Carey peaking at right time

It’s often been said that how you start off is nowhere close to being as important as where you finish. After starting the season with seven consecutive defeats, the Carey boys’ lacrosse team needed to hold firm to that mindset, and to continue to work toward getting in the win column. That’s exactly what it did.

Patience and the power of positive thinking led to a remarkable turnaround for the Seahawks. After last Friday’s 15-3 victory over visiting Jericho, the team has won five of its past six contests and stands at 4-2 in Nassau Conference B1. Junior Dom Scorcia had six goals and a pair of assists to lead the onslaught.

If Carey can manage to win its last two regular season games, it will find itself in third place behind Garden City and Manhasset as the teams enter the playoffs. The Seahawks take on Mepham and MacArthur to finish up the regular-season campaign.

Carey head coach Tom Aiello is not surprised by the surge. “We played a really tough non-league schedule, but instead of getting down, the guys stayed positive and kept fighting,” Aiello said. “We knew it would take time. I couldn’t be any happier with where we are now.”

Things started to go well for the Seahawks when they went on the road and took on a strong Long Beach team, which entered the game with a 4-1 record. Carey got three goals and two assists from Scorcia and four goals from junior Matt Scarry on the way to a 10-8 win. Tom Nicpon scored six goals for the Marines.

One of the areas where the Seahawks needed to excel in order to win was in the face-off x. Junior Joe Petracosta, who handles nearly all the draws for Carey, had an outstanding night, enabling the Seahawks to control the ball and take some pressure off the young defensive unit.

Next up was a New Hyde Park team that was riding a seven-game winning streak. Scorcia led a balanced scoring attack by finding the back of the net six times as the Seahawks prevailed 15-6. Sophomore Matt Stevens added five goals and an assist, and senior Angelo Cona had three goals and three assists.

The Seahawks didn’t play particularly well when they hosted Calhoun, but came away with an 8-5 win. Stevens, Scorcia, and senior Kevin Meaney each scored a pair of goals. Scarry added three assists and sophomore goalie John Tortorella had 12 saves to hold off the Colts.

“The biggest difference has been our ability to control the ball,” Aiello said. “We’re winning draws, and our offense has been pretty potent. At times, our shot selection isn’t great. When we take bad shots, we get ourselves in trouble. We’ve gotten better on defense, and our goaltending has been solid in the second half of the season. We’re in a pretty good place as we get set for the playoffs.”

Carey awaits the playoff seeding announcement.