Sachem East went from one level of emotion to a completely different feeling in a matter of minutes.
Trailing by one goal with 4.4 seconds left, A.J. Solomito tied the game against Connetquot, 12-12, and keept Sachem East’s playoff run alive. Tyler Rifice offered the same timely goal scoring for the Thunderbirds, however, and netted the game winner with 9.7 seconds left in overtime to lead No. 8 Connetquot over No. 9 Sachem East in the first round of the Suffolk County Class A boys lacrosse playoffs on Thursday afternoon.
Jason DeBenedictis led Sachem East with four goals and one assists, while Joe Eiseman scored two goals and recorded three assists. Mike Buencamino, John Vigh and Tom Engleken all scored for Sachem as well.
Mike Bollinger (7) and Peter DeGennaro (7) combined for 14 saves in the loss.
-Words by Chris R. Vaccaro