LACROSSE

Boys lacrosse: Yorktown regains confidence with an efficient win over John Jay

Mike Dougherty
Rockland/Westchester Journal News

YORKTOWN HEIGHTS – The proverbial corner has been turned.

After going winless last week against a trio of state and national powers and dropping a game below the .500 mark, Yorktown coach Tim Schurr was concerned about the Huskers.

“I didn’t know if we had gotten better,” Schurr said.

Yorktown gave Darien a run last week, losing to the Connecticut powerhouse by a goal, and was competitive against Cold Spring Harbor before Chaminade rolled over the Huskers, who appeared to lose traction.

“It was sort of a setback,” added Shurr.

That loss fueled Yorktown on Tuesday, propelling the refocused Huskers to a 10-4 win over John Jay on Senior Night.

“We’ve got a good group of kids,” Schurr said. “They work hard, and we think we’re close. We have moments. Now, we have to get a complete game out of them.”

Yorktown's Justin Meyreles (1) drives to the goal against John Jay (CR) during boys lacrosse action at Yorktown High School April 26, 2022. Yorktown won the game 10-4.

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Yorktown scored three times in a one-minute span to grab a quick 3-0 lead.

“We came into the game angry, but we knew we had to stay under control,” said Huskers defenseman Dino Bowen. "We were not happy after last week and playing like you’re not satisfied is the way to go.”

The Wolves responded with three quick goals of their own, though.

It was a 4-4 deadlock with 3:11 to go in the second quarter when Nick Savastano rolled inside for the lefty finish, but that was the last John Jay goal of the game.

“We got better,” Bowen said. “We definitely got better. We got together as a team this week, and worked at practice on things we knew had to improve. Those games last week definitely helped us.”

Drew Weissman rattled a shot in off the pipe in the final minute of the first half to spark a 6-0 closing run by Yorktown and the defense made sure the Wolves heard footsteps the entire second half.

Yorktown's Harry Griff (8) fires a shot against John Jay during boys lacrosse action at Yorktown High School April 26, 2022. Yorktown won the game 10-4.

What it means

The approach was good. The intensity was high. The execution was improved. Yorktown picked up a measure of confidence, needed confidence, ahead of an upcoming stretch that includes games against Wilton (Conn.), Briarcliff, Lakeland/Panas and Ridgefield (Conn.).

John Jay needs to work on consistency from game to game, along with transition offense.

The Wolves simply came apart in the second half.

“It’s hard to score any goals when you don’t have possessions,” John Jay coach Mike Bocklet said. “We made a lot of mistakes in between the lines. There were no surprises. That is something we worked on, but we didn’t execute. Once it got us, it just became mental or something and we continued to fail.”

Yorktown's Drew Weisman (21) fires a shot past John Jay goalie Andrew Minard (18) for a first half goal during boys lacrosse action at Yorktown High School April 26, 2022. Yorktown won the game 10-4.

Player of the game

Drew Weissman scored three times, but more importantly showed a lot of promise. Yorktown needs another dynamic finisher and the lefty sophomore is proving he's reliable with the ball.

“I’m gaining confidence,” he said. “We’re all playing so well off-ball, we know exactly what to do. We just have to keep moving and continue to play well as a team.”

By the numbers

John Jay (6-4): Kyle Petschek had a pair of goals. ... Luca Duva and Savastano each finished with one goal and one assist. ... Andrew Minard was on all night, stopping 16 shots. ...  John Jay committed 19 turnovers.

Yorktown (5-5):James Solazzo also had three goals. ... Harry Griff added two goals and an assist. ... Sava Makarenko and Ryan Vogel each had one goal and one assist. ... Jason Fastiggi won 11 faceoffs. ... Vito DeBellis made eight saves.  

Quotable

It wasn't a normal game for Yorktown coach Tim Schurr or Huskers offensive coordinator Jeremy Guski, who changed colors in the fall after spending a decade on the John Jay sideline.

"This was, in a sense, weird," Schurr said. "I have a lot of respect for their coaches. I love a lot of the kids over there. I think Andrew Minard is clearly one of the best players in the section and one of the nicest kids in the section. A bunch of those kids, I’m real fans of." 

"First, we had to win this game for the seniors, it was their day," Weissman added. "But we also wanted to get this one for the coaches because they just started here so this one was important to them."

Mike Dougherty covers boys soccer, boys lacrosse, girls basketball and golf for The Journal News/lohud.com. He can be reached at mdougher@lohud.com, or on Twitter @hoopsmbd, @lohudlacrosse, @lohudhoopsmbd and @lohudgolf.