Spartans fall in double OT

As Valley Stream North coach Dave Aguado surveyed the field early in the second overtime last Saturday evening, he could tell the Spartans were running out of gas in a Nassau Class A first-round playoff game at Island Trees.

“Deep inside I was hoping it would go to penalty kicks,” Aguado said. “It looked like we were a little gassed.”

But three minutes before a shootout could decide a winner, Casey Hastings did. His goal off a scramble in front of VSN senior goalkeeper Angel Urbina (nine saves) gave the third-seeded Bulldogs a 2-1 victory. They tied the game with nine minutes left in regulation.

“It’s devastating,” Aguado said. “Our guys played great and I couldn’t be more proud of them. I never saw them play with so much intensity. Any of our kids would have run through a wall to help us win this game.”

Making their fourth straight playoff appearance, the 14th-seeded Spartans (5-4-7 overall) broke through after a scoreless opening half to take a 1-0 lead with 20 minutes remaining. Senior Jeff Cole picked up the goal after junior Marvin Eveillard relayed a long throw-in by junior Dondre Irving.

“It was the first time in four years we led in a playoff game,” Aguado said.

However, the lead would last only 11 minutes. Andrew Willoughby netted the equalizer for Island Trees, the Conference VII regular-season champion which beat and tied North in back-to-back games Oct. 15-16.

“They’re a tough team with a lot of firepower,” Aguado said. “Even though we did fine against them during the season, there were a few other teams I would’ve preferred we played in the playoffs.”

The loss was difficult for players to swallow, Aguado said, particularly after last year’s heartbreaking 2-1 first-round playoff loss at Mineola. “We wanted to win a playoff game and advance beyond the first round,” he said. “We played well enough. We had it.”

The regular season was full of evenly played battles, including scoreless ties down the stretch against Mineola and North Shore. Urbina entered the playoffs with three consecutive shutouts, having defeated Clarke 1-0 on Oct. 19 thanks to a goal by sophomore Rafael Montoya.

“Urbina was incredible in the second half of the season,” Aguado said. “I thought if we got Island Trees to penalty kicks, anything could happen because he makes big saves.”

Senior John Sabal, a four-year varsity performer, anchored the defense in front of Urbina from the sweeper position. “John was far and away the best player on the field every game,” Aguado said. “He was the main reason we made it back to the playoffs with a pretty young team.”

Setting the offensive pace for North were senior Luigui Aquino, who had a team-high 10 points (seven goals, three assists), and Eveillard, who had seven goals. Junior Julien Genuard tied Aqunio for the lead in assists.