To make it to the state title game again this season, Garden City must first get out of Nassau.
That’s no easy task — to say the least — considering two-time Class C state champ Manhasset has moved up to Class B for the 2011 season.
We’ve heard your take on how the Section 8 Class B race shapes up.
Now, we begin getting the perspectives of the players.
First up is University of Pennsylvania-bound senior attackman/midfielder Brian Coleman of Garden City.
What have you been doing to get ready for the season?
Obviously, the offseason is critical to the success of any high school team. All of our guys have been working hard to prepare for the upcoming season. Many guys participate in the Strength/Agility training at Performance Center three days a week. A few guys participate in winter sports, especially wrestling and basketball. To prepare for the season, I have been working out at a local gym with a few other teammates three days a week. We also try to get out two days a week for box lacrosse after school just to get the stick in our hands. On Monday nights, we get a bunch of guys and play pick-up games (indoors) at Turf Island (in Oceanside) and on Sundays the varsity team has been playing in Tully Park Keague which is very competitive. It’s always a very busy offseason but it usually pays off in the end.
How does your schedule look, including scrimmages, and what games are you looking forward to?
Coach (Steve) Finnell does an incredible job every year scheduling a very competitive non-league schedule. Scrimmage-wise, Delbarton is always a great indicator to see where we are at early on in the season. St. Anthony’s is another match-up that really prepares us for the tough non-league games we play. As far as games, Manhasset goes without saying, and last year was a tough loss for us. Playing San Ramon Valley will also be a very cool experience since we’ve never played a California team before. I’d have to say that the game I’m most excited for is St. Paul’s. The trip to Maryland last year was one of my favorite parts of the season and the last two times we’ve played them we just couldn’t pull off the win. This year the game was almost cancelled because of stick specs, which would have been a bummer, but Coach was able to work it out. They were the MIAA champs last year and always have a very talented team. The Long Island/Maryland rivalry is always pretty exciting because our styles are so different. Hopefully, this year we can pull one out at home.
What players on your team do you think will surprise some people this season?
Coming off last year, we return a ton of talent in all aspects of the game. At attack, I expect Devin Dwyer and Tommy Gordon to have great years. Those guys have really developed a great connection and are keys to our offense. The third attack spot is unclear right now but I think junior Liam Kennedy has a pretty good shot at taking on the finishing role. He had some game changing goals last year during the playoffs. At midfield, Pat Berkery and Rob Savage are two juniors that will continue to have a huge impact. They are both deadly shooters and dodgers and will cause a lot of problems for defenses. Defensively, seniors JP Burnside, Stephen Jahelka and Brian Fischer will be a lethal unit alongside junior goalie Dan Marino. Danny had some huge games last year and I expect him to have a breakout season.
What do you think the strength of your team will be this year?
Defensively, we’ve always been very strong. Steve, JP, Brian and Danny are all very experienced and play extremely well together not only individually, but also as a unit. However, I think our offense will surprise people this year. We have a lot of offensive talent and most of us have been playing together since elementary school so I think our chemistry will be strong.
How do you view the race in Section 8 Class B and who do you think the contending teams will be?
Last year, the race to the title was very competitive and there were a lot of teams in the running that we didn’t expect to see in the beginning of the season. Wantagh and Division both had great seasons and although they graduated some talented players, I except they will return with a lot of guys filling in. South Side and Lynbrook are always tough, but having Manhasset in our class will make it pretty interesting.
Garden City 2011 schedule
3/16 at St Anthony’s (scrimmage), 4:30 pm
3/17 Hicksville (scrimmage), 4:30 pm
3/19 Delbarton,NJ (scrimmage), 11 am
3/22 at Syosset, 4:30
3/26 SMITHTOWN WEST, 11 am (time is tentative)
3/29 at Jericho, 4:30 pm
4/2 Ward Melville (at Stony Brook University), Time TBD
4/7 SAN RAMON, Calif., 4:15 pm
4/9 ST. PAUL’S, 10 a.m. (time is tentative)
4/13 LEVITTOWN DIVISION, 4:30 pm
4/16 DUXBURY, noon (time is tentative)
4/21 WANTAGH, 11 am
4/27 at Carey, 4:30 pm
4/30 at Manhasset, 7 pm
5/3 MEPHAM, 4:30 pm
5/10 at South Side,4:30 pm
5/13 at Bellmore JFK, 4:30 pm
5/16 ROSLYN, 4:30 pm
* For schedules for teams from throughout the region, be sure to check out the “Schedules galore” thread, and scroll down to the comments portion for the most recently released schedules.
College committed players for the Trojans
Patric Berkery, midfield, Penn
JP Burnside, defense, Penn State
Brian Coleman, attack/midfield, Penn
Brian Fischer, defense, Harvard
Tom Gordon, attack/midfield, Hopkins
Steve Jahelka, defense, Harvard
Dan Marino, goaltender, Virginia
Jack Spencer, attack, Holy Cross
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Posted In: Long Island lacrosse, Player's perspective, Section 8
John Jay have fun if you get to play these guys in the state playoffs.
John Jay hasn’t gotten that far since 2008, so I wouldn’t think they’re looking too far ahead this coming year.
This is the best talent they have ever had.. Weak schedule should hurt them though
You really think the schedule is weak? There are some tough teams on it…St. Paul’s, Ward Melville, Duxbury, Manhasset, Smithtown West to name a few. And all three scrimmages will be tough as well.
JJ schedule is weak
Ah, my mistake, thanks for the clarification
Nice job Brian. Good luck this preseason and season!
Lax Novice please tell us what year you were cut from JJ – the hating is unreal……
Lax Novice,
Get off your negative fixation with Jay. Keeping this up is an embarrassment to good Darien fans.
By the way before fixating about what Jay does in NY, suggest you concentrate all your blogging energy on CONNECTICUT lacrosse and just hope that Darien will not lose to Greenwich again like last yr!
This young man’s comments have a sense of a quiet confidence that this is going to be a big year for his team. I tend to agree, there’s every chance GC will be the last Class B team standing at the end of what is going to be a very exciting season. Good luck to all.
Good read. Have a great year Brian
Nice job by Brian. Class program, class players. Set will be waiting for you though. Hope you go 14-1, but unlike last year can’t root for you to win a State title. Unless of course you get there…
Do ya thing Bri
Good luck Brian and GC
Good luck to you and all the Trojans!
Do ya thing Bri.