SOMERS, N.Y. - After holding on for a 7-6 victory over Pelham, the Tuskers advanced to the Section 1 final against top-seeded Rye on June 3. The difference in competition quickly became apparent. At the same time, Rye discovered that Somers would not go down without a fight.
The Tuskers battled back from deficits of 5-1 and 11-4, a resilience that did not surprise head coach Jordan Hirsch.
“They are always ready for a battle,” he said.
But the favorites seemed to have an extra gear that the defending state champions could not match.
“They are a great team,” said Hirsch after his squad fell 13-9.
The game began on even footing. After Will Niejadlik’s shot was blocked in front of the Somers goal, the ball kicked out to Charlie Brady, who fired an open shot past Hudson Ruby for a 1-0 lead at 10:32.
Bret Kennedy battled hard on the ensuing faceoff and got the ball to Cam Violante. The junior eluded Rye’s physical defense and tied the game.
Rye quickly responded. When Jimenez attempted to muscle his way past Jack Levine, the ball came loose, and the Garnets capitalized in transition. Brady waited on the goal line and fed Henry Gilroy cutting through the middle for a perfect setup and a 2-1 lead.
At 7:30, Wilson Redd scooped up his own faceoff win, and the offense didn't miss a beat. Gilroy worked around a pick and found Will Niejadlik on the right side, where his sidearm shot extended the lead to 3-1.
Defense led to Rye’s next goal as well. Following Jayden Newman’s shot, Sam LaMonte made the save with his stick, pushed the ball upfield, and Niejadlik raced the rest of the way for a 4-1 lead with 4:00 remaining in the quarter.
After another draw win by Rye, Ruby came up with a big stop, gobbling up Brady’s one-hopper. The Tuskers pushed the ball the other way, but Tristan Iglesias and Newman ran into a wall of defenders in the middle. The pressure did, however, result in a Rye penalty.
At 2:09, Rye remained undeterred. A Jimenez shot was deflected, and after Brady gained possession, he launched a pass all the way upfield to Henry Shoemaker, who caught Ruby out of the net and scored.
The easy goal gave Rye a seemingly insurmountable 5-1 lead. Somers eased the pressure by winning the next draw, and Violante curled to the right and scored with two seconds remaining in the quarter to cut the deficit to 5-2.
The second quarter began with LaMonte stealing the spotlight. First, he made a remarkable kick save on an Iglesias shot from point-blank range. After a scramble, Xander DiPasquale emerged with the ball 10 feet in front of the goal and no defender between him and the net. His shot appeared destined to score, but LaMonte somehow got a piece of it, leaving spectators stunned.
Eventually, Rye squandered its goalkeeper’s heroics with a turnover in transition. At 9:45, a pair of penalties gave Somers a two-man advantage. With Rye unable to defend the numbers, Violante found Jimenez, who fed DiPasquale for a goal that made it 5-3.
At 9:02, the next several minutes featured missed opportunities on both sides. That changed when Ruby stopped a powerful shot by Thomas Goldszer. Somers pushed the ball back the other way, and Violante found Iglesias cutting through the middle. Iglesias created just enough space to score and trim the deficit to 5-4 with 5:55 remaining.
The next faceoff carried enormous importance, and Max Niejadlik dug deep to win a fierce ground-ball battle. After a timeout, Carson Miller turned nothing into something. With virtually no angle on the right side, the senior slipped a shot past Ruby at 4:59.
The teams continued trading possessions, but Rye finally broke through. At midfield, Miller powered through two defenders, and the open field allowed Shoemaker to lead the rush. The senior slowed down and found Miller cutting through the middle for a goal and a 7-4 halftime lead.
Redd opened the second half by scooping his own faceoff forward and scoring just six seconds into the quarter. Ruby responded with a big save on Gilroy, but turnovers and an offsides penalty allowed Rye to build an 11-4 lead.
With 8:38 remaining in the third quarter, Somers went back to work. At 5:43, Iglesias swept to the right and ended Rye’s six-goal run.
A faceoff scramble then went out of bounds in Somers’ favor, and Iglesias struck again. Receiving a pass from Jimenez, the junior scored to make it 11-6 with 4:28 left in the quarter.
Ruby helped keep it there. During a wild loose-ball sequence, Rye came away with possession and Will Niejadlik found himself one-on-one with the Tusker goalie. Ruby matched every move until Niejadlik ran out of room, forcing a shot that sailed wide.
Liam Barrett collected the ball, pushed it ahead, and DiPasquale finished the fast break to make it 11-7.
Ruby came up big again moments later. Caught out of position, he recovered just in time to deny Brady and keep the deficit at four heading into the fourth quarter.
One minute into the final period, Newman scored from the left side to make it 11-8. After Rye won another faceoff scramble, Holden Brelesky intercepted a pass in the defensive zone to keep the comeback alive. Moments later, with flags flying, Iglesias found George Sullivan, who set up Kealin Wiggins for a goal that cut the deficit to two.
Unfortunately for Somers, the next loose ball found Redd. The Tuskers played outstanding defense for most of the possession, but they could not account for Will Niejadlik taking matters into his own hands. He slipped out from behind the net and scored to make it 12-9.
With 8:04 remaining, Redd won another faceoff, but Somers caught a break when a Rye pass struck an official. Kennedy scooped up the loose ball at 6:45.
Back the other way, however, Rye’s defense continued to drain precious time. On a pass from behind the Somers net, Nigel Strazzini reached up with his long stick and intercepted the ball.
With 5:48 remaining, Somers regained possession after Gilroy hit the post. But a series of missed opportunities and a turnover proved costly. With Ruby double-teaming behind the net, Gilroy escaped and circled around for the empty-net goal that sealed the outcome.
With two minutes remaining, Hirsch still had nothing but praise for his team’s effort.
“I’m super proud of the way they fought,” he said.
The coach believes the experience will benefit the program moving forward.
“I am sure this will be a motivating experience for the guys we have coming back,” Hirsch said.
As for the seniors playing their final game, the coach struggled to find the right words.
“I don’t think I have words for them,” he concluded.
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