Leadership a key for Oceanside

A year after a strong finish earned Oceanside a spot in the Nassau Class A boys’ lacrosse playoffs, the Sailors are counting on the leadership of five seniors and a young core to lead them deeper into postseason play and set the tone for the future.

“We’ve put a lot of emphasis on commitment,” coach Jim Gillis said. “I like our senior group a lot, and we’ve incorporated some young talent so we can also have an eye on the future.”

The Sailors, seeded sixth in the 14-team Conference I, are looking to get out of the gate better than they did in 2015. “We struggled early but did enough in the end to make the playoffs,” Gillis said. “We want a better start and a better finish.”

Oceanside split its first two non-league games and put up a 10-spot in both outings. It beat Hewlett by two goals in the March 19 opener behind senior Kevin O’Keefe’s hat trick and four points from freshman Luke Hickam, and fell by five to Long Beach on March 24 despite holding a 5-1 halftime advantage and getting another hat trick and three assists from O’Keefe.

“I’m happy with how we’ve played early on,” Gillis said. “We did everything right in the first half, but it’s tough to keep a good team like Long Beach down for four quarters.”

Senior goaltender Andrew McDougal, who served as the backup last spring, was outstanding in the first half at Long Beach and finished the game with 24 saves. “He commands respect,” Gillis said of McDougal. “He’s willing to step in front of anything and he’s improved on clears.”

A mostly young defense in front of McDougal is spearheaded by junior Danny Marshall, a returning starter whom Gillis said will get the toughest assignment on a daily basis. “Danny’s our leader in the back,” the coach said. Other keys to the in-close defense are senior David O’Sullivan and sophomores Joseph Dougherty and Charles Ward. Junior Jake Denaro is another important piece of the defense as the long pole middie.

O’Keefe, bound for Hofstra University, is a returning All-County midfielder and the Sailors’ heart and soul. “He’s big and strong and willing to take things into his own hands,” Gillis said. “He creates a lot of scoring opportunities and we’ll count on him defensively as well.” 

Sophomore Derek Cruz became a factor midway through last season in the face-off circle and has picked up where he left off. He won 12 of 19 draws in the opener. “He isn’t just running off the field after a draw,” said Gillis, who is also counting on senior Ryan Penna and freshman Joe Kiesche to produce from the midfield.

Up front, senior Dakota Swanson is a playmaker as well as a finisher. He found the net twice in each of the first two games. “He’s found a niche and is helping to groom our younger attackmen,” Gillis said. Hickam, last year’s JV leading scorer, hasn’t looked out of place, the coach noted, and juniors Riley Graham and Jack Egan are versatile enough to work up front or as middies.