Blake Forman
In a tough game between Nyack and North Rockland, Nyack came out victorious with a score of 11-9, causing a division upset on April 9th.
With both teams on an early season winning streak, with Nyack being 4-1 and North rockland 3-0, this game started out as one that either keeps a winning momentum or ends a hot streak.
With the first goal of the game going to Eamonn Foley, #4 for Nyack, the RedHawks set a competitive tone to start this close matchup. The first quarter, ending with a score of 3-2 in Nyack’s favor, just goes to show that both teams came to play, and play hard.
Nine minutes left into the second quarter, Nyack hit a significant roadblock. Senior defensive captain Jordan El-Emir snapped his right ankle, leaving him with a season ending injury. Senior defensive captain Lucas Michaluk broke his collarbone just three minutes later. Due to these losses, Nyack’s defense took a heavy toll; at the end of the second quarter, the scoreboard read 6-6.
Both teams came out hot from halftime. Nyack scored the first goal in the second half, thanks to #18 Connor Mcgrogan, assisted by #1 Casey Dobbelaer. With goals between both teams going back and forth, it was clear both teams had drive. The jets were on and ready to fire, and the third closed with a score of 9-8 in Nyack’s favor
With room for more goals in the fourth quarter, the game ended in an exciting score of 11-9, with the Nyack RedHawks victorious. Both sides showed valiant efforts, with the scoreboard looking like a tug-of-war between these two teams.
Nyack’s Head Coach, William Arnhold, gave this statement after the game: “For the first time this season,we faced adversity and we remained calm and had players step up.” Before the trip back to NHS, Arnhold had a talk with his team: “We’re a great lacrosse team, all right? We just proved it today because we lost two of our most important players, two captains that established a culture for this program…Well you guys stepped up and I couldn’t be prouder of any one of you guys.”
The fire was lit and it keeps burning as both teams continue to play on and work their way through their seasons.