The argument started in upstate New York, rolled through the five boroughs of New York City and continued down the Long Island Expressway.
The Cornell men’s lacrosse team was headed to Hofstra University on Thursday, as the No. 1-ranked squad was headed to Nassau County to play an NCAA quarterfinal against the University of Richmond.
And the nine Long Island natives on the squad were in a spirited debate.
What were these college kids bickering about? Best rapper ever? Who’s better, MJ or LeBron?
Nah, those are easy. This was way more important.
“It was all about which of our towns had the best lacrosse program,” laughed senior defender Jayson Singer, who, of course, vouched for his hometown of Syosset. “And then it got into who had the best bagels, and who had the best pizza. We’re all together, but we all had a big rivalry as kids.”
There was, of course, no consensus among the Big Red’s Long Islanders, but none of that agreement matters as long as they’re as cohesive on the field as they have been.
Cornell is 16-1 on the season, and has a plethora of good scorers surrounding likely national player of the year C.J. Kirst (74 goals this season); it’s hard for a defense to stop.
“It’s just about sharing the ball as much as possible, because we know that the best opportunity may come from someone else,” said Hugh Kelleher, a senior midfielder from Wantagh who went to MacArthur High School in Levittown. “Unselfishness is what makes this team so good.”
Cornell needed every bit of that unselfishness to survive on Saturday against upstart Richmond, which won its first-ever NCAA Tournament game a week ago. Cornell trailed for much of the second half but rallied with two late goals and held on for a 13-12 win.
In the end, it was the phenomenal Big Red defense that made the difference. Singer and Garden City’s Brendan Staub were stout on the back line and that made the difference, according to Cornell coach Connor Buczek. Staub even scored a rare goal, his third of the season.
“We preach the little things and that made the difference today, especially on defense,” Buczek said after the game. “And Brendan was just outstanding, locking down and helping start our offense a few times in transition. He played a great game.”
Cornell has had a wild ride the last few years. After making the national title game in 2022, the Big Red lost in the first round in 2023 and then missed the tournament last season.
Cornell and its fleet of nine Long Island natives had a big cheering section at Shuart Stadium Saturday, and it needed every bit of that support.
Quite a few Nassau County players are key contributors besides Kelleher, who has scored 24 goals and 11 assists for Cornell.
Garden City’s Jack Cascadden has nine goals and was terrific on faceoffs against Richmond, winning 17 of 25 faceoffs, and Staub has started all 16 games on defense. Singer has also been a force on the backline, starting every game.
“He’s unreal, been getting better and better every year,” Kelleher said of Singer. “ He’s one of the more underrated defenseman in the country. He guards mostly the No. 1 guys on the other team, and shuts them down.”
On the Richmond side, sophomore Luke Meyer was back at Shuart Stadium hoping to rekindle memories of 2022, when he and his Port Washington teammates won the county championship on that field.
Meyer, a midfielder, has played in five games this year on a very deep team loaded with seniors and has scored two goals.
“We’ve got three great senior midfielders who are really solidified, but I’m grateful to play on the scout team and try to go against our defense,” Meyer said by phone. “It’s been an incredible season for us, partly because we’re so unselfish as a group on the field. Lots of guys can score.”
Meyer said the adjustment to college lacrosse was a major one last season, but this year the speed and physicality of NCAA action have been less of a shock.
Each local player interviewed said their favorite memory of previous NCAA lacrosse games at Hofstra was the 2014 Albany-Notre Dame game that went to overtime. Meyer said that “we drove right to practice after that one, so fired up.”
“It’s pretty surreal to get to play here,” Kelleher said. “I never got to do it in high school, so really excited to finally get the chance to make some memories on that field.”
