Suffolk lacrosse teams told they made playoffs — then Section XI recalculated overnight

Nick Belvedere saw the bracket Friday afternoon. Miller Place was the fifth seed in Suffolk County’s Class C boys lacrosse tournament.

After four years outside the playoffs, his team was in — and playing Thursday afternoon at Sayville.

The Panthers practiced Saturday morning at 8:30. But by 9:30 a.m., the texts started rolling in. Miller Place players were hearing from Islip players that they play with in travel lacrosse that Islip was in and the Panthers were out.

“Literally, they updated the standings at 12:48 a.m.,” Belvedere told Greater Long Island. “Saturday morning we practiced, and somebody had texted me that they changed the bracket. And we were now on the outside.”

Section XI reconfigured the playoff seedings over the weekend after what officials described as a glitch in their computer system. The error had awarded some teams inflated power ratings by incorrectly counting non-league games alongside league contests — a miscalculation that shifted multiple teams in and out of playoff brackets across Suffolk County, Section XI Executive Director Tom Combs confirmed Monday night to GLI.

Miller Place finished the regular season 8-6. Islip is 7-7.

Combs said the organization’s computer company discovered the problem Friday night after coaches raised concerns about the initial bracket.

“The power rankings came out late in the afternoon,” Combs said. “Somebody called and said there’s something wrong with the numbers. They don’t seem right.”

Section XI contacted its computer company, which worked until 12:30 a.m. Saturday to identify the issue. The company confirmed that the problem was non-league games had been entered as league games in the power-rating calculations.

“We don’t count those,” Combs said of non-league games. “We only count those for seeding purposes. We don’t count them towards the power points. That was corrected and Saturday morning they went back out with the corrected version.”

The Section XI website showed Miller Place ahead of Islip by 15 power points as of May 14. In the recalculated bracket, Islip’s rating jumped more than 20 points — enough to claim the fifth and final Class C playoff spot.

“Every other power-rating change was like a number under five,” Belvedere said of the rating changes across the bracket. “But it just — if there’s a minor miscalculation, okay, fine, I can accept that. But a change of 20 points that keeps a team out of the playoffs?”

The Miller Place boys team — which includes six graduating seniors — wasn’t the only squad affected. Combs confirmed three lacrosse teams were dropped from playoff brackets they had initially appeared in: Miller Place boys, Miller Place girls and Sachem East girls.

Patchogue-Medford‘s girls lacrosse team is now the No. 9 seed in the Class A bracket after originally not being part of the bracket.

Belvedere, in his ninth season as head coach, said uncertainty swirled among coaches over the weekend about the accuracy of brackets.

He said that on Friday, Miller Place’s athletic director had reached out to Tim Mullins, Section XI’s lacrosse chairperson, who confirmed everything was correct in the bracket posted Friday afternoon — the one that included the boys Miller Place team in the playoffs.

Belvedere wanted to be sure before he congratulated his players and scheduled practices for Friday afternoon and early Saturday.

“(Mullins’) email stated that everything’s fine, everything,” Belvedere said. “Sections are up to date.”

Then came the overnight revision.

Mullins explained to GLI that after the brackets were released, Section XI received several inquiries regarding potential discrepancies in the calculations.

“Upon consultation with our representative, they worked diligently throughout the evening to identify and correct the mathematical errors, ensuring the accuracy and integrity of the final brackets,” Mullins said.

Early Monday, Belvedere asked administrators to add a play-in game or expand the bracket to six teams. The request was denied.

“They had every opportunity to make it right by just saying, ‘Hey, we messed up. Let’s make it a six-team playoff this year,'” Belvedere said. “I said I’ll prepare to play Islip on Tuesday, and then whoever wins that plays Sayville on Thursday.”

Combs said Section XI’s power ranking system allows half the teams in each classification into the postseason. He acknowledged the error but said the organization would not expand brackets to accommodate teams that appeared in the incorrect version.

“It was our mistake, I’ll own it,” Combs said. “We made a mistake and it was corrected in a brief matter of time.”

The official word came Monday for the Miller Place boys, Belvedere said. Several were visibly upset, particularly members of the junior class who form the core of the roster.

“I’m just disappointed for the kids,” Belvedere said. “I think it’s a bad look for Section XI to not understand the impact that they’re having on kids. I’ll get over it. To me, my record, my playoff appearances doesn’t matter. It’s just these kids that worked their asses off.”

Miller Place will return seven starters next season.

This marks the second time in three years Belvedere has seen his team shut out of the playoffs under disputed circumstances. In 2023, Miller Place went 10-6 and beat Kings Park head-to-head. When the final power ratings were posted, Kings Park made the playoffs and Miller Place missed by half a power point.

Belvedere has been with the Miller Place lacrosse program since its inception in 2010, coaching the school’s first JV team before taking over the varsity program nine seasons ago.

The revised Class C bracket shows Mount Sinai as the top seed, followed by Shoreham-Wading River at second, Sayville at third, Harborfields at fourth and Islip at fifth. First-round games are scheduled for 4:30 p.m. Thursday at higher-seeded venues.

_{Top: Miller Place boys lacrosse takes on West Babylon in West Babylon (courtesy photo).}