Nik Barbero's OT winner lifts Ward Melville boys lacrosse over Connetquot

Nik Barbero wanted to end it.

Late in overtime, the Ward Melville senior had his chance.

Barbero scored the overtime winner, one of his three goals against Connetquot in a Suffolk I boys lacrosse matchup on Saturday.

The host Patriots won 10-9 in a game that featured seven lead changes.

“I wanted to stick it to end the game,” Barbero said. “That was the goal. I wanted it to end right there.”

Brody Morgan tied the game for Ward Melville with 3:19 to play in the fourth quarter. Connetquot earned the first possession of overtime before Patriots goalie Charlie Giachetti made one of his 13 saves.

A Connetquot offsides penalty handed Ward Melville (5-0, 5-2) a man-up opportunity, where attack Stephen Rosano crept around the net and fed Barbero cutting to him.

Barbero wired a right-handed shot into the bottom left corner, then slid on his stomach as his teammates stormed the field.

“We have a special connection on the field,” Rosano said of Barbero. “When I caught the ball I knew I was looking for him. He made a great cut down the field, pass right to him and I knew that was going in.”

Barbero, one of only two returning starters on Ward Melville’s roster, along with defender Aidan McMinn, said the Patriots ran the winning play at least six times during the game without finding the look they wanted.

The Patriots zigged and zagged to create an open lane for Barbero, who swept around the outside with space to shoot.

“The two guys cutting down the middle, they’re the priority. But them cutting down creates so much attention that leaves me open around the back,” Barbero said. “Once I got the right cut and saw Rosano come around, I just knew it was going to happen there.”

Tyler McCarthy scored three goals with three assists for Connetquot (5-1, 6-2), and Tyler Moore added three goals for the Thunderbirds.

Connetquot starting goalie Connor FitzGibbon stopped seven shots before injuring himself early in the second half and limping to the sideline, where he sat on the bench and stood with crutches.

The Thunderbirds had a chance to score with less than a minute to play in the fourth quarter, but Ward Melville’s defense forced a turnover.

“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little nervous,” Ward Melville’s McMinn said. “Our defense has been locking it down all year, but it was definitely nerve-wracking. I knew our team could do it.”

Barbero’s three goals and two assists, along with Rosano’s two goals and two assists, led Ward Melville. Seven different Patriots scored in the team’s third straight win.

Ward Melville has lost its only two games out of conference this season against nationally ranked Chaminade and Garden City. The Patriots lost to Garden City, their most recent loss, in quadruple overtime on the same field they won Saturday.

“I really think we learned from that Garden City game,” Ward Melville coach Jay Negus said. “We’ve had some experience in that moment from the Garden City game. I think it really helped us today.

“Our defense did a great job today making those stops. Connetquot has some very talented offensive kids. But we play extremely well together, this group, and I think that’s what made the difference.”

Negus said the win over Connetquot is a building block toward what the Patriots want to accomplish this spring. Ward Melville and Northport are the only Suffolk I teams without a conference loss.

“I’m looking at these kids, and they don’t back down,” Negus said. “They have energy and effort, and that’s going to propel them as we go through this season.”