Glen Cove ‘Knights’ Day at Hofstra

Written by Coach Robert Field Friday, 06 May 2011 00:00

By Coach Robert Field

On Saturday, April 30 Glen Cove’s seventh- and eight-grade boys junior lacrosse team enjoyed a complete lacrosse-filled day. With three games to be played, and a team outing to watch Hofstra play Penn State, the day was sure to be filled with many ground balls, big hits, and stinging goals.

Glen Cove, in its usual stellar form started the day against Plainview, in Plainview. Then with a quick drive in the team van, the team made its way over to Hofstra University to play in a tournament against some of the best teams on Long Island. At Hofstra, Glen Cove played against Lindenhurst and then to finish the tournament a game against Garden City.

The Glen Cove squad was in their usual form through all three games. Phil Grella started against Plainview in goal for the Knights, and played strong despite a loss of 4 to 3. The Glen Cove defense was an impenetrable wall, and the offense showed tremendous skill working the ball to set up Mike Hatala and Jack Mangan for the scores.

There is a tremendous maturity I see in the kids. They have taken a lot of the lessons that they have learned working their way through the years with the Glen Cove Lacrosse Club. You can see how much they have grown and how hard they have been working. There is a sharpness in their passes and they are starting to really develop their plays. They are a pleasure to coach, but a greater pleasure to watch.

With their heads high, after a very close game, the team piled into the team van to head to Hofstra. Knowing full well there was still a lot of lacrosse to play. Geoffrey Field, starting attack for the Knights felt good about the game despite the loss. “It’s a tough loss. We are a good team but had a few bad breaks. It’s a long season and I’m confident in the team. I am sure we will end up on top,” said Geoffrey.

As the van pulled into Hofstra, there was no time to waste. With only 13 kids to play the next two games, it was sure to be a lot of work. But the kids did what they do best. They played lacrosse and had fun, despite only have two subs. Each kid worked with each other to maximize their strengths. Sean Peet won most of his face offs. Adam Hamid showed his usual brilliance in goal and helped out in the field and Johnny Asam is turning out to be a dominate force leading the defense. Coach Chris Pace from the sidelines watched in awe as this understaffed team played their hearts out. He was overheard saying, “They are playing great today. I’m proud of them. We need to do this again, just bring more kids next time.”

At the end of the Hofstra tournament, with kids tired from the heat, the

running, and everything else there is that makes lacrosse the fastest game

on two feet, the Glen Cove Knights were in good spirits and ready for an

evening of more lacrosse and camaraderie. The team piled back into the van to get some wings and talk about the day. All you can hear was laughter from the kids who came together to play for the love of the sport. “It was a day they will remember for a life time,” said head Coach Doug Schneider.

And to top it off, after a great meal, we headed back to Hofstra with high hopes of a win over Penn State.... The Glen Cove team sat together along with Coach Condo and Coach Feldmann present to watch the game and cheer on Hofstra with the kids. Hofstra played almost as good as Glen Cove and beat Penn State by the score 9 - 4. But the big win for Hofstra was the memories the day created for the kids.