Garden City lacrosse overcomes slow start against Syosset

Garden City boys lacrosse might be the best public-school program on Long Island when everything is clicking. But that wasn’t the case Tuesday at Syosset.

Well, for the first seven minutes, at least.

After a slow start that left the Trojans trailing upon exiting the first quarter Garden City left Syosset with an 11-4 road win in Nassau Conference I. The Trojans ran away for their second win of the season by scoring five fourth-quarter goals.

But despite 11 goals and an offensive explosion to end the game for Garden City, it was the defense that shined the brightest. After allowing three unanswered goals inside the first seven minutes the Trojans defense stepped up as senior goalie Jake Schlipf only had to save three shots for the rest of the game.

“Obviously we didn’t come out the way we should’ve,” senior defenseman Luke LeSueur said. “There wasn’t enough energy on our part.”

“Our coaches settled us down and locked us in,” sophomore defenseman Andrew Dengler added.

Dengler earned the responsibility of guarding Syosset star attackman Brody Waxer and lived up to the task, limiting the junior to just one goal.

“I knew (Waxer) was a great guy,” Dengler said. “I knew he was mostly righty, so I definitely jumped his right hand. I think we prepared really well for them today.”

The defense looked impenetrable, only allowing low-percentage shots that would’ve required pinpoint accuracy to even grace the top corners of the goal. Senior midfielders Blake Cascadden and Michael Berkery, along with junior Charlie Koester, played stifling defense.

But it would’ve meant little if the offense couldn’t finish, and that’s where sophomore Anthony Asaro made his presence felt early and often. The attackman scored four goals and assisted two more, with four of his points coming in the second half.

“They started to lock me off, so I started to back cut,” Asaro said. “Thankfully my guys were able to get me the ball.”

Asaro and freshman attackman Ben Smith look like they’ll be causing havoc all season, with Smith delivering a pair of assists to Asaro from behind the goal before the attackman returned the favor by assisting Smith’s pair of goals.

The fact this came against Syosset, a strong program that featured a terrific day by standout senior defenseman Will Cawley (three caused turnovers, five ground balls), shows Garden City is ready to compete with the best of the best.

That includes an upcoming non-league game on Tuesday against Rye. It’s the same program that narrowly fell 9-8 to eventual state Class C champion Bayport-Blue Point in last year’s state semifinal.

“(Rye’s) got a bunch of really good guys, I play club with some of them,” LeSueur said. “That’ll be a challenge.”