Winning year for Lady Cyclones

With a roster dominated by underclassmen, South Side enjoyed a winning season on the girls’ lacrosse field and reached the quarterfinal round of the Nassau Class B playoffs.

“We were a little up and down, but it was a pretty young team and we’ll be bringing back a lot of award winners next year,” Lady Cyclones coach Meaghan Healey said. “There were a few games we’d like to have back. We lost some real close ones.”

Neither of sixth-seeded South Side’s playoff games was a nailbiter. It handled No. 11 Floral Park in the opening round, 18-10, with Micheala Lynch, Liz Hoeffner and Briar DeTomasso combining for 13 goals and four assists, and lost to No. 3 Wantagh, 18-5, in the quarterfinals, despite Lynch’s five points.

Lynch, who according to Healey made a verbal commitment to attend George Washington University, led the offense for the Lady Cyclones (8-7 overall) from the midfield and earned All-County honors. She had 51 goals and 40 assists, including a career-high 14 points (five goals, nine assists) in a game against Hewlett. “She’s very talented and unselfish,” Healey said of Lynch, who had five goals in the playoff win. “Teams were tripling her at times, but she’s good at recognizing things like that and is quick to get the ball to a teammate,” she added.

Hoeffner, an All-Conference selection who finished with 29 goals and 21 assists, proved another dangerous weapon out of the midfield. In addition to netting four goals and one assist in the playoff win, she was tough to beat in the face-off circle throughout the campaign, Healey noted.

The return of additional offensive weapons in the form of DeTomasso, a sophomore midfielder who had four of her 25 goals and three of her eight assists in the playoff win, sophomore attack Hannah Serling (27 goals, 11 assists), sophomore Maggie Cifarelli (13 goals), and freshman Tessa Considine (10 goals, six assists) could make for plenty of fireworks next spring.

Serling, who picked up All-Conference accolades, reminds Healey of 2011 graduate and current Ohio State player Jackie Cifarelli, the older sister of Maggie. “She’s a real sparkplug with a lot of speed, just like Jackie was for us,” the coach said of Serling, who scored twice in each playoff game. “She’s a good shooter and passer.”

Defensively, the team will bring back junior Michaela Beck, an All-Conference choice who played almost every minute of every game, and sophomores Katie and Allie Ford. Katie Ford also earned All-Conference honors, while Allie Ford was the Fran McCall Unsung Hero recipient.

South Side loses eight seniors, including All-Conference attack Grace Healey (18 goals), goaltender Dana Yberg (105 saves), and defenders Olivia Gerrato and Kendall Gough. Gerrato was the team’s Scholar Athlete award winner. Nicole Cronley was a two-year starter in the midfield, and Emily Essig, Emily Lawless, and Courtney Quaresima also contributed.