2011 Spring Preview: Phantoms Girls Lacrosse

Despite losing in the Suffolk County championship game to eventual state champion Shoreham-Wading River, the  varsity girls lacrosse team enjoyed a very successful season in 2010.

With only a few players lost to graduation, head coach Ryan Gick is looking forward to gearing up for another shot at the county title in 2011.

Though he's got a young group to work with, they are led by senior attacker Loren Generi, who is committed to Navy. Generi is Bayport-Blue Point's all-time leader in goals. She's amassed over 200 career goals thus far for the Phantoms.

She'll be helped out by Julia Johnson, a defender-turned-forward by Gick who will be looking to supplement Generi's skills.

"Julia's a top defender, but we’re going to be asking her to play more offensively because of her stick skills."

Genevieve Stickney and Christy Thoden will help patrol the midfield for the Phantoms. Thoden, who was the team leader in assists in 2010, is characterized by Gick as a very unselfish player.

"She’s a midfielder who works hard on both sides of the ball, and an important piece on both ends," he said.

The team will have a rigorous schedule, but it's one that Gick hopes will prepare the girls for a deep playoff run.

Record last year: 11-7

Head coach: Ryan Gick (3rd year)

Top players:

• Loren Generi, attack
• Julia Johnson, attack
• Genevieve Stickney, midfield
• Christy Thoden, midfield
• Rachel O'Brien, defense

Key losses: The Phantoms graduated Brittany Stuckland in 2010, who was a key force in winning faceoffs.

"That’s a big loss for us," said Gick about Stuckland. "We lost a few other senior defenders, but a lot of the younger girls are really stepping up to fill those roles. We only lost four seniors, but the people that are filling in are doing a good job."

Expectations: Getting to the county finals and losing is a painful way to end the season. But the bar has been set. Gick is looking forward to getting back there, and having a more favorable result.

"Now the goal is to get back to the county finals and complete the mission here," he said. "Getting there was great, and we tried our best to beat Shoreham, but this year I think our goal is to get back to that county championship game and walk off the field victorious."

Big games: The Phantoms will rarely see a break in their schedule this season, playing some of the best teams Suffolk County has to offer.

"We have a very, very difficult schedule. As the sixth seed we play the top five, seven and eight. We’ll play Rocky Point, Shoreham, Hauppauge, we’ll see all the big time teams. We’re going to get tested throughout the year. Hopefully it’s a great experience for us come playoff time to have played those top teams and with any luck we’ll come out on top."