Hewlett eyes playoff return

Still in the toddler stage of girls’ varsity lacrosse, Hewlett enjoyed a breakthrough season in 2012 with nine victories including the first playoff win in program history. The Lady Bulldogs, who avenged a regular-season loss to Calhoun by taking an 18-14 decision in the opening round of the Nassau Class B playoffs, eye a return to the postseason despite the loss of six starters and a standout returnee.

“We want to get back to the playoffs, win the first round again and see where we go from there,” coach Patrick Gormley said. “It’s a relatively new program, so we’re not used to losing a lot of players to graduation. But we’ve got potential to do well.”

In addition to losing prolific scorer Jenni Rogoff and a handful of other key performers, the Lady Bulldogs must navigate this spring without junior All-County midfielder Samantha DiSalvo. Described by Gormley as the best player he’s coached in 18 years, DiSalvo is out for the season after undergoing knee surgery in January.

While the coach said he doesn’t expect all the offense provided by Rogoff and DiSalvo last season to be accounted for, he’s counting on two-time All-County honoree Val DeNapoli to pick up some of the slack. DeNapoli, a center-midfielder bound for Binghamton, is a shutdown defender who also thrives on draws. “Val’s on-the-ball defense is tremendous and she’s also a playmaker,” Gormley said. “She’s been asked to contribute more offensively, and I’m confident she will.”

Junior Emily Cohen, an attack wing, is a great stickhandler who can drive to the goal or find an open teammate. “Emily has great field vision and touch on her passes,” Gormley said. “She’s a double threat because defenders don’t know whether she’s going to take a shot or pass.”

The Lady Bulldogs have an interesting makeup on attack with all first-year varsity players. Senior Gabby Casanova, an All-Conference selection on the softball field, took her athletic ability to lacrosse. “She hadn’t played since fifth grade, but she’s going to help us,” Gormley said. “She has quick feet, a nice spin move and is determined to succeed.” Junior Brianna Mastronardi and sophomores Carli Green and Melissa Rogoff are up from JV and ready to contribute, while freshman Olivia Epstein makes the jump from the middle school level.

In addition to DeNapoli, the midfield features senior Julia Piri and eight-graders Erin Schechter, Nina Squicciarini and Kristen DeCiccio.

In the back row, senior Katie Hochberg takes over as the starting goalie after getting a taste of varsity a year ago. She made 14 saves in a non-league loss to Garden City in March and excels at stopping shots in close and clearing the ball out of the zone. Junior Allie May is the last line of defense in front of the cage and heads a group that includes senior Ivy Greenbaum and classmates Ifrah Ansari and Samantha Belluccia. 

“We’ve got a coachable group that’s going to improve every day,” Gormley said.