by Daniel Geiger

It was a strange feeling for the Massapequa girls soccer team, one they hadn’t felt all season long. Going against North Rockland, ranked No. 2 nationally, in the first round of the New York State tournament held in Rochester in mid November, the Chiefs actually considered themselves the underdogs.

Funny for a team who went undefeated throughout the regular season, and in the playoffs outscored its opponents 22-1 enroute to winning the Nassau County sectional title and the Long Island championship.

But facing local teams has the advantage of familiarity. Since the Chiefs hadn’t been to the state tournament since 1998, opponents from around the state were an enigma. With its impressive ranking, North Rockland was an intimidating mystery.

To make matters worse, Massapequa wasn’t used to Rochester’s freezing cold and the blanket of slushy snow that covered its fields.

"Every time you fell down if felt like you’d get hypothermia," senior co-captain and central defender Megan Hillin said. "You could barely pass the ball through the snow and mud. Going into the game, it was one of the first times all season that we were all very nervous."

If there was any self-doubt it sure didn’t last long.

After jumping out to a quick lead, the Chiefs

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continued their reign of dominance and disposed of the Red Raiders 5-0.

"When we won that game by such a comfortable margin, I think we all just realized right then and there that this was our tournament, that we could win it all," said Hillin, who will be playing next year at Lafayette College.

And win it they did. With their trademark rock solid defense and prolific offense, Massapequa cruised all the way to the State Championship, the team’s first since 1997.

"Winning states, the feeling didn’t hit me till it was all over," Hillin said. "It was just such an overwhelming feeling of joy, everyone was crying. There really was no better way for the seniors to end their careers."

If one was to look at the Chiefs’ roster strictly on paper at the season’s start however, a state championship might not have seemed like the most likely outcome. Massapequa had only five seniors, a whopping 11 juniors, five sophomores and even one freshman.

Despite the squad’s relative youth, first year head coach Kerry Jacobs could see the enormous potential and work ethic right away.

"They played so hard and with such class, they really made my job easy," Jacobs said. "We weren’t carried by any one player, it was total team effort."

Team effort and chemistry - which turned out to be the squad’s greatest strengths - ironically were attributes senior co-captain and midfielder Kimberly Povill was most concerned about entering the season.

"We had lost in the sectional semifinals the last two years and I think that was at least partly due to lack of focus and teamwork," said Povill, who will be playing for Binghamton next year. "I was really worried at the start about our unity. But unity turned out to be an amazing strength for us and really propelled us through the season."

An early season game against rival Southside, a perennial top contender, seemed to solidify the Chiefs’ claim of dominance. It also marked the return of the squad’s star senior goalie, Jessica LaSota who was out through the preseason with mononucleosis. LaSota’s presence in the net was key in keeping the game tied 0-0 at halftime. In the second half she managed the shutout and Povill and senior midfielder Lauren Carbonaro each put in a winning goal.

"We had a ton of talent and we worked really hard, but we also wanted it more, and games like Southside really showed our determination," Hillin said. "That game really was a turning point for us."

The team’s stellar finishing record of 16-0-6 might not be impossible to repeat next year and maybe even improve on (if you call the possibility of less draws an improvement). Although Massapequa will lose stars like Hillin, Povill, LaSota, Carbonaro and midfielder Laura Beltrani to graduation, lead scorers Kristin Cohen (junior) and Gina DiMartino (sophomore) return along with most of the roster.

"We’re going to be very strong for next year," Povill said. "A lot of the tough squads around the county have had years of dominance. Maybe now it’s Massapequa’s turn to be a dynasty."