Lawrence reaches goal of playoffs

Lawrence High School senior Sean Moran’s list of athletic accomplishments runs deep, with playing a major role in the past two of three straight Long Island Class III championship football teams right at the top.

But Moran is just as proud of the gridiron titles as he is in getting the Golden Tornadoes’ lacrosse program back on the map. His goal with 1:14 remaining in Monday’s 18-11 loss at Carey in a Nassau Class B first-round playoff game was his fourth of the afternoon and L.I.-leading 60th of the year.

“When I started playing for Lawrence as a freshman, my goal was to eventually get us to the playoffs,” said Moran, a tireless two-way midfielder who also had 21 assists. “We were hoping to go further and make the next round at Hofstra, but it just didn’t go our way today,” he added. “I’m very proud of my teammates and the season we had.”

Nick Spillane had four goals and five assists, and Dom Scorcia added two goals and six assists to lead Carey, which advanced to meet Manhasset in the quarterfinals. Lawrence (9-6 overall, 6-4 in Conference B-II), which last made a playoff appearance in 2006, got three goals from senior Jordan Fredericks and 16 saves from senior goalie Melik Mavruk.

“Last year we came painfully close to making the playoffs, so getting here says a lot about these kids,” Golden Tornadoes coach Joe Martillotti. “We had some big wins. We weren’t able to take care of business in our last regular-season game, and that gave us road game against Carey instead of a home game against someone else.

“I’m proud of the way we played,” he added. “They jumped on us with the first five goals, but we got back within two and never stopped fighting until the final second came off the clock.”

Spillane, Mike DeLeo, Scorcia, Brett Campos and Rich Katz staked the Seahawks to a 5-0 lead midway through the first quarter before Lawrence began to show some life. Moran and Brandon Patterson found the net to cut the margin to 5-2 heading into the second, and Carey’s lead was eventually cut to 7-5 after goals by Moran and senior Tom Terino.

The hosts led 13-7 at halftime and took a comfortable eight-goal lead into the fourth quarter. “I watched tapes of two Lawrence games and was concerned about stopping their offense,” Carey coach Tom Aiello said. “They’ve got some very talented players and Joe’s done an unbelievable coaching job.”

Moran, who approached Martillotti about leading the program’s coaching staff a few years ago, said Lawrence’s 10-9 win over Bethpage on April 22 was the highlight of the year. “Bethpage blew us out a few times in the past,” Moran said. “We felt we could make the playoffs after winning that one.”

Senior Sam Locascio finished with 48 goals and 31 assists, Terino had 37 goals and 29 assists, and Fredericks chipped in 21 goals. Eddie Barnett, Nick Ramirez and Joel Blanco comprised Lawrence’s starting defense.