East Meadow boys soccer's upset run leads to Nassau Class AAA title
Robert Derwin #8 of East Meadow reacts after the first of his two goals in the first half of the Nassau Class AAA boys soccer championship against Plainview-Old Bethpage JFK at Mitchel Athletic Complex on Wednesday, Nov. 1, 2023. Credit: James Escher
The higher seeds kept tumbling at the feet of East Meadow.
The Jets ousted No. 1 Uniondale in the Nassau Class AAA quarterfinals, then No. 4 Baldwin in the semis.
And East Meadow did it again Wednesday, getting two goals from senior striker Robert Derwin and holding on to beat No. 2 Plainview-Old Bethpage JFK, 4-3, in the final at Mitchel Athletic Complex to claim the soccer program’s first county championship.
History happened.
“It feels like a dream come true,” Derwin said. “Everyone thought since we were the eighth seed, we’re not going to do anything; we’re not going to win. But we’ve proven everyone wrong.”
So the Jets, now 10-5-2 after a 2-11-1 2022 season, move on to the Long Island AAA championship game Sunday at Patchogue-Medford against the winner of Thursday night’s Suffolk final between Brentwood and Ward Melville.
“Surreal,” coach Bryan Horrmann said about taking the title. “It felt like it was our time. These kids rose to the occasion every single time.”
Those kids got off to a great start.
Raymond McLeod scored from in close on a header just 5:41 in, giving the senior a goal in all three postseason games.
Esteban Canales-Moreno sailed a long free kick that Derwin headed in for a 2-0 lead with 30:30 left in the first half.
Nicholas Shuleshov delivered a penalty kick nearly six minutes later to cut the margin in half.
But Derwin scored again from about 20 yards out on a deflection off a defender’s foot, making it 3-1 with 19:35 remaining until the break.
After a takedown in the box at the 4:52 mark, Dylan Wauchope converted a penalty kick for the third time in three postseason games — 4-1.
The Hawks (11-4-2), who won the AA crown in 2022, soon countered with a goal by Manny Paulo to cap the eventful half, then chipped it down to 4-3 when Shuleshov scored off a rebound with 18:14 remaining.
“Getting back to this point was great,” coach Christine Ho said. “Obviously, we wish things would be a little bit different. But East Meadow did a great job.”
