Slow start costs Oceanside

Oceanside was unable to recover from a slow start in last Saturday’s Nassau Conference I girls’ lacrosse matchup against Syosset and saw its losing streak swell to four as a result. The Lady Sailors gave up six straight goals to end the first half, which ultimately doomed them in a 12-9 road loss.

“We need to have the ability to play 50 minutes of lacrosse,” Oceanside coach Ken Dwyer said. “You can see at times we were the better team today, but in very small spurts of the game. It really came down to ground balls, draw control and possessions. It’s about having to do the dirty work, and that’s where it is. And it’s also about limiting turnovers. And that was really our Achilles heel in this game.”

The Lady Sailors quickly found themselves in a 3-0 hole but stormed back and were able to quickly tie the game, thanks to the offensive efforts of junior midfielder Cassie Cesario.

But after the Lady Sailors’ third strike, Syosset would dominate play for the remainder of the first half. The Lady Braves held a six-goal lead after 25 minutes of play.

Oceanside would raise its level of play after halftime. The team possessed the ball more and was much better defensively.

“It took us a little while to get going, but we won the second half,” Dwyer said. “A big deal of that was that we limited our turnovers. And we did a better job of scooping the ball and winning draws.”

Junior goaltender Taylor Passuello made 13 saves in the losing effort, including seven in the second half to help Oceanside stay in the game. With the Lady Sailors’ defense and netminding holding strong, the visitors were able to cut down Syosset’s lead to as small as three. But time would run out for Oceanside’s comeback, and the team suffered its fourth straight defeat.

Cesario was a standout for the Lady Sailors. She had three goals, three assists, four draw controls and three ground balls. “You can see on both ends of the field and in transition, she’s really a do-it-all kid for us,” Dwyer said. “She plays great defense on the top and helps us out on transition. That’s just the way she plays.”

Sophomores Christina McCabe and Alison Schwasnick also scored two goals apiece in the loss.

After a strong beginning to the season, in which the Lady Sailors won six of their first seven games, the team has struggled in recent conference games. But Dwyer still has faith that his team is capable of big things, and says now is the time to show it with the playoffs on the horizon.

“If we play as well as we can for 50 minutes, we can play with anybody in Class A,” Dwyer said. “But we have to do it on the field. It’s not enough to say we’re going to be as good as them, we have to prove it on the field.”