Joey Spallina sets LI points record as Mount Sinai wins Suffolk Class C boys lacrosse crown
Mt. Sinai's Joey Spallina shoots and scores during the Suffolk Class C boys lacrosse final against Shoreham-Wading River in East Islip on Tuesday, May 31, 2022. Credit: Peter Frutkoff
Back on the same field where they won a Long Island championship with a last-minute goal in a game of the year candidate last June, the Mount Sinai boys lacrosse team put forth another special performance Tuesday at East Islip High School.
Joey Spallina had three goals and five assists, giving him 501 career points, surpassing the previous Long Island boys lacrosse record of 500 held by West Islip’s Nick Galasso in 2010, and the top-seeded Mustangs defeated No. 2 Shoreham-Wading River, 16-5, to capture their second straight Suffolk Class C title.
Spallina’s unassisted goal with 2:37 remaining was the one that gave him the record.
“When you’re that close to the record it’s obviously in your head,” Spallina said. “Early in the game it was all about getting the team the win. But when we’re playing like that it’s easy to put the points up.”
And while Spallina’s pursuit of the record was a main storyline entering the game, the rest of his Mt. Sinai teammates showed once again that they are far from a one-player team.
Lucas LaForge had six goals and an assist and was a huge part of the great start the Mustangs (18-0) got in the first quarter.
LaForge scored the game's first three goals and added his fourth with 16.8 seconds remaining in the quarter to put the Mustangs ahead 6-1. Between the incredibly efficient offense and the dominance of Austin Oppenheim on faceoffs Mt. Sinai took complete control early and never let go.
“We knew it was a huge game and it was going to be a tough battle,” LaForge said. “We knew we really needed to get going early. We’ve been working so hard in practice and preparing for weeks so we did what we needed to do and the score shows.”
Cole Marsala had three goals and an assist, Gavin Takacs added two goals and an assist and Brayden Wilcken made 11 saves.
“The way we played in that first quarter I knew we were in a good spot,” Spallina said. “After the first quarter we were kind of in cruise control, which is always good.”
Shoreham-Wading River (15-2) had five goal scorers, including leading scorer Alec Gregorek and star midfielder Francisco Cortes.
The Mustangs will move on to play the winner of Manhasset and South Side in the Long Island championship Saturday at Hofstra at 5:30 p.m.
And with the record behind him Spallina and his teammates can focus solely on their next goal - another Long Island title and a trip upstate.
“When I scored that goal it was everything all at once,” Spallina said. “It was the 5 a.m.’s in the gym and all the shooting after practice and all the hard work. This was step one, it’s great, but we have bigger goals in mind.”
Gene Morris joined Newsday's sports department in September 2012 and covers high school sports. He earned a journalism degree from Stony Brook University in 2010.
