For the 25 young men who so proudly wear the blue and white colors of the Port Washington Viking varsity lacrosse team, its time to boogey. The Nassau County playoff season is about to begin! With a 14 and 2 record having earned them the sixth best ranking in New York State, the Vikes will be a team to beat. Port is second seeded, right behind the 15 and 1 "Dalers" of Farmingdale, who are ranked fourth in the state.

The Vikes are without question the best lacrosse team Schreiber has fielded since the 1995 county championship season. That year, Port, after losing to Farmingdale during regular season play, came back in the finals to defeat the "Dalers" by one goal for the county championship. This season, Port has demonstrated that they can play championship caliber lacrosse when they have to. With victories over powerful teams such as Cold Spring Harbor, Huntington, Chaminade, the Catholic League High School champ, W.T. Woodson, ranked first in Virginia, and Hicksville, Port has established themselves as one of the favorites to make it to the final round of the playoffs. An early season, one goal loss to Lynbrook, was the game which seems to tell it all. Lynbrook is undefeated in Division B league play, beating such powerhouses as Garden City and Manhasset. To beat Port, Lynbrook needed to score two goals with a minute to go. An early dusk on an overcast day created poor visibility on the field. The Vikes led all the way on Lynbrook's home turf in front of a highly partisan crowd.

To get to the championship game, Port will need to get by Syosset in the quarterfinals and the winner of the Long Beach/Massapequa game in the semifinals. For this team, anything short of the finals will be disappointment. Everyone is hoping for a rematch with top seeded Farmingdale. They are the only other team to beat the Vikings this season, winning by a score of 9 to 6. Port has the players to beat this team, but it will require four quarters of flawless lacrosse. If the dream matchup occurs, look for Farmingdale to try to win with the hard hitting intimidation which they are known for. Port will counter with some hitting of their own, but will look to their outstanding longstick defensemen to protect Michael Hooper in goal. Port will need to figure out how to counteract the "Daler" defense which isolated and shut down Port's two top offensive players during the first matchup. A great deal of Port's success this year is that they have a well rounded midfield and attack. These players will need to come up big to be successful.

For the Viking varsity, and in particular for the seniors, these playoffs are what everyone has worked and hoped for. A real shot at a championship, our first since 1995. For most, the road began many years ago, playing third and fourth grade PYA lacrosse on Lion's Field. Will they get to the finals? Can they upset Farmingdale, the fourth best team in New York State?

The first game will be played against Syosset on Thursday, May 27, face-off time at 7 p.m. Round 2 is scheduled for Tuesday, June 1, and the finals will be played on Friday, June 4. Call the Schreiber Athletic Department for details. Let's go Vikes!