Bayport-Blue Point girls lacrosse wins in program's first state semifinal, stays unbeaten entering championship

CORTLAND — It’s a moment four years in the making for the seniors on the Bayport-Blue Point girls lacrosse team. For mostly reasons beyond their control, the Phantoms’ core has had limited opportunities to play in a state championship despite possibly being the most talented lacrosse class in school history.

But Bayport-Blue Point has arrived in Cortland. And the players are making sure everyone is aware of it.

Bayport-Blue Point defeated Indian River, 14-5, in the state Class C semifinals at SUNY-Cortland on Friday afternoon. The Phantoms (19-0) play John Jay (19-2) for their first state championship in program history at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday at SUNY-Cortland.

“We’re coming full force,” said Haydin Eisfeld, a senior attack. “We have been looking for this opportunity for years in this program. It’s something that we’ve strived for forever and we finally made it and now’s our chance. It’s all or nothing. We’re going for it.”

The Phantoms won the Long Island Class C title in 2021, but there was no state tournament because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The senior class couldn’t play as freshmen in 2020 and lost in the Long Island Class C final last season.

“We have dreamt of this for so long,” said Madison Weybrecht, a senior defender. “And now it’s our chance and we need to prove to everyone that we deserve to be here.”

“They know what they’re coming up here for,” coach Ryan Gick said. “They are trying to do something and create a legacy and something that’s never been done here before.”

Eisfeld had three goals and two assists and Mikaela Mooney had four goals in the semifinal. Katie Clare had three goals and Ava Meyn added a goal and two assists in the win.

Indian River (19-3) scored the game’s first two goals but Bayport-Blue Point countered with six goals in 12:14 to take a 6-2 lead with 6:35 left in the first half. Eisfeld scored the Phantoms' first two goals on free positions to regain the momentum.

“In our huddle before the game, we convinced ourselves this is ours,” Eisfeld said. “We needed to take what’s ours.”

Bayport-Blue Point outscored Indian River 8-1 in the second half after leading 6-4 at halftime by moving back to a zone defense, as it played the majority of the season.

“We just had to be us,” Weybrecht said. “We watched all the cutters, pressured the girls and in the end, it all came through. It was basically a shutout for us in the second half.”

But the job isn’t done yet. Bayport-Blue Point boarded the bus to Cortland with one goal in mind. Making history. Saturday is that opportunity.

“We have one more box to check and that’s that state final box,” Gick said. “So we just need to keep being us.”

“We need to lock in,” Eisfeld added. “It’s one more game, 50 more minutes of our best lacrosse and we can make history for our school.”