New York Shootout presented by Nike-Part One Story by Rich Barnes Photos by Rich Barnes Video by Mike Gilbert & Zach Babo Taking the place of the defunct Empire State Games, the New York Shootout brings together the best New York underclassman from their respective regions. Nassau vs. Central (10am) The New York Shootout wasted no time getting the action underway as one of the most anticipated games of the day took place in the opening game as Nassau took on host Central. Nassau wasted no time in striking early and often as Nassau opened up with a quick 5-0 lead led by the solid play of midfielder Brandon Gamblin (Hicksville) and attackman Ryan Hunter of Syosset. The momentum would quickly change as Central began their comeback, cutting the Nassau lead to only 6-4 at the half. Central would outscore Nassau 12-3 the remainder of the game led by a pair of Corcoran High School stars, Dalton Powless (four goals) and James Cathers (two goals). Fayetteville-Manlius High School attackman Ari Waffle added two more goals in the huge comeback. Central was aided by a solid performance in the goal by Stefan Basile (Fayetteville-Manlius), making 11 saves as Central would take the victory by a score of 12-8. Other 10am game: Suffolk was able to squeak out an 8-7 win over Rochester in a back-and-forth game until the very end. Western/Buffalo vs. North Country (11am) Led by a solid defensive performance by Garrett Augustyn (Amherst), Brian Sullivan (Bishop Timon) and goalie James Maxwell (Hamburg), Western/Buffalo pitched a shutout over the North Country for a 10-0 win. The North Country opened the game with a few high percentage opportunities only to be turned aside by Maxwell who went the distance in the cage for the Western/Buffalo region. Western/Buffalo would get a balanced offensive performance from the entire team that included solid efforts from Chris Kane (Bishop Timon), Josh Kerr (Hamburg), and attackman Josh Baker of Frontier. Other 11am Game: The Southern Tier offense led by Torin Varn (Ithaca High School-Hofstra) would prove to be too much for the Hudson Valley region and take a 10-4 victory. Central vs. Suffolk (12pm) In one of the most anticipated match ups of the day, Central would face some “Déjà Vu” falling behind quickly to the Suffolk team by a 3-0 count. Suffolk’s early success was led by the faceoff work of Tom Kelly (Rocky Point) along with the attack combination of Nick Galasso (West Islip) and Michael Andreassi (Sachem North). Central would soon change the momentum of the game. With Kelly dominating the faceoff’s, Central coach Shaun Smith of Corcoran High School would insert Carl Zimmerman of Homer (Harvard) and James Cathers (Corcoran) to take faceoffs for Central, which provided the spark that Central needed. Zimmerman and Cathers were able to tie up Kelly, giving the Central team a chance at winning the ground balls. Central would rally for the second-straight game behind two-goal efforts of Cathers, Billy Ward (Baldwinsville-Syracuse U) and Connor Entenmann of Auburn for the win. Defensively, Edmund Cathers (Corcoran) was exceptional in the goal with a 10 save performance (many at point blank range.) Goalie Cathers also doubled as a reserve attackman for the Central team, and his exceptional stick skills would show in his goalie debut as many saves turned into fast break opportunities for Central with pin point outlet passes. Central would take their second victory of the day, 13-8. Other 12pm game: Rochester used momentum from the first game as they were able to get some redemption over a Long Island team in their second game. Rochester would use solid play all over the field for a 9-7 victory over Nassau dropping Nassau to 0-2 on the day. Rosters for all teams are posted below amongst the pictures.