Massapequa wins fifth straight field hockey title
Massapequa defeats Port Washington to win the Nassau Class A field hockey championship on Sunday at Adelphi. Credit: Kelvin Loarca
For the fifth year in a row, the county title will remain in Massapequa.
Top-seeded Massapequa defeated second-seeded Port Washington, 2-0, in the field hockey Nassau Class A championship at Adelphi on Sunday afternoon.
Sophia Bolognini finished Massapequa's first goal, emerging out of a scrum in front of the cage with a score following a Massapequa penalty corner with 10:23 left in the third quarter. She didn't want to take all the credit herself, though.
“It really didn’t matter who scored that first goal as long as we got it done,” Bolognini said. “We had to recognize why we’re here today and realize that winning was going to come down to whoever wanted it more. I knew it had to be us today.”
Massapequa (12-6) plays the winner of No. 2 Ward Melville/No. 1 Sachem East at 10 a.m. on Sunday at Sachem East High School in the Long Island Class A championship/Southeast Regional final. Port Washington finished at 6-10-1.
Bolognini's goal was the first of two scores for Massapequa in a little more than two minutes.
Aliya Hassett sent a cross pass to Ella Van Nostrand, who deflected the ball into the cage and extended Massapequa’s lead to 2-0 with 8:20 left in the third quarter, coming 2:03 after Bolognini's goal.
“We’re never playing for ourselves out there, we’re always playing for each other,” Van Nostrand, a sophomore, said. “I was playing for my seniors today because I know how important this is to them. Being a part of the win for them was incredible.”
Massapequa, which won its fifth straight Nassau Class A title, was challenged early on Sunday. With two minutes remaining in the first half, Sofia Virmani was fouled just outside the circle to award Port Washington a penalty stroke. Lyla Grosso lined up for an opportunity to give the Vikings an early lead. On the whistle, she sent the ball to the left side of the cage, where Massapequa goalkeeper Isla Sikinger slid into a kick save and kept the match scoreless.
“This feels amazing and we’re hoping to keep it going,” said coach Morgan Ortega, who has five Nassau Class A titles in her five years as Massapequa's head coach. “It all starts with our captains, who have done an incredible job preparing our team for situations just like these.”
