Greenblatt who, effectively, put the game away in the opening minutes of the fourth. He scored a pair of unassisted goals and, with 8:00 left, the Chiefs took a 10-4 lead.

“We know when to take shots, when not to and when not to force shots,” Greenblatt said. “We pride ourselves on being the best conditioned team in the country as well and that’s why we’re able to pull away in the second half.”

Fairport (18-3) did its best to rally, winning a pair of faceoffs and scoring two goals in a ten-second span, making it 10-6 with 5:41 left, but that was as close as the Red Raiders would get. Petrakis won the next faceoff and Massapequa held possession until the final whistle.

The Chiefs didn’t rush the final moments, but settled into their set, dodging defenders and keeping the ball away from Fairport. After all, if the Red Raiders didn’t have the ball, they couldn’t score.

“We call it secure victory,” Radomski said. “The guys get their sticks going and they’re running away from doubles, moving the ball when they see coverage coming and eat the clock.”

It’s been a historic season for Massapequa, one many of the seniors have been picturing since they first started playing together and while they’re sad to see their high-school careers end, they couldn’t have come up with a better finish.

“There’s no doubt that we’re the best team in the state,” Petrakis said. “We proved that today. We executed perfectly and came out state champs.”