Bulldogs nipped in playoff opener

Jake Robison scored the last of four unanswered goals for eighth-seeded Carey in its 5-4 come-from-behind victory over No. 9 Hewlett in a Nassau Class B boys’ lacrosse playoff game on May 19.

Robison’s game-winner with 1:54 remaining in regulation completed a methodical comeback for the Seahawks, who trailed 4-1 late in the second quarter. They got a hat trick from Mike Tripodi and 14 saves from goalie Dan McElhinney, who didn’t allow a shot to get past him in the second half.

“They did a nice job controlling the ball and beat us on ground balls,” Hewlett coach Chris Passuello said. “I think everyone knew it was going to be a close game. We had a nice season, but the way it ended is disappointing.”

The Bulldogs (10-6) recorded their eighth straight 10-win season under Passuello and also reached the playoffs for an eighth consecutive year. They seemed bound for Hofstra and a quarterfinal date with top-seeded Wantagh after scoring the game’s first three goals and four of the first five. However, the offense didn’t score for what proved to be the last 25 minutes of the season.

“Even after we scored three in the first quarter, I had a feeling goals were going to be hard to come by,” Passuello said. “The game had a slow tempo. Maybe we could have pushed the pace, but I didn’t want to get too risky and give up any easy ones.”

Hewlett sophomore Mark Rizzo, an All-County long-pole defender, opened the scoring with his ninth goal of the season, and junior Chris Loria and senior Jake Posner also beat McElhinney in the first quarter for a 3-0 advantage. Sophomore Michael Gray sandwiched a goal between scores by Tripodi and Nick Ferrara, and the Bulldogs led 4-2 at halftime.

Things slowly got away from Hewlett in the third quarter. Officials disallowed a goal by Gray, who was called for a crease violation, junior Jake Geiger rang a shot off the post, and McElhinney got hot. “Their goalie made a bunch of big saves in the second half,” Passuello said.

The Bulldogs led 4-3 entering the fourth, which went scoreless for nine minutes before Tripodi netted the equalizer. Carey won the ensuing face-off and possessed the ball until Robison put it behind senior goaltender Brandon Israel (12 saves) for the difference.

“I thought Brandon and our defense played well,” said Passuello, noting the efforts of All-County selection Myles Benhar and fellow senior Jake Gutner on the back line. “A couple of bounces went against us.”

Hewlett’s 10th win came in the regular-season finale on May 14 at home against Malverne/East Rockaway. Gray had three goals and four assists and senior Jake Posner added two goals and three assists to lead a 16-2 blowout.