"There are only the pursued, the pursuing, the busy and the tired."

F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby.

There were no guppies sited on the Gold Coast shores of Kings Point Saturday afternoon, April 24. But the Garden City Checkmate Sharks fifth grade lacrosse team will remember the Titans, the Greenwich Connecticut Titans, in a highly anticipated cross-Sound showdown of unbeaten teams, handed the Sharks their first defeat in a hard fought 8-7 loss.

The Sharks sported their maroon colors in hosting the first of four games this season at the United States Merchant Marine Academy, where the synthetic FieldTurf-surfaced Tomb Field also served as the site of the 113th edition of the Woodstick Classic, Manhasset and Garden City's annual meeting as the nation's longest continuous boys high school lacrosse rivalry, originating in 1935. Captain James Harvey Tomb, a World War I naval veteran and lifetime marine educator was the driving force behind the construction of the USMMA back in the spring of 1942, in the immediate aftermath of Pearl Harbor.

In a game of high drama that featured five lead changes, the Sharks drew first blood, taking advantage of the first Greenwich penalty, as Steve Jahelka scored on a pass from Charlie Garcia to put Garden City up 1-0. The Titans answered with two goals to close out the first quarter with a 2-1 edge. Jahelka responded by winning the second quarter faceoff, driving left and firing on net to tie that game at 2. Brian Coleman won the ensuing faceoff, sprinted up field, fed attackman Devin Dwyer cutting across the crease for a goal. With just 24 seconds into the second quarter, the Sharks were back on top, 3-2! Greenwich (7-0), an all-star sixth grade team, remained poised and netted three unanswered goals, the last with just 30 seconds remaining in the half to lead 5-3.

The Sharks ability to throw the first punch of each quarter held form on the second half's opening possession, as Dwyer weaved and dodged his way past two six-foot Greenwich defenders before shooting high beyond the reach of the Titan goalie to pull Garden City within one goal. Each team traded goals with Coleman scoring for the Sharks as the third quarter ended with the Titans ahead 6-5. From there, the Titans' size and speed started to become a factor. With 6:30 remaining in the game, the Sharks looked upstream at an 8-5 deficit. Capitalizing on several Greenwich penalties, and outstanding goaltending by John "The Wall" Bock and Big Al "Steak And Eggs" Castronovo, the Sharks closed the gap.

Tom Gordon scooped up a loose ball and scored high via a nifty inside roll dodge and then Dwyer followed suit in scoring his third goal with just one minute remaining to bring the Sharks within 8-7. Despite losing the battle of faceoffs, ground balls and shots-on-goal, the Sharks to their credit demonstrated much resiliency and grit in clawing their way into position to pull off the upset.

With enthusiastic fan support and the momentum in their favor, Garden City won the final draw and had several decent opportunities to tie the game but could not dent the net that one last time before the final horn blew. The Sharks (3-1) returned to the cozy confines of their Waldorf Field in hosting the Greenwich Youth League Saturday, May 1. Residents can stay tuned with the Sharks at www.GCSharks.com.