Farmingdale State 20, Purchase 4
PURCHASE, N.Y. | Attackers Rob Varello (Sr.; Smithtown, N.Y.) and Thomas Stock (Jr.; Selden, N.Y.) each tallied four goals and three assists Tuesday night, as the Farmingdale State men's lacrosse team picked up its 13th victory of the season -- good for a school record in the program's NCAA Division III era -- captured a 20-4 Skyline Conference victory at Purchase College.
FSC (13-3, 4-2 Skyline), which first completed a full NCAA season in 2001, also registered 12-win campaigns in 2016, 2017, and 2022.
The Rams also received two goals and one assist from senior attacker Jake Wandle (Rocky Point, N.Y.) and freshman Connor Murtha (Moriches, N.Y.), with freshman James Hickis (Farmingdale, N.Y.) finding the back of the net twice. Seniors Johnny McMahon (Albertson, N.Y.) and Jack Gilbride (East Moriches, N.Y.) tallied a goal and two assists apiece in the victory, while senior John Carnevale (East Meadow, N.Y.) dished out two assists.
Junior Antonio Kaminskey (Lindenhurst, N.Y.) continued his dominance at the face-off "x" with a 16-of-21 (.762) display to go with 12 ground balls, while the FSC defense led by starters Christian Lembo (So.; Farmingdale, N.Y.), Gino Luchetti (Sr.; Farmingville, N.Y.) and Nick Bucholz (Sr.; Holbrook, N.Y.) limited the Panthers (6-9, 2-4) to 12 shots on the night while forcing 25 turnovers. Sophomore keeper Dan Erler (Smithtown, N.Y.) earned the win in net with two saves over 30 minutes of play, while senior Ryan Ott (Riverhead, N.Y.) and sophomore Nick Rizzuto (Bohemia, N.Y.; two saves) played the third and fourth periods in the visiting cage, respectively.
Farmingdale State, which has secured a spot in next week's four-team 2023 Skyline Conference Men's Lacrosse Championship, scored the first nine goals of the game as Varello completed his hat trick 11:19 into play with Stock following suit with 11:12 left in the opening half. The Rams finished out the half up 12-2, before netting the first seven scores after the interval.
Update: Friday's regular-season finale against St. Joseph's-Long Island has been canceled and will not be made up. Head coach Sean Chamberlain's FSC side will find out its seeding/pairings for the four-team Skyline Conference Championship (dates: May 2, semifinals; May 5, final) after weekend competition wraps up around the conference.