Blaney's Defense Key for Ward Melville in Win Over Northport

Ward Melville hadn't played a face guard yet this season, but if ever there was a good time to start, it was Wednesday.

The job fell to senior Deryn Blaney, who executed a face guard on Northport's Notre Dame-bound star, Cortney Fortunato, nearly the entire game. Fortunato – who has had seven-, eight- and nine-goal games this season – was held to three, and the Ward Melville offense put up enough fight for a 15-14 win over Northport in a Class A girls' lacrosse semifinal on Wednesday.

"We haven’t played a face guard yet once this season," head coach Kerri Kilkenny said. "So going into it, I knew [Deryn] was a little hesitant. I told her, 'You can do it, we’re confident in you.' She did a nice job."

Seventh-seeded Northport struck first and kept Ward Melville guessing through most of the first half. The Tigers took a 2-1 lead on a goal by Dorrien Van Dyke five minutes in, and later had a 5-4 lead on a shot by Fortunato. 

Yuna Hur tied the score at 5, Emily Rogers-Healion scored back-to-back goals and Ally Tilley added a goal too – all within the span of two minutes – to give No. 3 Ward Melville the lead for good. The Patriots led 10-7 at halftime, and never fell behind.

Northport, which had to knock off No. 2 West Islip for a spot in the semis on Monday, seemed poised to tie the game in the final three minutes. The Tigers forced a Ward Melville turnover with 2:52 left in the game, and a minute later, Allie Pavinelli (two goals, two assists) launched a solo shot to make it 15-14.

A controversial charge call on the Tigers' offense within the final 10 seconds of the game prevented Northport (13-7) from tying the game, and Ward Melville (14-4) finished with the win.

Earlier this season, Ward Melville earned a 9-8 victory over Northport. Kilkenny said the two teams have a bit of a rivalry going on.

"They’re a great team. I respect their level of play," she said. 

Rogers-Healion finished with five goals, and Tilley totaled four goals and an assist. Kelsey Catalano and Maddy Wollmuth each scored twice and Emma Jehle made 11 saves in goal for Ward Melville, who will now face top-seeded Bay Shore on May 30 at Dowling Sports Complex at 7:30 p.m. The teams faced each other in April, with Ward Melville coming out on top, 11-10.