Westhampton Beach Girls Lacrosse Eliminated by Mt. Sinai

The Westhampton Beach girls lacrosse team turned a 6-2 halftime deficit into a 7-6 game late last Wednesday. Unfortunately for the No. 3-seeded Hurricanes, their efforts were not enough as they came up a goal short in a Suffolk County Class C opening-round playoff loss to No. 6 Mt. Sinai at the May 17 match.

It comes just one season after the team won Class B county and Long Island titles en route to the state semifinals.

“I’m proud that we didn’t lay down, because it would have been easy to start that second half being down on ourselves,” head coach Mary Bergmann said. “I knew we could do this, but they know what it feels like to almost go as far as we possibly could go and now they know what it feels like to go out in the first round, so I think it’s going to help these kids next year. I know they don’t want to feel like this.”

The Hurricanes (10-7) were down 3-1 before sophomore attack Brie Provenzano found junior Peyton Worby for her second goal of the game and the only scores for Westhampton Beach before halftime.

The team had maintained a defense used in an 11-6 win over Rocky Point almost a week prior, but struggled to use it correctly or effectively against the Mustangs. The offense also grappled with running its plays and maintaining possession as Mt. Sinai (10-5) capitalized off each turnover and rebound of sophomore goalkeeper Maya Farnan’s seven saves.

“The first half was rough because we dug ourselves such a big hole, but we were able to stay positive and take care of the ball in order to make the game closer,” said sophomore midfielder and defender Lily Graves. “We began to run our plays correctly and wait for the good opportunity to score. We all fought hard at the end to try and strip the ball for a quick goal. We hoped to leave the game with zero regrets.”

Senior midfielder and defender Reilly Mahon scooped up a ground ball off the opening draw of the second half and dished it to freshman attack Ava Derby, who took it all the way for a score from the left side.

“I saw that I had the opportunity to go, and I took advantage of it,” Derby said of her goal just 20 seconds in. “We had to start the half off strong, and that started with the draw team and it definitely brought the energy up. We started playing as a team and getting more shots off.”

Mt. Sinai countered quickly, but with its only goal of the second half as the Hurricanes locked down with its rover defense — where a zone utilizes three defenders on top who defend the perimeter wing to wing, while the rover is the player who guards the baseline corner to corner.

“I thought to switch the defense to a rover would help because we played good in it last time we played Sinai,” Graves said. “It did help. Only letting them score one goal in the second half was huge.”

The sophomore scooped up the next ground ball inside the 17-minute mark, and that led to sophomore midfielder Reese King’s goal off a Mahon assist.

“We knew we weren’t playing like ourselves, so we all agreed to step it up and try to prove why we are such a great team,” Mahon said. “I was very proud of how we chipped away at it slowly and kept pushing until the very end.”

King forced a turnover next and Derby tallied her second by bulling her way up to the front of the cage on a free position and dunking it in. King scored the last goal on a rocket up high on a free position with 9:09 left to play.

“I always say that you lose in the playoffs with what your major issues were during the season, and both sides of the field have not been 100 percent at the same time,” Bergmann said. “We were getting momentum to swing back in our favor, we just couldn’t come up with that last goal and that’s been an issue of ours throughout the season — getting the goal in those clutch situations. It’s something to work on.”

Mahon won possession off the ensuing draw and the Hurricanes called timeout to draw up the play, but missed some passes, and caused turnovers put panic in Westhampton Beach. Graves, Mahon and sophomore attack Meaghan Tufano all picked up crucial ground balls to keep time in Westhampton Beach’s favor, and junior defender Chloe Mosher forced Mt. Sinai out of bounds to win back possession with seconds left, but the Hurricanes couldn’t get a clean shot at the cage as the Mustangs scooped up the ball to secure the 7-6 win.

“It was a slow start for us. We weren’t running our first defense the right way. We struggled with plays. We weren’t getting the ball in the attacking end. And we got into a hole,” Bergmann said. “In playoff games like this, that stuff matters. You have to get the job done.”

The Hurricanes will have the opportunity to work on their game and avenge the loss with the team graduating just a handful of seniors, an even smaller number of whom were starters.

“I thought that we put up a great fight in the second half — it was just too late,” Derby said. “Since most of our starters are returning, that puts us in a great spot for next year. We’re already looking to pick up right where we left off. This loss is going to be our fuel.”

Still, the team is going to miss impactful players like Mahon, whom Bergmann has worked with since she was in middle school.

“Reilly is such a great leader,” the coach said. “What she does on the field — like coming up with big caused turnovers or winning the ball off the draw — isn’t always seen on stat sheets. She really is the heart of the team. Those are big shoes to fill.”

Graves said working alongside her team leader has been nothing but beneficial for her own game.

“She is an amazing defender and I learned a lot from her this season,” she said of the Loyola University-bound Mahon. “All the seniors will be missed.”

“They are amazing role models,” Derby added. “We would not have gone as far without them setting high standards every day.”

Mahon said she, too, has enjoyed every second of her time as a Hurricane representing Westhampton Beach.

“This team and group of girls are my best friends,” said the senior, who was part of the Hurricanes team that took home the program’s first-ever Suffolk County and Long Island championship titles. “I love playing with them. They are super inspiring. I am honored to be a part of a team with these girls and without them I would not have been a part of the big-time games. They have fought hard with me, and we proved together we can be unstoppable.”

Bergmann said while it still doesn’t feel real that the season is over, she hopes her newer Hurricanes learn from being in a pressure-filled situation, adding she knows her team can be bigger and better next season.

“When you come off such a high of a season, it’s good to have these losses so you remember what it feels like. They have to learn from this,” Bergmann said. “A lot of other teams are graduating a lot of kids and a lot of starters and that puts us in a position where we should be hungry for it next season. It’s disappointing to be out now, but, hopefully, it will help us in the long run.”