Rattmer’s strong defense leads Longwood past Bay Shore

Teams are usually happy when they gain possession in lacrosse. But when you’re facing the Longwood boys team, all that means is long-stick midfielder Brady Rattmer is about to step onto the field.

The senior excels at turning smiles upside down. And after he forced three turnovers and disrupted most attacks that came his way, the only team left grinning at Bay Shore High School was Longwood, as the Lions roared to a 10-4 win over the Marauders Tuesday afternoon in Suffolk League I.

Sophomore Collin Kelly and seniors Darrell Smith and Conor Marr played equally sound defense with Rattmer in front of them as Longwood forced four shot-clock violations. Bay Shore struggled to challenge freshman goalie Alex Herrera (five saves).

“We focused on communicating and helping each other out when we’re down,” Rattmer said. “That’s what makes a defense.”

“From a team standpoint, we wanted to win the transition, make sure we didn’t give up any cheap ones,” Longwood coach Bryce Krawec said.

That focus proved fruitful with Longwood leading 4-2 in the third quarter. Rattmer helped force a turnover that led Smith to scoop the ground ball and hit Rattmer in stride across the middle of the field. The long-stick midfielder galloped all the way into the offensive zone before dishing a pass to senior James Gritz, who scored.

The performance comes at the right time for Longwood, which allowed 32 goals across its last two games — losses to Mount Sinai and Ward Melville. It also came against the right team, with both Rattmer and senior attackman Justin Silon noting how last year’s 15-6 loss to Bay Shore stuck with the team.

“I thought about it all the time,” Silon said. “In a big game in front of many people, to lose like that, it’s not a great feeling. So, we prepared, we executed and we played our top game.”

Silon matched the team’s strong defensive effort with an electric second-half performance. He scored three goals and assisted another for a game-high four points.

“I thought to myself and reflected on how me as a player could help the team,” Silon said. “I think moving the ball, getting the whole offense going, helps us as a team. So, I had to hone in on myself mentally.”

Senior goalie Devin Dubendorf made nine saves for Bay Shore (3-2, 2-1), including several early in the game that kept the Marauders floating.

Longwood (2-2, 1-1) gained its first win in league play. And if Rattmer has his way, it will be the first of many for the Lions.

“This was definitely a big game,” Krawec said. “We saw the Newsday article [about the loss to Bay Shore] last year and understood how much it meant to them. For us it was about battling today, and I’m really proud of the whole team.”