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Thursday - Opening Games (July 24, 2008) - After the first day of competition at the 31st annual Empire State Games, it has become obvious that we are in for a great tournament. Long Island, although 2-0, has faced two tough competitors in Western (14-12) and Hudson Valley (9-8). Central, although they have not face a significant threat, have demonstrated their strength with convincing wins. Tomorrow’s games will continue to bring about a high level of competition.
In the first Round of competition, Central defeated NYC 12-4, Hudson Valley defeated Adirondack 10-3 and Long Island defeated Western 14-12. The first round demonstrated that the teams are stronger than last year and the level of competition is going to be high this year. Tom Grimm was the first person to score a goal for Men’s Lacrosse in the 2008 Empire State Games. Zack Tingley drove to the inside and passed it across to Grimm for the goal. John Greeley scored next from an unsettled clear. Forest Sonnenfeldt notched the first goal for NYC with 1:15 remaining in the first. Matt Taylor finished out the scoring for the first quarter with a drive from x and a pass up to the flat where Corey Lasda pitched it in. The score was 3-1 for Central at the end of the first but at the end of the game it was Central 12-4. Click here for the story.
Long Island opened up with a hard fought victory over Western. The game was a game of streaks with the Island having a streak of four and one of eight while Western had two streaks of four and one of three. Matt Springer scored the first goal with an assist from Drew Coholan on a fast-break after Sean Regan stripped the ball on defense. In the second round of competition, Central defeated ADK 12-3, Long Island defeated Hudson Valley 9-8 with 0:01 remaining in the game and Western defeated NYC 12-4. The second round showed that there are no easy games this year. Central scored the first four goals with John Greeley III, Mike Poppleton, Matt Taylor and Casey Lasda each scoring a goal for Central. Garrett Dollard scored the lone ADK goal with a hard outside shot after receiving a pass from Jared Franze. The final goal of the quarter was scored by Jake Silberlicht as he cut towards the crease and Taylor sent the ball inside to him. Click here for the story
As with the first game of the day for Western, Coholan and Springer were major players. Combined, the two finished with 6g-1a. Attackmen, Nick Scalzo and Brian Scheetz added three more goals giving the attack totals 9 of 12 goals for the Western team. Western controlled the game from start to finished, giving only brief opportunity to the NYC team. Click here for the story. The opening day article is also available. 
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After the first day there are a number of athletes that have stood out. Central’s Chris Nourse is dominating the defensive end with 9 takes and strong defensive play on double teams, slides and groundballs. John Greeley leads the offense for Central (and the points leader board with 9 points after the first day). Western’s Scott Tota, in the cage, he has demonstrated he is one of the strongest goalies in the tournament with a good game against New York City and a strong quarter against Long Island. Western’s attack in Drew Coholan and Matthew Springer and have come together and been a dominating offensive force for Western. Joe Marasco for Hudson Valley has demonstrated his strength as a player who can be counted on when a goal is needed. For Long Island, Connor English, William Manny, and Steven Murphy have all played well without one standing out.
Hudson Valley defeated Adirondack 10-3 in the second game of the first round. The Valley scored the first goal when, at 5:21, John Ranagan drove from the top and put a side arm shot right over the top of James Manchester’s stick. Manchester played the first half in the cage for Adirondack and finished with 4s/5ga. Adirondack scored the next two goals to take their only lead of the game. The first came as Andrew Vivian was fed the ball on the crease and after dodging his defenseman put the ball in the back of the net. The second goal came as Daniel Slipperly found Dan McKinney alone on the outside and McKinney fired the shot home from the right side. 
Springer and Coholan played exceedingly well in the game and combined for 6g-3a. After scoring the first goal, Long Island immediately came back and scored on the ensuing face-off only 0:10 later. Froccaro, who was 7/7 at the draw in the first half, won the face-off and passed the ball up to the attack. After three quick, crisp, cross-cage passes, Nicky Galasso scored with a feed from Matthew Palasek. 
Long Island’s first goal was scored by Connor English with a rocket to the top corner from outside, top right. Four minutes later, Jeff Froccaro drove straight through a double team and found the back of the net. With 3:30 remaining in the first, John Brandofino caught the ball at on the crease and was knocked to the ground by his defenseman. Still on the ground, Brandofino managed to get off a brilliant shot across the crease to Ryan Zaremba’s left side. Zaremba made an outstanding kick save, but, Tyler Perrelle was on the other side of the crease for a quick groundball and shot for the first Valley goal of the game.