Jack Deliberti, Timothy McLam lead Northport boys lacrosse past Massapequa

There’s a difference between playing aggressively and playing carelessly.

Through Saturday afternoon’s rain and wind, the Northport Tigers played aggressively and handled Massapequa, 13-8, in a home non-league boys lacrosse matchup.

The Tigers (10-2) carried a two-goal lead over Massapequa into halftime before outscoring their visitors 6-3 in the second half.

Two days earlier, Northport had committed 13 penalties, fumbled a seven-goal halftime lead and lost to Smithtown East in triple overtime.

Northport coach Larry Cerasi said his team played carelessly in the loss. Saturday’s win proved the Tigers learned from their mistakes.

“We stayed aggressive, and despite the elements, we were able to pass and catch, and we shot well,” Cerasi said. “I am extremely pleased with the response of the full team today.”

Jack Deliberti led Northport with four goals and two assists, and Timothy McLam added four goals. The Tigers only committed two penalties against Massapequa (6-6) and scored four consecutive goals in the fourth quarter.

Ten players tallied a goal or an assist for Northport.

“We had in our minds that we needed to score some goals in the second half,” Deliberti said. “I think we bounced back very efficiently from the Smithtown East game.”

Will Birney’s first of a team-leading three goals gave Massapequa an early lead with 7:25 to play in the first quarter. But Northport answered with three straight goals in 45 seconds and did not trail for the rest of the afternoon.

Long stick midfielder Andrew Miller scored the Tigers’ third goal. Miller, a senior who has played for Northport since his sophomore year, helped Northport gather 19 ground balls.

Northport held its opponent to 10 or fewer goals for the 10th time this year.

“We keep playing better every time I think we step on the field together,” Miller said. “It’s all chemistry, it’s all feel, and knowing who’s got your back when it’s your turn to slide and to know when you’re guarding the ball you have people behind you to help you.”

Massapequa scored 21 goals in its previous game against East Meadow, but Northport goalies Michael Tittmann and Quinn Napolitano combined for six saves on Saturday.

Northport’s Dylan Baumgarth won 20 faceoffs and registered an assist. Luke Loiacono netted three goals with an assist as Northport’s third multi-goal scorer.

“[We] just trust each other,” Miller said. “We had to play more together, and we’re getting there.”

Northport and Massapequa faced off as part of the 21st annual Louis J. Acompora Memorial Lacrosse Jamboree, held in honor of former Northport lacrosse player Louis J. Acompora, who died from cardiac arrest during a game in 2000 as a ninth-grader.

“We wanted to make sure that by playing the game that we did, that we honored the legacy of Louis, the foundation and what they continue to do every day,” Cerasi said.