Total Team Win For Westhampton Beach Boys Lacrosse In 13-2 Wallop Of Center Moriches

Westhampton Beach’s boys lacrosse team members believe they’re hitting their stride, and it couldn’t have come at a better time as the 7-3 Hurricanes make a push for a playoff berth.

“We’re back on track,” said sophomore Nolan Michalowski following the team’s 13-2 win at Center Moriches on Saturday. “And we’re in a good spot.”

Michalowski was an integral part of the team’s April 23 ambush. The faceoff specialist won all but three meetings in the circle, securing crucial time of possession for the Hurricanes. Nearly every scoop by him or his teammates led to a good Westhampton goal, and the team peppered the scoreboard across all four quarters.

“I felt I did pretty well,” the sophomore said, smiling. “Possession means a lot in the game — I think that was the decider.”

Senior attack Dan Naglieri said when Michalowski is successful, so are his Hurricanes.

“Nolan is a huge part of this team,” he said, “and when he’s good we’re winning games.”

The attackman was also a big part of why Westhampton jumped out to an early lead. Naglieri, who scored both his goals in the second quarter, finished back-to-back shots for the Hurricanes over a two-minute span for a 4-1 advantage. He also assisted two of his teammates, and found the ball in his stick across much of the first half. He scored his first goal off a feed from senior Chris Koltzan (two goals, one assist), who quickly dished a pass from senior Gavin Arcuri (two goals, three assists) across the front of the cage. Naglieri rocketed the ball from the right side into the high left corner of the netting for his second score.

“I started off pretty hot … I think our team played really well together,” Naglieri said. “We used the pick game, and Gavin cutting off end-line plays contributed to my success. When I could get my hands free, I finished it.”

Senior Christian Killoran’s ground-ball scoops were also a key component. The longstick midfielder made sure to always keep his pole ready, and close to the action.

“One of my jobs is to make every ground ball a fight, and it always feels good to come away with several key takeaways and good clears that lead to successful offensive possessions,” Killoran said. “It feels great contributing to the team as much as I can.”

When other teammates’ sticks grew cold in the second half, junior Morgan McEntee came through, scoring his hat trick goal to open the fourth quarter with a 9-1 advantage. But he started his work much earlier than that, with several shot attempts, one of which finally hit its mark with 35.2 seconds left in the first half for a 6-1 lead heading into the break.

“We have a lot more to do,” Michalowski said. “But we’ve got a lot of threats on the field.”

Killoran said the Hurricanes’ deep bench doesn’t hurt, either. A total of 10 different players got on the stat sheet.

“There are plenty of guys that can go in if a starter is hurt or tired and produce as if the starter were in,” he said. “The team’s morale is at a high right now.”

That’s especially true because of the balance on both ends of the field. The defense locked down Red Devils (2-8) Richard DeChiaro and Jack Kleinman, which was the game plan from the start, holding DeChiaro to one goal and keeping Kleinman off the scoreboard.

Senior goalkeepers Jake D’Agata (six saves) and Conor Farnan (two stops) were also on their game.

Westhampton hosts top-seeded and undefeated Mt. Sinai (12-0) at 5 p.m. Tuesday before welcoming Bayport-Blue Point (4-5 as of Monday) April 28 for a 4 p.m. matchup. The Hurricanes travel to Bellport (1-4) Tuesday, May 3. That game is also slated to start at 4 p.m.

“Hopefully we’ll keep this momentum rolling and slide into the playoffs,” Naglieri said. “I think if we can get into the playoffs we can play with anyone.”