Panthers Overwhelm Rondout Valley in the State Playoffs
By Monica D’Ippolito – The Pleasantville boys’ lacrosse team came out in its Class C state regional matchup against Section 9’s Roundout Valley on fire. The Panthers scored 10 goals in the first period alone en route to a 17-3 victory Saturday at Lakeland High School.
“We hoped we would,” Panthers coach Chris Kear said of the torrid start. “But we knew they were a pretty good team. They have some pretty good players, so we scouted them pretty good. So we hoped if we came out and played a good game, we’d have a good start.”
Utilizing a multitude of players on face-offs, Pleasantville was able to gain control of most of them against the overmatched Ganders. A rotation of Josh Della Puca, Nolan McAndrew and Jack Howe dominated at the ‘X’. The large early lead helped Kear find plenty of playing time for his reserves to help gain confidence and experience entering the next round.
“We tried a lot of different guys, but Nolan (McAndrew) did a really great job,” Kear said. “We’re trying to get him in rhythm for the next game. He’s coming along. He’s only a sophomore, so it’s taking him a little time, but he’s getting there.”
The Panthers won the opening face-off and soon Della Puca was scoring the first of his four goals. Shortly after, Brian Reda got in on the action, using the cage as a screen and scoring Pleasantville’s second goal less than a minute later.
Lucas Cohen and Bryan Arcidiacono also scored goals in the opening quarter, but most of the damage came from Reda and Della Puca, who combined to score seven goals.
“We were just going in expecting a good game,” Reda said. “Because obviously they’re a good team and Coach always preaches to us, ‘Come out firing for every game,’ and that’s what we did, and we took advantage of our opportunities early.”
Because of the large lead, Kear had the luxury of putting in some of his younger players and other reserves for the rest of the game. Kear was pleased with a lot of the guys who stepped up, complimenting the defensive effort, which only allowed three goals and kept Rondout Valley off the scoreboard for nearly the entire first half.
“I thought our defense did great,” Kear said. “Guys like Jack DeMarree and Tommy Browne. Backup goalie Brendon Casey had a nice game. So they had a good game all around, especially the defense.”
The Ganders’ first goal didn’t come until just 1:31 remained in the first half, and the Panthers spent the intermission with a 13-1 cushion. In the third quarter, Declan McDermott, Hayden McBride and Brian Halloran each netted a goal, stretching the lead to 16-2. In the final 12 minutes, Ryan Drillock added one more goal for Pleasantville.
“We try to work with our face-off guys mostly, try to get in rhythm and try to teach some of our backup guys our sets and make sure through game experience,” Kear said of things he tried to get done with the large lead. “Especially through next year, it helps with next year. Getting some guys up from JV some experience going into next season, going forward, 2016.”
Reda finished with three goals and three assists, while McDermott recorded two goals and two assists. Senior Baylor Rosenbaum assisted on three Panther goals.
After the easy victory Saturday, now comes a difficult matchup Wednesday afternoon in the quarterfinal round against Long Island’s Cold Spring Harbor at Middletown High School.
“We’re just going to play our game, nothing different,” Reda said. “Just going to scout them and see. Obviously they’re a really great team. Should be a really fun game and we’re just going to play our game and we’ll see how it goes.”
Cold Spring Harbor also easily got through its regional final, defeating Section 11’s Babylon 15-5.
“A very fast, athletic team, with really good stick skills,” Kear said of what he expects from Wednesday’s opponent. “It’s going to be a battle, so hopefully we come to play.”
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