Boys Lacrosse: John Jay gets one playoff win before falling to Rye

James Tesi fires a shot for John Jay. Greg Kaplowitz Photos

Aidan Brinn defends in the rain for John Jay against Hen Hud.

Dash Stewart controls for the Wolves in playoff win over Hen Hud.

By JIM MACLEAN

The John Jay boys varsity lacrosse team was looking for something positive to help end the season on a high note, and the Wolves found it on the road in a steady rain with a convincing 11-3 playoff victory at Hen Hud.

The Wolves then faced top-seeded, defending champion Rye in the quarterfinals of the Section 1 Class C tournament and fell to end the season at 7-11 overall, but the win over Hen Hud was just what they needed to inspire a young team for the future.

John Jay always faces a tough schedule against the best teams around the tri-state area, and that tough competition combined with a young team that has only six seniors on the roster added up to a rough regular season.

However, the Wolves know that tough competition only makes them better come playoff time, and they were a lot better than the record would indicate. That was clear in the playoffs as John Jay earned the No. 9 seed and had to travel to face No. 8 seed Hen Hud in the first round. John Jay dominated from start to finish to earn the chance to play another game.

“It was a great playoff win, the team played hard, executed the game plan and we had a lot of young guys gain valuable playoff experience,” John Jay coach Mike Bocklet said of the win at Hen Hud. “The energy from our seniors was outstanding, they led from the start and pushed the rest of the team to step up.”

At Hen Hud, it was freshman James Tesi leading the way as he scored four goals for John Jay. Senior Brendan Corelli was once again the spark on attack for the Wolves as he was the leading scorer for the Wolves this season to finish off his varsity career. Corelli scored two goals and had four assists in the win over Hen Hud.

Sophomore Porter Bysshe did the job at both ends of the field as he finished with two goals and an assist, while also coming up with ground balls as a long pole. His brother James Bysshe was the key to possession as he won 11 of 16 faceoffs for the Wolves.

Dash Stewart scored a goal and had two assists as an eighth grader, while Patrick Ryan scored a goal and had one assist. Dino Rajamani also scored a goal for the Wolves.

Junior goalie Blake O’Callaghan finished with 10 saves in goal for the Wolves. O’Callaghan will return next season for his fourth season as the starting goalie for John Jay, and he is one of the many reasons for optimism as the Wolves have just six seniors graduating and a lot of experience all over the field coming back.

John Jay went on the road to Rye on Tuesday, and suffered a 13-0 setback to end the season against one of the top teams in the state.

While the win over Hen Hud was a positive step to build on, the loss to Rye was a reminder of how far the Wolves will have to come if they want to compete with the best for a winning season next spring.

“I hope this season was a motivating one for all of our returning players,” admitted Bocklet. “If we want to make a bigger impact next year, we’ve got a lot of work to do in the off season. I believe our younger guys understand that and are ready to push.”