Long Island talent on full display within the Farmingdale State lacrosse programs
Thomas Strock (25) is a top player for Farmingdale State men’s lacrosse team that has qualified for the 2024 NCAA Tournament. Photo Courtesy: Farmingdale State College athletics Credit: Farmingdale State College athletics
The 2024 Farmingdale State men’s lacrosse team did something no other team in program history had done before: make the NCAA Tournament.
Farmingdale State (16-4) claimed its first Skyline Conference championship with a 12-11 win over Maritime on May 3, punching its ticket to Division III’s Big Dance. The Rams' special season ended Wednesday with a 16-8 loss to St. Mary’s (Maryland) in the first round.
With 26 of their 27 players from Long Island, the Rams’ local presence is impossible to ignore and is not taken lightly.
“It’s definitely a pride thing,” senior attackman Thomas Stock said. “All the guys are all local. We all know each other. We’ve all played with each other growing up — playing against each other, playing with each other. It’s fun to be around the guys that you’ve known forever and accomplish something like winning a championship.”
Stock, a Selden native and Newfield High School product, was the Skyline Offensive Player of the Year. He had 66 goals and 35 assists this season to become the program’s all-time single-season points leader (101). Stock also has the most career goals (148) and points (232) in program history.
Senior midfielder Kyle Kolano (North Babylon), freshman defender Joseph Bleck (Farmingdale) and senior faceoff specialist Antonio Kaminskey (Lindenhurst) all joined Stock on the all-conference first team. Kolano had 42 goals and 16 assists, Bleck caused 26 turnovers and Kaminskey won 61.6% of his faceoffs this season.
Freshman attack Adam Giovinco of Syosset, who had 57 goals and 28 assists, earned Skyline Rookie of the Year honors. He became one of just four players in program history to total 50 goals in a season. Sean Chamberlain, the former Stony Brook captain, was named the Skyline Co-Coach of the Year in his 10th season with the Rams.
Farmingdale State had won three junior college national titles in the pre-NCAA era (2001 was its first NCAA season) under Fred Acee, but these Rams recognize the importance of success at this level.
“It means a lot,” Stock said. “There’s a bunch of guys that were here in the past that we did it for. There’s like no words to put how I feel. It’s an unbelievable feeling.”
Freshman Livingston leads Rams to tourney
In just one season with the Farmingdale State women’s lacrosse team, Carly Livingston set a new standard for success.
The freshman attack broke records, setting the program’s single-season mark for goals (75) and points (120). The Rams (11-8) claimed their fifth Skyline Conference title and earned their seventh straight victory with a 13-10 win over Maritime on May 4. They will face Trinity (Connecticut) in an NCAA Tournament first-round matchup on Saturday.
“In the beginning of the season we came out a little short, a little scared, I guess you could say a little doubtful,” Livingston said. “But we picked it up and it’s been great. A great feeling, we’re all happy together. A great team.”
The Rams lost their first three games and started the season 3-7. Having a player like Livingston — a Farmingdale native who transferred from Mercy following the fall semester — certainly helps. She called the decision to transfer “the best choice I ever made.”
Livingston is tied for fifth in the nation with 120 points, just the second 100-point season in program history. The Skyline Rookie of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year had six goals and six assists in a 18-13 Skyline semifinal win over St. Joseph’s-Long Island, and seven goals and an assist in the championship game win over Maritime.
“I’m not really worried about my points or anything,” Livingston said. “That’s just a bonus for me. I just care about winning and being with my team, playing as a team, playing as a family, and everything else is just extra for me.”
Senior midfielder Ashley Codispoti (Patchogue) and junior defender Sarah Fava (Lynbrook) both joined Livingston on the all-conference first team. Codispoti had 42 goals and 22 assists and Fava had 53 ground balls and 38 caused turnovers.
All but two players on Farmingdale State’s roster are from Long Island.
“We’ve been working towards this,” Livingston said. “Even if we didn’t think we would get this far, we did this. We deserve this.”
Ben Dickson joined Newsday’s high school sports staff in 2023 after graduating from Maryland, where he covered several of the Terrapins' teams.
