The Catholic High School Athletic Association (CHSAA) of New York consists of teams from New York City, Long Island, and Westchester. Also, it is the largest Catholic High School athletic league in the country. The league contains 54 teams, but the AAA championship seems to always come down to two teams, the Friars and the Flyers.
The St. Anthony’s Friars are off to a great start to the season. They won their first four games, earning a +26 goal difference in that span. The Friars’ last game was a 7-3 loss against Delbarton, a strong New Jersey team ranked 40th in the DigitalSports National Lacrosse Rankings. Nonetheless, St. Anthony’s great 4-1 start to the season has placed them 7th in the nation.
Thus far, the Chaminade Flyers have been perfect this season. In their four games, Chaminade posted a +24 goal difference, even recording a shutout. Their most impressive win was an important 9-4 victory over 12th ranked West Islip. With a spotless 4-0 record, Chaminade has held 2nd place in the National Lacrosse Rankings for the past two weeks.
These two New York powerhouses always seem to meet for close, hard battled games. Last year, the teams met three times, all of which contained drama until the very end.
Chaminade swept the two regular season games in 2012. The first game was played on April 6. After St. Anthony’s struck first, Chaminade responded with five first period goals to end the quarter 5-1. Then, in a tremendous defensive display by both teams, the scoring ceased for two full quarters. Finally, the Friars’ offense woke up in the fourth, scoring four quick goals. This tied the game at five with 5:55 left in the game after Brian Sherlock netted his third of the day. In dramatic fashion, junior midfielder Ryan Lukacovic scored with only a couple minutes left to give Chaminade a 6-5 victory.
The second regular season game, though seeming close at 11-8, went a lot better for the Flyers. Chaminade took a 4-1 lead in the first quarter and never looked back. Their eight different goal scorers were lead by midfielder Matthew Graham, who recorded a hat trick. St. Anthony’s, the home team, could not beat Chaminade’s goaltender Daniel Fowler, who post 18 saves.
St. Anthony’s was not giving up that easily. Both teams battled hard to make it to the CHSAA Class AAA state championships for their closest encounter yet. Chaminade won the first quarter 2-1, but the game was far from over. St. Anthony’s responded with four second quarter goals compared to Chaminade’s one to bring the game to the half at 5-3. The Flyers did not throw in the towel just yet. After a three goal quarter for Chaminade and one for St. Anthony’s, the two teams entered the final quarter tied at six. The Friars defense stepped up to shut down Chaminade, making their two goals more than enough to give St. Anthony’s the 8-6 victory.
This win brought St. Anthony’s its fourth straight state championship, all of which came against the Flyers. Still, Chaminade knows what it is like to hoist the trophy. Prior to St. Anthony’s four-peat, Chaminade also won four straight championships from 2005 to 2008. For the past eight years, no other team has won the state championship.
The rivalry makes its 2013 debut tomorrow, April 10, as Chaminade host St. Anthony’s. The battle between 2nd and 7th in the nation will come with more drama, along with an elite level of lacrosse. After this game, the Flyers travel to St. Anthony’s on May 9th for their second regular season game. As we learned from last year, these first two games can be a great display of the teams’ talents, but the real test comes at the end of May, where many predict the two teams to meet yet again.
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