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Sports

Boys Lacrosse: Huntington 2011 Preview

The Blue Devils will try to make the playoffs for the first time since winning the Long Island Championship in 2007.

boys lacrosse coach Paul McDermott has a simple goal for his team each season.

"Our goal every year is to make the playoffs," he said. "Whatever happens after that is great."

A few years ago, the "after that" frequently had a long shelf life. McDermott's Blue Devils were back-to-back state champions in 2005 and 2006 and added a Long Island championship in 2007. But the "after that" has disappeared in the last three seasons, as the team missed the playoff by one game each year.

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"The last three years we were ," he said. "I think we've put out a pretty good team and a pretty good program. We're just falling short on some of the games in the last three years."

Despite the struggles, McDermott has his squad ready to go in 2011. Ranked seventh going into the season, the coach is convinced that his team will take the next step and re-fulfill the yearly goal he sets for his program.

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Last Year: 6-10, 6-8 League II.

Head Coach: Paul McDermott

Top Players:

  • Nick Saputo, senior, attack
  • William Coffey, senior, midfield
  • Peter Kingston, senior, defense
  • Calvin Bollar, senior, defense
  • John McGrath, senior, goaltender

Position Breakdown: On offense, the Blue Devils will employ a 2-2-2 formation. The formation is a six-man offense employing three attackers and three midfielders. One attacker and one midfielder stand at the foot of the crease, while two attackers stand behind the net and two midfielders stay behind the players at the crease. When a player from one of the units possesses the ball, all three players move in a triangular motion, moving to one of the other attack or midfield spots.

"We've run a more attack-generated offense in the last couple of years," said coach McDermott. "This year it's half-and-half. I think that's the way an offense has to run, 6-on-6."

The Blue Devils lost key attacker Jack Dever to graduation, but they still return numerous multiple-year starters. Their main threat on attack will be senior Nick Saputo, who was an All-County player in 2010. Saputo, who will attend Drexel in the fall, scored over 25 goals and won 75% of his faceoffs a year ago. Joining Saputo on attack will be senior Jack Castelli and senior Jim Roselle, who missed most of last season with a knee injury. 

The midfield will be led by three-year starter Will Coffey, who, according to coach McDermott, "does a little bit of everything for us. He transitions well, has a real hard shot, and also plays great midfield defense." Joining Coffey in midfield will be junior Dan Plant and senior Pat O'Brien, who will attend SUNY Geneseo.

On defense, the Blue Devils will mostly employ man-to-man coverage. "With man-to-man, we have a lot of better defensive players who can stick attackmen," said defender Peter Kingston. "It’s better to play man-to-man because our team can play everybody one-on-one."

Many teams choose to employ a zone defense, but coach McDermott strongly opposed that strategy. "If you sit back in a zone, you're not going to go out and attack the ball," he said. "You're going to lose."

Joining Kingston, who will usually cover the opposition's best attacker during games. on the back line will be senior Calvin Bollar (a four-year starter), senior Ryan Mulligan (headed to Maritime College in the fall). Senior PJ White, a transfer from Whitman, will also factor into the rotation. 

The Blue Devils only lost a few key seniors, but perhaps the most important graduate was in goal, where the team will need to replace All-Division goaltender Andrew Sheerin. The loss didn't seem to faze coach McDermott, however, who has plenty of faith in his replacement, senior John McGrath.

"John is the heart of our defense right now," said the coach. "He's really a quick clearer when he saves the ball. He gets the ball out of his stick real quick [and gets it] upfield."

McGrath likes to communicate with his defenders in front of them. "I take control," he said. "I give them directions, making sure everyone is in the right place at the right time. As a defense, if we're all talking, that's when we're at our best."

Expectations: One of the things working to Huntington's advantage this season is their familiarity with each other. Many of the players have played together since their middle school days. 

"I’ve been playing with the whole defense since ninth grade," said Kingston. "We have team chemistry, we know each other’s strengths and weaknesses. It definitely helps on on the field.

"When I make a save, I know exactly where my guys are going to be," said McGrath. "That comes from playing with these guys since eighth, ninth, tenth grade. We know everyone's strengths and weaknesses, we know where everyone's going to be. If we know that, other teams can't stop us."

In an effort to get his players even more in sync with one another, coach McDermott had his team play in several tournaments over the summer, at colleges such as UMass and Hofstra. They also played in a fall tournament at Shoreham-Wading River.

"It brings the team together as a group," he said. "We’ve been keeping them together and keeping close watch on what they’re doing. It’s really year-round that these guys are playing. And the more they’re playing, the better they are."

The Blue Devils come into League II play ranked seventh out of fifteen teams, which would qualify them for a playoff spot. So their expectation to make the playoffs isn't off base. 

"We’re all tired of just missing the playoffs by just one or two games," said McGrath. "We had a strong summer [and] a strong offseason. We’ve all been working out. We know that we can take it all the way this year."

"They know what we want to do this year," McDermott said. "They know where we have to go. We’re better than 6-8 this year. A heck of a lot better. Stay healthy, good attitudes, and we’re gonna make things happen."

Key Games:

March 31: Huntington @  Eastport-South Manor, 4:30 p.m.

April 8: Comsewogue @ Huntington, 4 p.m.

April 15: Huntington @ Hauppauge, 5 p.m.

April 18: Huntington @ Cold Spring Harbor, 12 p.m.

May 5: Huntington @ Shoreham-Wading River, 4:30 p.m.

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