Since the Bears entered the PSAA in 2018 they have been the class of the league, winning the tournament championship that first year and the next five East Division regular season titles, four in undefeated fashion. But despite their unequaled excellence, a second postseason title remained elusive. A 1-0 loss to Staten Island Academy in 2020, a sudden-death overtime loss to Portledge in 2021, and a penalty kick loss to Portledge a year ago were painful epilogues to otherwise memorable campaigns. Much of this year’s senior class had weathered those storms together, knowing that a return to the promised land would require them to face down Portledge on a patch of turf called Cantiague Park that had become a house of horrors in recent memory.

The Bears split a pair of regular season matches with the Panthers this season, a 5-2 win at home and a 3-4 controversial loss in Locust Valley–their first-ever regular season loss to Portledge. Yesterday was their third match-up in a span of just 13 days, and the familiarity between the two was clear in the early moments as both sides wrestled for control of the game.

The Bears and Panthers spent half of the first 40 minutes probing the defense, looking for weak spots. The Brook nearly found one when Jayson Amin, who gutted out a great performance through illness, banged a shot off the right post after receiving a pass from Aiden Ruiz. Portledge tightened the chests of Bears fans on a few occasions in the opening half, but keeper Sean Kong stood up to each challenge.

With 15 minutes left before halftime, James Fay finally broke the tension when he buried a shot after a high-arcing pass from his brother John bounced over the head of a Portledge defender. The Bears, who never held a lead in their previous three championship matches, relished the advantage. Sean Kong made two more saves before the half as Portledge’s speedy forwards continued to create trouble, and the Brook went into the break with a 1-0 edge.

James Fay nearly doubled the Bears’ lead early in the second half on a laser from just outside the box, but Portledge’s keeper made a diving stop. It was the Bears’ best scoring chance for a large swath of the final 40, and in the interim the defense continued to parry numerous attacks from the Panthers. Erick Beausoleil, Chris Liu, Daniel He, and AJ Mortimer remained stout in the backfield, and John Bui and Aiden Riley anchored the middle of the field to keep the narrow margin intact. There were moments when fatigue set in amid the 75-degree temperatures, but the Bears held firm. Midway through the half, Portledge nearly equalized on a free kick from midfield, but Kong tipped a ball that looked destined for the net over the crossbar. With 15 minutes to play, a second yellow card was pulled on a Portledge player, resulting in a red card that put the Panthers a man down for the rest of the match. Despite being shorthanded, the second-seeded Panthers continued to force the action.

In the tensest moments of a match, there are players who relish the pressure and refine their play in the midst of the crucible. James Fay showed that kind of poise yesterday. With time short and the season-long narrative between the rivals entering its crescendo, the senior doubled the lead when he trapped a cross, shook off two defenders with a fake, and buried a goal in the right side netting before being swarmed by his teammates. In the moment, the goal felt like the knockout blow as several Portledge defenders crumpled to the ground, but wresting the crown away from our rivals would not be so easy.

Just two minutes later, the Bears had the ball in the left corner of the Portledge half but turned it over, and in a blink the ball was up the field and chipped over the head of Kong and into the net as the Panthers pulled within 1-2. The Blue Fan Group had only a few moments to savor relief before their hearts were sent back to thundering. Mercifully, there would be no miracle comeback. 30 seconds after Portledge’s goal, Ruiz saw James Fay ahead of the Portledge backfield, hustled to the ball, and threw in a pass that James corralled and struck into the left netting to finally put down Portledge and send the entire Bear sideline onto the field to mob the latest Stony Brook postseason legend.

As the final whistle sounded, the Bears and fans swarmed the field to celebrate another Blue & White Championship. It was also a celebration of a senior class that didn’t just win a lot of games and hang numerous banners, but represented our school with honor and class while playing with beauty, flare, and selflessness.

James Fay’s hat trick must surely be included in the lore of Stony Brook Championship performances: Robin Lingle winning two cross country titles in one day in 1959, Kristyn Dunleavy scoring 20 points and grabbing 15 rebounds in the 2007 Long Island Championship, Sam Hanchett’s hat trick in the 1995 boys’ lacrosse Suffolk County Championship. In 101 years of Blue & White Athletics, there are plenty of memories to choose from. We’ll need to make room for James Fay’s legendary afternoon at Cantiague Park.

The Bears now await Saturday’s NYSAIS Tournament seeding meeting to find out who they will play when the State Tournament begins on Monday.

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