Revenge has been served.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Shoreham-Wading River traveled to Bayport-Blue Point High School Tuesday afternoon and knocked off the No. 2 seed 13-6 in dominant fashion to earn themselves a spot in the Suffolk County Class C title.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With the 10-8 loss on their home field in late April fresh on their mind, the Wildcats wanted to come out strong and leave no doubt as to who was the better team on the field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe played this team and lost earlier in the year,\u201d junior captain Liam Kershis said. \u201cI was happy to come into this game as the underdog. I wanted them to overlook us. All week in practice we decided to keep our heads down and work.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kershis made a statement from the start. With the defense draped all over Alec Gregorek, one of the top goal-scorers in all of Long Island, Kershis absolutely wreaked havoc in the Phantoms\u2019 defensive end and made them pay for their decision-making. He scored the game\u2019s first three goals in the opening minutes. The attacker hit Bayport-Blue Point with all the moves in his arsenal: jumping out from behind the net and bouncing a shot in, a dodge-and-shimmy from the front to find an opening and a full-throttle speed assault finding the top left corner of the net.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat can I say? The kid is a stud,\u201d SWR head coach Mike Taylor said. \u201cThere\u2019s a reason he\u2019s going to Duke. He\u2019s the real deal.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kershis scored a total of 6 goals on the day but none were more impressive than his fifth goal midway through the 4th quarter. Following his early scoring spree, the Phantoms assigned a defender to stick by his side and follow him all over the field \u2013 not giving him any space to breathe. As he approached the net, the defender tried to dislodge the ball by digging his stick in Kershis\u2019 armpit and lifting up his arm with force. As the SWR sideline screamed for a foul, Kershis simply shook off the defender with a spin move and launched the ball in the top right corner of the net. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhen the ball is in his stick, good things tend to happen,\u201d Taylor said. \u201cWe have such a luxury having Kershis and Gregorek. You can\u2019t stop both. It\u2019s just not going to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBefore this, honestly, I felt like our season was a disappointment to say the least,\u201d Kershis said. \u201cWe lost five games this year. We had to lock in hard today. Even in school today, just looking at our seniors \u2014 guys that I consider my brothers, guys that I love \u2014 I just realized this could be their last game and I didn\u2019t want that to happen. I brought my all.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bayport-Blue Point (14-3) never had a chance. They barely had possession of the ball, thanks to Will Miller. The Wildcats\u2019 face-off specialist was an absolute terror in the midfield circle, winning draw after draw, using his quick reflexes and leverage to pull the ball in his direction. Miller won 19 out of 22 face-offs. It\u2019s hard to score if you never have the ball.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019ve just been doing it for so many years,\u201d Miller said of his faceoff prowess. \u201cIt\u2019s something that I\u2019ve worked on since my childhood. I take a lot of pride in winning those battles.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat offense over there is so potent,\u201d Taylor said. \u201cThey just never got in a rhythm. We dominated possession and that\u2019s what won us the game. Winning the face-offs is so crucial in beating a team like that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Alec and Liam Gregorek each scored two goals for the Wildcats. Steven Cain, Ryan Herr and Alex Kershis also tallied one goal a piece. The closest the Phantoms got was within three goals. The lead was never threatened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jaden Galfano was incredible once again in goal, stopping 11 shots, many from close range. The defense clamped down when necessary and refused to allow anything easy. Bayport-Blue Point averaged 13 goals per game this season \u2014 the Wildcats held them to only 6.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat I saw today was a unit that was hungry,\u201d Galfano said. \u201cI saw a brotherhood sticking together and refusing to lose. We\u2019re sending our seniors out on top. Nothing less.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOur confidence was nicked a little during the season,\u201d Taylor said. \u201cSafe to say we got our swagger back.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Wildcats will face No. 1 seed Mt. Sinai in the Class C Suffolk County championship next Tuesday at Stony Brook University.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe just need to play exactly how we played today,\u201d Liam Gregorek said. \u201cOffense and defense. Same unit. Together as one.” <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Revenge has been served. Shoreham-Wading River traveled to Bayport-Blue Point High School Tuesday afternoon and knocked off the No. 2 seed 13-6 in dominant fashion to earn themselves a spot in the Suffolk County Class C title. With the 10-8 loss on their home field in late April fresh on their mind, the Wildcats wanted…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":331,"featured_media":116328,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1743,35,381,37],"tags":[312,13186,10900,332],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-116314","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured-story","category-news","category-shoreham-wading-river-school-district","category-sports","tag-boys-lacrosse","tag-premium","tag-shoreham-wading-river","tag-shoreham-wading-river-high-school"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n