Baldwin figures out Oceanside

Posted

Five goals from senior Marcus Brown, a dozen saves from junior goalie Jared Tiong-Smith and a boatload of takeaways helped visiting Baldwin snap a three-game losing skid against rival Oceanside with a 10-7 victory in a Nassau Conference I boys’ lacrosse matchup last Saturday.

The Bruins, who lost 15-13 at Oceanside last year, 8-7 in 2015, and 9-7 in 2014, never trailed in what coach Rich Garguilo described as their best performance this spring. Senior Dan Pulis and junior David Garcia added two goals and two assists apiece to help Baldwin improve to 3-5 in conference play. Sophomore Luke Hickam (four) and senior Riley Graham accounted for all of the offense for the Sailors, who slipped to 4-4.

“It’s as well as we played all season,” Garguilo said. “The offense got big goals when we needed them and our defense played really aggressive and forced turnovers. We had a tough day on faceoffs, so when you give 13 extra possessions you’ve got to figure out a way to get the ball back.”

Oceanside junior Derek Cruz won 17 of 21 draws, but a recurring theme of turnovers proved costly. “It’s been the story all year,” coach Jim Gillis said of the Sailors’ inability to make the most of their possessions. “We’ve given away a few games because of turnovers,” he added. “It’s been our Achilles heel. We’ve spent the majority of games on defense and we can’t ask for much more from the guys in the back.”

Baldwin notched two quick goals in the early stages to set the tone. Garcia opened the scoring 2:09 into the game and Brown converted a feed from Pulis just 23 seconds later. Pulis scored at the 9:41 mark and the Bruins led 3-0 after the first quarter.

“When we stepped on the field I could tell we were ready to play,” Garguilo said. “It’s a rivalry game and they were excited about the atmosphere.”

The teams combined for seven goals in the second quarter despite solid goaltending by Tiong-Smith and Oceanside freshman Kevin Carlson (10 saves.) Hickam scored twice in the opening 2:33 of the quarter and added a third goal just before halftime, but each time the Sailors got within one the Bruins managed to respond.

Baldwin led 6-4 at intermission and didn’t allow a goal in the third quarter as juniors Malcolm Bell and Jorden Arbouet, and senior Michael Conforti led the defensive effort. Brown found the net twice to double the advantage to 8-4 heading into the fourth.

“Marcus has such a great personality and keeps the mood on the team light,” Garguilo said. “He plays so hard and was flying out there today.”

Oceanside closed the gap to 8-6 on goals by Hickam and Graham and had more than nine minutes remaining to try to continue its recent success against Baldwin. However, the Bruins sealed the outcome on goals by junior Dylan Ferguson and Brown.

“We’ve got three more games to go and we feel we can run the table if we play like we did today,” Garguilo said.