Folks who follow high school lacrosse in the northeast know Long Island has populated many Division 1 college teams with top-tier talent from both Nassau and Suffolk counties for decades.
With that pedigree in hand, Garden City – the nation’s No. 1-ranked public high school boys lacrosse team – visited Nugent Stadium on Wednesday. Though Rye (1-2) played bravely, Garden City (7-0) overpowered the Garnets, 12-4.
“This was a really good team we played today,” first-year Rye coach Jeremy Guski said of the Trojans, who won state titles in 2025, 2023, and 2022. “They’ve probably got upwards of 10 or more Division 1 recruits on their team. And they probably have a few college commits on the sidelines as well. You could also tell this team was a little closer to mid-season form than we are. This was their seventh game of the year, only our third. Really impressive team, for sure, with a ton of good players.”
When junior Charlie Brady ripped Rye’s first goal with 17 seconds left in the first quarter, the Trojan lead was just 3-1 and Rye was flashing signs of being able to hang around. But over the next three quarters, Rye only managed to score three more goals, two from senior Carson Miller, and one from junior Henry Gilroy.
Garden City dominated at the face off, redirected multiple Garnet shots, and put on an offensive clinic featuring crisp, controlled passing, which led to multiple open looks.
“I really liked our effort in the game,” Guski said. “I thought we fought pretty hard in the fourth quarter particularly. Sam LaMonte in goal played a heck of a game for us. We played really well at times, but had some costly turnovers. Again, we’re playing one of the best teams in the country, and they made things difficult for us, for sure. We’ll watch the film of this game, work hard to improve, and get right back after it tomorrow. It’s early in the season for us. Many positives from this game and lots of work to do.”
Rye’s non-league rigor continues Saturday at home against Marin Catholic, from just outside of San Francisco. Marin Catholic is currently the No. 3-ranked team in California.
