Thursday, October 1, 2026
Long Beach’s girls lacrosse team is holding its own in Nassau County’s top league heading into the home stretch.
The Marines entered the last week of April at 4-4 in Conference I and 7-5 overall, tackling a grueling schedule featuring some of Long Island’s top programs.
“We’re in the middle of the pack in our conference and they're putting up some good games against some of the teams that are about at our level and we've had some hard games against some of the best,” first-year coach Nicole Obzud said.
Long Beach improved to 7-4 overall with a 16-10 win at Lynbrook on April 20 with a balanced scoring effort led by five goals from Marianna Chimienti, four by Sienna Warren, a hat trick from Skylar Kilfeather and a goal and three assists from Maya Kallelis. The Marines then took on longtime power Manhasset three days later in a rematch of last year’s county Class B semifinals and fell 16-7 after trailing by five at halftime.
Warren, a senior attacker, has led the offense with 41 points on 25 goals and 16 assists. The Pace University commit registered four goals and dished out two assists in the Marines’ 12-7 victory against Wantagh on April 14.
Kilfeather is also shining as a senior attacker this spring with 22 goals and 14 assists. The Florida State-bound Kilfeather tallied five goals in a 14-13 win against Syosset on April 17 and has 245 points for her Long Beach career.
Chimienti, a junior attacker, has brought increased firepower near the net with 29 goals including five in an 18-12 triumph at Carle Place on March 16. She also leads the team in draw controls.
Sophomore Julia Russo has emerged as a leader in the Marines’ zone defense playing the crucial backer role.
“She has really stepped it up being our backer as well as on clears and causing turnovers,” Obzud said. “She has been impressive over the season and has really grown.”
The defense also comprises seniors Ella Thornton and Brooke Buehre playing in the crease area in front of junior goalie Fiona Lynch. Lynch, who was backup net-minder last year, has progressed throughout the season rand recorded 11 saves in the Manhasset game.
Long Beach ends the regular season with three challenging road games starting Thursday at defending Class D state champion Cold Spring Harbor before visiting Port Washington on Monday and North Shore on May 7. The Marines will then tackle the Class B playoffs with a likely first round game against either Bethpage or MacArthur and look to reach at least the semifinal stage for a sixth straight season
Obzud, who as a player helped lead Massapequa to the 2011 Class A finals, said going on another deep playoff run will hinge largely on continuing to improve on the offensive side of the field.
“We’re finally almost there putting a full game together,” Obzud said. “I really feel like our attackers settling in and working together is going to be the key to being successful.”
