The annual Murphy Cup game between Yorktown and Lakeland/Panas is a personal experience for everyone involved—but even more so for Yorktown coach Tim Schurr, a former Husker player.
Schurr had a close relationship with the game's namesake, Charlie Murphy, who founded the Yorktown boys lacrosse program in 1965 with a $500 donation; the Huskers began play a year later.
“The Murphy Cup is big, it’s really big,” Schurr said. “Charlie Murphy was a good friend of mine. I’m always happy when the boys get to celebrate his memory.”
Murphy passed away at the age of 93 in 2005.
Yorktown celebrated in Murphy’s memory with an 8-3 triumph against Lakeland/Panas at Lakeland High School on May 10. The victory gave the Huskers their 32nd win in 35 Murphy Cup games.
The Rebels’ last Murphy Cup win came in 2010, the same year Lakeland/Panas also beat the Huskers in the Section 1 Class A title game.
The Huskers, the No. 13-ranked Class B team in the state, were led to victory offensively by Frank Ofrias (4G, 1A).
“Every year the Murph Cup just adds that kick to the game,” Ofrias said. “Both teams, no matter what their record is, are both going to come out and compete. We know we are going to battle with each other. Every year, it’s a great game, and it just means so much to win the Murph Cup.”
Lakeland/Panas coach Joe Macchi said the game is also meaningful for his team.
“It’s the best event of the year,” Macchi said. “We feel special that we can be a part of this. We see how the whole community gets behind it. The players embrace it, the community embraces it. We come out here, we try to put a good product on the field for everybody. Both teams today came out, gave it their all, and they really put a good product on the field for the crowd today.”
For Lakeland/Panas’ Oban Rader, playing in the Murphy Cup is something he looked forward to long before attending Lakeland.
“You always grow up looking at the Murphy Cup as the big thing around Lakeland, around Yorktown, and it’s just always special playing against your crosstown rival,” Rader said. “There’s nothing better than it.”
Yorktown led 3-2 at halftime, thanks to an acrobatic stop late in the first half by Hunter Mezzatesta (13 saves), who got down to the ground and split his legs just in time to stop the ball from going in.
“That is a skill that I have worked on for a while,” Mezzatesta said. “Whenever I play with my coaches, they often say I do pirouettes in the goal. My thought process during a save like that is, ‘it may not always be a clean save, but it’s going to be a save and that’s all that matters.’”
Lakeland/Panas tied the game at 3-3 with 1:23 to go in the third quarter on a goal by Jesse DiPaola, with the assist from Vinny Savastano.
“Our guys just played really hard and they played physical,” Macchi said of his team’s effort. “That is what we talked about before the game. We talked about being physical, not give them any easy goals. For three and a half quarters, we played really hard. We made it difficult on them on offense, we put a lot of pressure on them. We were really good about doubling the ball and [creating] good opportunities and getting the ball on the ground.”
Yorktown held Lakeland/Panas scoreless after that with a stellar defensive effort.
“It was communication basically, what it came down to,” said Yorktown’s Brady McEnroe. “Everyone talked, everyone made sure we knew what we were doing. The guys stepped up, made plays, and helped each other out.”
Ofrias, courtesy of an assist from JT Carney (2A), scored to put Yorktown back up 4-3 with just 18 seconds left in the third quarter. That goal started a 5-0 run to seal the game for the Huskers, thanks in large part to the play of faceoff man Chad Bowen (2A, 11/15 faceoffs).
“Chad Bowen does great at the X every game, he battles and he gets us those faceoff wins, and that lets the offense do its thing, as well as the defense,” Ofrias said.
Jack Simone (2G), Gianluca Marchini (1G, 1A), Ryan Fastiggi (1G), and Thomas Carney (1A) also produced for the Huskers.
Paul Fitzgerald (2G), Anthony Ray (1A), and Dan Horowitz (19 saves) contributed to the Rebels’ cause.
Yorktown (7-6) lost to visiting Ridgefield 15-8 on May 6, paced by Carney (2G, 1A), Brady Sheridan (2G, 1A), Ofrias (1G), Fastiggi (1G), Chase Reynolds (1G), Marchini (1G), Simone (1A), Mezzatesta (19 saves), and Bowen (14/25 faceoffs).
Lakeland/Panas (6-9) defeated visiting Putnam Valley 13-7 on May 7, led by Savastano (5G, 2A), Rader (4G, 2A), DiPaola (2G, 1A), Mikey DiCioccio (1G, 2A, 14/22 faceoffs), Fitzgerald (1G, 1A), and Horowitz (12 saves).
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