Early offense and successful goaltending were a big help as the Stony Brook University Seawolves won the Long Island Cup, defeating the Long Island University Sharks 10-6 at the James M. Shuart Stadium on Sunday, Feb. 27.
It will be a memorable moment in Seawolves lacrosse history as the team won the first-ever Long Island Cup. Stony Brook started the tournament by defeating the St. John’s University Red Storm on Friday, Feb. 25, 17-10. Kevin Mack led the Wolves with four goals helping his team advance to the finals.
Stony Brook began Sunday’s game by winning the opening faceoff, and after both teams traded possessions throughout the opening minutes Matt Anderson was able to find the back of the net from a pass from Dylan Pallonetti, giving the Wolves a one-goal lead.
Minutes later, Pallonetti netted his first goal of the game, and less than a minute later he connected on his second. Stony Brook’s lead grew to four when Noah Armitage added his first goal of the afternoon as the Wolves went into the second period leading by four.
It was a defensive battle in the opening minutes of the second period, but after a penalty on Stony Brook’s John Stewart, Blake Behlen found the back of the net, putting the Sharks on the board and cutting LIU’s deficit to three.
The three-goal deficit went back to four when Armitage connected on his second goal, as the Wolves led the Sharks 5-1 after 30 minutes of play.
In the first half, the Sharks had 13 turnovers and managed only six shots on goal while the Wolves took 12. LIU scooped 15 ground balls while Stony Brook had 19.
The scoring started in the third period when Mike McCannell added Stony Brook’s sixth goal of the afternoon with 13:57 remaining in the period.
Thomas Von Bargen was able to score the Sharks’ second goal of the day, but Armitage added to the Wolves’ lead with his third.
Stony Brook had momentum throughout the game, but LIU was able to cut the deficit after goals from Behlen and Sean Boll.
The Wolves’ two-goal run was answered when McCannell added his second goal of the game with three seconds remaining in the third, as Stony Brook led the Sharks 8-4 heading into the final period.
Anderson found the back of the net for the second time in the afternoon, giving the Wolves a five-goal lead, but was answered when Boll brought the Sharks’ deficit back to four.
Both teams traded possessions throughout the remaining minutes, and with goals from the Wolves’ Christian Lowd and the Sharks’ James Butler, Stony Brook came out with a 10-6 win over LIU, winning the first-ever Long Island Cup.
Pallonetti led the Wolves in points with five on two goals and three assists, while Armitage led in goals with three. Jacob Williams led Stony Brook in caused turnovers with three while Lowd scooped up five ground balls.
Goaltender Anthony Palma had 11 saves in the win over LIU. He also collected four ground balls throughout the day.
“They played better than we did,” said Sharks head coach Eric Wolf. “They did well defensively. I need to do a better job at preparing my guys on offense. We need to score more than six goals.”
Photo courtesy of Adam Flash/The Hofstra Chronicle
