Bulldog Lacrosse Unravels RVC Cyclones for 8-6 Win

By Jonathan Walter
Standard Staff Reporter

In one of their toughest games of the year, Hewlett Bulldogs boys lacrosse came out on top as they defeated the South Side Cyclones of Rockville Center 8-6 on Wednesday night under the lights at Hewlett High School.  Also highlighting the evening for Hewlett was the induction of Max Seibald, former midfielder on the team and current professional lacrosse player, into the Hewlett Hall of Fame at halftime.

“We honored not only the best Hewlett player, but probably the best player in the country,” Hewlett Head Coach Chris Passuella said of Seibald

South Side started the game off with a goal from Peter Clarke halfway through the first quarter.  Tough defense set the tone for the night, as both squads refused to allow the other and good shots, and both goalies made some tough saves.  However, with three minutes left in the first period, Zach Richmond, Hewlett’s leading goal scorer, found a crease up the middle and bounced a shot past the South Side goalie to tie the game.

In the second quarter, it was Sam Martorella who found a hole in the South Side defense after a turnover and a nice assist from Mark Rizzo to give Hewlett the lead, but South Side didn’t let them have the lead for long as they scored another goal of their own less than a minute later.  Then, with two minutes left in the second quarter, Richmond held the ball for over 30 seconds as he wore down defenders covering him.  He was able to break away from one, get a good look at the net and score.

“We have a lot of speed on our team,” Richmond said.  “We can beat any team man to man who presses on us.  I felt the pressure, snuck under one guy, a second guy came, and I deked under him and let it rip.”

Once again however, just over a minute later, South Side tied the game back up at three apiece, the score at halftime.

South Side’s Clarke lead the second half off with a goal, but that’s when Hewlett took control, getting consecutive goals from Kevin Fuchs, a goal from Jimmy Anderson, and then Richmond scored two more goals in the fourth quarter to put Hewlett up 8-4.  From there on, Hewlett worked the clock.  South Side scored two more times, but they didn’t have enough time to mount a comeback as Hewlett earned the victory to improve to 5-2 overall and 2-1 in their conference.

“It was a back and forth game,” Passuella said.  “Our league is brutally tough.  They are very good but we have a lot of tough games.  We have a big game on Saturday against Plainedge and it doesn’t get any better.  If we’re hard and tenacious, we’re a very good team.  If we don’t play with that energy then we’re not a good team.”

“We haven’t beat them for the past three years that I’ve been on varsity,” Richmond said of the win.  “We do a lot of six on four in practice every day, so when we were two men down, our defense held strong and pulled this one out.  We still have a lot to work on offensively and defensively, but it’s definitely a good start to the league season.”

Hewlett takes on Plainedge next on Saturday at Plainedge High School for a 3:00 p.m. game.