SUFFOLK DIVISION I
Herzog, Bob. Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 08 Sep 2009
Now that Connetquot has dethroned Floyd as the king of Suffolk – winning last year’s county championship en route to the LIC – the question is, can the Thunderbirds win the regular-season league title? They didn’t do it last year, as Floyd completed its fifth straight perfect league season before being beaten by Lindenhurst in the county playoffs ending its run of three straight L.I. championships. But Connetquot returns most of a strong offense, led by running back Joe Zuco and quarterback Ryan Andersen, and an experienced offensive line. “Everything is special because of what we did last year,” T-birds coach Mike Hansen said. “Now, we can dream about doing it again.” Floyd also has most of its line back and excellent team speed. Longwood is dreaming big as well.
1) Floyd (9-1)
Coach: Paul Longo (14th season).
Key players: Sr. LB/FB Kevin Lacey (6-1, 215); Sr. G/DE Kevin Hauter (6-3, 215); Sr. TE/S Ricky Stoner (6-1, 190); Sr. OT Brendon Turris (6-0, 250); Sr. OLB Rob DeSilva (6-0, 190); Sr. C Brandon Clark (5-10, 190).
About the Colonials: A stunning loss in the Suffolk playoffs to Lindenhurst ended Floyd’s Long Island-record 42-game winning streak last fall and also ended their streak of three straight Long Island championships. Lacey is one of the county’s best linebackers. Hauter anchors an experienced line. Transfer Aaron Willis, only 5-7, 160, has “super speed” said Longo.
2) Connetquot (10-2)
Coach: Mike Hansen (seventh season).
Key players: Sr. RB/LB Joe Zuco (5-9, 200); Sr. QB/S Ryan Andersen (6-4, 195); Sr. C/NG Kevin McHale (5-10, 250); Jr. RB/CB Mike Pellegrino (5-9, 175); Sr. TE/LB Ryan Lanigan (5-11, 210); Sr. OL/DL Brian McIlvain (6-0, 220).
About the Thunderbirds: The defending L.I. champions return four starters on an offensive line that Hansen called “the strength of our team.” The unit should allow Zuco, who has gained 20 pounds, to contend for the Hansen Award. Big things are also expected from Andersen and Pellegrino.
3) Longwood (7-3)
Coach: Chris Meyer (third season).
Key players: Sr. TB/CB Walter Miles (5-11, 170); Sr. FB/LB Sherif Saad (6-1, 200); Sr. G/LB Cody Callagy (6-0, 210); Sr. OT/DT Brian Douglas (6-2, 275); St. QB/C Tommy Gilmore (5-11, 170); Sr. TB/CB Tommy Scala (5-8, 165).
About the Lions: A flock of fleet tailbacks will be the focal point of the offense, led by Miles, who had 832 yards and 11 touchdowns last year. Miles will play some option quarterback to give him more touches and allow Scala and sophomore Kavaughn Williams to run the ball. Saad leads a defense that returns eight starters.
BRENTWOOD 29, LONGWOOD 28 Corporan does what it takes Brentwood quarterback hooks up with Jean Pierre on fade route in overtime Corporan passes for 220 yards and two TDs in one-point victory
Herzog, Bob. Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 13 Sep 2009
Note: Quotes: “Coach told me that playmakers make plays. I did what I had to do.” – Alex Corporan, Brentwood QB
The clock was running but Alex Corporan was limping.
“I took a good shot in my right thigh, but no way was I coming out,” the Brentwood quarterback said.
Corporan hobbled back to the huddle in the final minute of regulation, trying to break a tie at 22.
He was unable to do it at that moment, but on the first play of overtime, Corporan found Christopher Jean Pierre on a 10-yard fade pattern for a touchdown. Estaban Arp converted the extra-point kick and after Longwood answered with a touchdown but missed the conversion, the host Indians had an exhausting 29-28 victory yesterday in the Suffolk Division I opener for both schools.
“Coach told me that playmakers make plays,” Corporan said of the conversation he had with Steve Perretta after regulation. “I did what I had to do. It was a fade to the left and ‘T.O.’ did what he had to do.”
Corporan, who completed 16 of 29 passes for 220 yards and two touchdowns, was referring to Jean Pierre’s nickname. “He’s our best receiver, that’s why we call him T.O.,” Perretta said. “He runs the best routes and has the best hands.”
Both skills came into play. On what proved to be the winning touchdown, Jean Pierre said he ran “a straight fade to the left. I always dreamed this guy would throw me a winning touchdown.”
Jean Pierre made a strong outside move and leaped to make the catch near the sideline. The two also hooked up for a 12-yard touchdown on the last play of the first quarter. Jean Pierre caught seven passes for 128 yards. “He knows where I’ll put the ball and he knows where to go,” Corporan said.
Brentwood built a 22-0 lead after three quarters before the Lions roared back behind junior quarterback Eric Lee, who replaced Tommy Gilmore in the second half because Lee is the better passer.
“He changed the pace of the game and he made some big plays,” Longwood coach Chris Meyer said. “Eric showed me some things. We did a great job coming back.”
The Lions certainly rocked the Indians’ world with their fourth-quarter comeback, as Lee completed 11 of 19 passes for 217 yards, including six to fullback Sherif Saad for 134 yards, most of them on well-disguised inside screens.
Tommy Scala scored on a 10-yard sweep in overtime before the kick was missed, giving Brentwood the tense victory.
“We were on our heels a little bit. Our confidence was shaken,” Perretta admitted. “That was definitely a boost to our confidence.”
Did the coach have confidence that Corporan would return to the lineup? “Of course. He’s a gamer,” Perretta said. “He’s a stubborn, tough kid.”
But not so tough that he didn’t accept a ride in the coach’s golf cart back to the locker room after the game, holding an ice pack on his leg.
“I’ve never had a game-winning touchdown pass,” Corporan said. “It feels good. Real good.”
Connetquot 40, Longwood 35
Connetquot 6 27 7 0-40
Longwood 7 7 7 14-35
C – Pellegrino 37 run (kick failed)
L – Lee 5 run (Rehal kick)
C – Pellegrino 2 run (kick blocked)
C – Pellegrino 3 run (Nason kick)
L – Scala 54 run (Rehal kick)
C – Pellegrino 16 run (Nason kick)
C – Pellegrino 34 pass from Andersen (Nason kick)
C – Pellegrino 1 run (Nason kick)
L – Scala 23 run (Rehal kick)
L – Scala 28 run (Rehal kick)
L – Lee 2 run (Rehal kick). Sept. 20
SACHEM NORTH 25, LONGWOOD 21: Armine leads turnaround Junior QB, defense rally from 21-point deficit Lang, runners roll for dominant second half
Sarra, Gregg. Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 26 Sep 2009:
There is a turning point in every football season. There is no doubt that the turning point in this football season for Longwood and Sachem North came somewhere in the remarkable developments of the second half of Friday night’s slugfest.
Memories of that half will stay with these football teams for the rest of this season. Led by junior quarterback Angelo Armine and a swarming defense unit, Sachem North shook erased a 21-point halftime deficit for a stunning 25-21 win over Longwood in a Suffolk Division I football game Friday night.
Sachem North (3-0) forced three turnovers and scored on four of five second-half possessions. Davon Lawrence’s 43-yard TD run with 2:36 left in the game capped the rally.
“He’s so explosive,” Sachem North coach Dave Falco said. “He’s difficult to bring down.”
Longwood (0-3) opened the scoring when Anthony Bulluck went up the middle for an 80-yard TD run with 6:33 left in the first quarter and Tom Scala’s 38-yard TD catch made it 14-0. His 24-yard TD run gave the Lions a 21-0 halftime lead.
“We made some mistakes in the first half,” junior linebacker Jesse Scanna said. “And we were up against it but we stuc k together because we have excellent team leaders and didn’t quit.”
Center Tim Lang, who moved from tight end to the new position, keyed a running attack that gained more than 200 yards in the second half.
“[Lang] did a much better job on the middle linebacker,” Falco said. “And the offense really had it going.”
Joe Kirchner recovered a Longwood fumble on the first possession of the second half and five plays later, Armine scored on a 4-yard run. On Sachem’s next possession, Lawrence burst through the line for a 60-yard score to cut it to 21-13 with 2:55 left in the third. He finished with 151 yards on 14 carries.
The defining moment may have come with 7:17 left in the game, when Armine faced third-and-12 from the Lions 45.
“I dropped to throw and there was a lane so I took it,” said Armine, who scrambled for 37 yards and a first down to the Lions 8. Three plays later, bruising halfback Mike Andreassi, scored from two yards out to make it 21-19 with 6:31 left. “This one feels real good,” Falco said. “It could define our season.”
It just may be a sign of good things to come.
Rehal gets her kicks on football field, too Girls soccer player also helps Longwood on gridiron She has converted nine extra points in three games
Martin, Kimberley A. Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 27 Sep 2009
Note: Quotes: “I didn’t hear any rumblings from her teammates. They were just happy we could have someone kicking extra points consistently for us.” – LONGWOOD COACH CHRIS MEYER
Jaelisa Rehal secures the gold- and-green helmet over her head each week, concealing her hair and, ultimately, her identity.
She is the lone girl in a sea of boys on the football field. And she loves it.
“With football there’s more intensity. They pump each other up more,” said Rehal, Longwood’s senior kicker. “It’s different than all the other sports. I don’t know how to explain it. It’s just a different feeling when I go into a football game than when I go into a soccer game.”
Rehal has been honing her skills on the soccer field since the second grade. But she took on a new challenge last fall – filling a void on the Lions’ football squad.
At the time, Longwood was desperate. The team needed a kicker. Someone accurate. Someone consistent. Someone who thrives on pressure.
“We didn’t care who it was,” Lions football coach Chris Meyer said.
At the urging of female friends, Rehal attended an open football tryout. She wasn’t looking to prove a point. She just wanted an opportunity to show her skill.
“I went, Coach said, ‘You have a nice kicking motion,’ and that’s where it started,” said Rehal, 17, who also is a sweeper on the girls soccer team.
Rehal became the first girl in Longwood history to score in a varsity football game, connecting on three extra points in a 45-13 home win over Brentwood last October.
Rehal, who has kicked nine extra points in 10 attempts in three games this season, was unaware of what she had accomplished at the time. So were her teammates and her coaching staff. But a few days later in practice, the team took a moment to show its appreciation.
“Everyone clapped for her,” Meyer said. “It was a nice thing.”
To Rehal’s surprise, and relief, the expected pitfalls of being a girl on a team full of guys never came to pass.
“The boys on the team are really great,” said Rehal, who converted an extra point in Friday night’s 25-21 loss to Sachem North. “When I first came, they thought it was pretty cool I was on the team. I figured coming midway through the season, I’d have to gain their respect. But I didn’t have to do that. They were accepting.”
Said Meyer: “I didn’t hear any rumblings from her teammates. They were just happy we could have someone kicking extra points consistently for us.”
To improve her accuracy, Rehal attended kicking camps at Penn State and Hofstra this past summer.
“There were no girls out of about 140 boys,” she said. “They all asked me, ‘You’re the girl kicker on your team? You’re on a girls team?’ And I said, ‘Not really. It’s an all-boys team.’ They thought that was really cool.”
Opposing football players are just as surprised to see her on the field.
“Some boys from other teams have to do a double-take because they’re not sure I’m a girl,” she said with a laugh.
But Rehal’s accuracy comes at a price. With soccer taking up most of her time, football becomes secondary. She juggles practices and games for both sports while maintaining constant communication with Meyer and girls soccer coach Austin Manghan. On days she has two games (such as Friday), she goes to soccer first, then rushes over to football, “hopefully before kickoff.”
Some coaches wouldn’t be as patient as Meyer. But the third-year coach said he understands Rehal’s hectic schedule.
“I get a little stressed: ‘When is she getting here? She needs time to warm up,”‘ Meyer said. “The only thing that’s tough is you have to work around the practice schedule with her. If she were a straight football player, it’d be easier. But I know soccer is her first sport. And she’s helping us out.
“She’s just overall a good kid and a tireless worker. She’s balancing both sports and she excels at both. All the guys appreciate what she does for us. She’s one of those athletes that everyone wants on their team.”
Soccer may be Rehal’s priority, but when she steps on a football field, she clears her mind of everything except football.
“I block everything out and only listen to my teammates,” she said. “No matter what, my goal is to make the field goal. I’m not worried about anything else. If I miss one, I know my team’s there to back me up and I can go make the next one.
FLOYD 29, LONGWOOD 15: Otranto, Moore get job done at QB
Haynes, Stephen. Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 05 Oct 2009:
Floyd is doing its part to refute the saying, “If you have two quarterbacks, you actually have none.” Behind A.J. Otranto and Daryl Moore, the Colonials topped Longwood, 29-15, yesterday in a Suffolk Division I football game.
Otranto, the relief quarterback, completed 4 of 6 passes for 45 yards and two touchdowns to lead Floyd (3-1). Moore, the starter, was 8-for-12 with 105 yards and a touchdown. Moore also intercepted two passes as a defensive back.
Following Floyd’s loss to Sachem North in the season opener – its first regular-season defeat in eight seasons – coach Paul Longo sought to upgrade the secondary by making Moore a full-time cornerback. To limit his total snaps and keep him fresh, Longo subs in Atranto every three drives. “Daryl’s great in the secondary and we expect big things down the road from A.J.,” Longo said.
Otranto made the most of his time on the field. His first two drives resulted in touchdowns. On his first, he threw a 5-yard TD to Rick Stoner (two catches, 65 yards, two touchdowns) and hit him again for a two-point conversion that tied the score at 8. Later in Floyd’s 22-point quarter, he hit Jon Romeo on a fade route for a 19-yard score that made it 22-15.
“We see he has pocket presence, a tremendous arm and he’s confident,” Longo said of the 5-10, 160-pound ninth-grader. “Hopefully, he’ll fill out and grow a couple more inches … I think he can be one of the best quarterbacks we’ve ever had.”
Moore, who threw a 50-yard TD to Stoner in the third quarter, had a fourth-quarter interception in the end zone. Kevin Hauter had two sacks to lead the defense, which held Longwood (0-4) scoreless in the second half. Kevin Lacey made 10 tackles and Ivy France had a sack.
Longwood 41, Ward Melville 21: Tommy Scala had seven carries for 90 yards and two touchdowns for Longwood (1-4). Longwood outscored Ward Melville 34-0 in the first half. Kavaughn Wiggins added 72 rushing yards and two TDs on seven carries. Marc Mobley had two sacks to lead the defense. Ward Melville is 1-4. Oct. 11
Longwood 27, Patchogue-Medford 7: Longwood (2-4) led 14-0 at the half on a 43-yard touchdown run by Tommy Scala and an 11-yard run by Anthony Bulluck. Ray Cachillo had an 85-yard kickoff return to start the third quarter for Patchogue-Medford’s only touchdown. Scala had five carries for 74 yards. Sherif Saad had six tackles and four catches for 30 yards and a touchdown. Patchogue-Medford is 1-5. Oct. 18
LONGWOOD 27, LINDENHURST 22 Miles bursts onto scene for rejuvenated Lions
Gavin, Mike. Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 24 Oct 2009:
It’s no coincidence that when running back Walter Miles missed the first four games of the season because of a hip flexor injury, Longwood started 0-4. Friday, Miles showed just what the Lions were missing and why they are back in the playoff hunt.
Miles rushed for 180 yards on 20 carries in Longwood’s 27-22 victory over Lindenhurst in Suffolk Division I.
Longwood trailed by one with only 3:30 remaining when Miles emerged from the pack and rushed up the middle for a 10-yard TD and the game’s final points. Longwood improves to 3-3, 3-4. Lindenhurst is 3-4, 3-4.
“It felt great,” Miles said of his winning touchdown. “I followed my fullback into the end zone, my line did a perfect job blocking and everything was executed right.”
Lindenhurst had a chance to regain the lead, but their drive stalled at the Longwood 17 and they turned the ball over on downs with 1:30 remaining.
After committing four turnovers in the first half, Longwood opened the second half with an onside kick, recovering the ball at the Lindenhurst 43. Three plays later, Miles broke free for a 44-yard touchdown run to put Longwood ahead 14-10. Kavaughn Wiggins added to the Lions lead with a 2-yard TD run later in the third to make it 21-10.
Lindenhurst went ahead 22-21 after Steve Skon scored on a 1-yard quarterback sneak in the third and Jason Titus ran for a 4-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter.
Longwood didn’t complete a pass and committed five turnovers, but Miles showed why the Lions have won three straight games since his return.
“We missed him the first four games,” coach Chris Meyer said of Miles. “He leads us. He makes people miss, he runs for power, runs for speed. Today he showed you what he can do when he’s healthy. He can take over a football game.”
Longwood 44, Sachem East 23: Walter Miles ran for a 66-yard touchdown, returned a kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown, and threw a 43-yard touchdown pass to Derly Bollar to lead Longwood (4-4). Miles ran for 113 yards on eight carries. Kavaughn Wiggins scored three touchdowns and gained 47 yards on eight carries. Tommy Scala had 92 yards and ran for a 40-yard touchdown on eight carries. Sachem East finished 1-7. – Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 01 Nov 2009
FLOYD 15, LONGWOOD 6 DeSilva spearheads tough ‘D’ effort Colonials too quickand too active for rival Lions Defense scores safety for first points of game
Herzog, Bob. Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 08 Nov 2009
The lights went on at halftime late yesterday afternoon. The Floyd defense flipped a switch, too.
The Colonials played lights-out defense in the second half to register a 15-6 victory over rival Longwood in a fierce, hard-hitting Division I first-round playoff game.
“I can’t say enough about the defense. It was awesome,” said Paul Longo, coach of No. 2 Floyd (8-1).
Floyd’s defense created the first points of the game, when Ivy France and Kevin Lacey teamed up to tackle Eric Lee in the end zone for a safety with 1:33 left in the first quarter.
Longwood answered midway through the second quarter when Walter Miles, operating out of the wildcat, ran four times for 26 yards. With the Colonials scrambling to defend the senior who had missed the Lions’ first four games with an injury – all losses – Longwood‘s passing quarterback, Lee, lofted a one over the middle to Sherif Saad for a 20-yard touchdown.
The Lions mounted one more drive later in the half that ended with Bobby DeSilva’s interception in the end zone on the final play of the half. After that, you could turn off the lights. Longwood‘s party was over.
“I thought we had it,” a tearful Miles said. “But they’ve got a fast defense.”
It wasn’t always fast enough to contain Miles, who ran for 90 yards and passed for 116. “We knew he could run. We didn’t know he could throw the ball, too,” Longo said.
But in the second half, the Colonials’, led by linebackers Kevin Lacey, DeSilva and Nicky Sidaras and linemen Andrew Incantalupo and Kevin Hauter adjusted. “We stepped up,” said Incantalupo, who made a huge fumble recovery in the third quarter to set up Floyd’s second touchdown and essentially put the game away.
Miles was nailed by DeSilva and just before he went down, tried to toss the ball to a receiver in the flat. Incantalupo alertly recovered the loose ball on the Longwood 14. It was ruled a lateral. “I thought the ball was live and I grabbed it,” Incantalupo said.
DeSilva had disrupted the play with his rush. “I was just coming off the edge. I love to blitz,” he said.
After that turnover, quarterback Darryl Moore, who had given Floyd an 8-6 lead with a 19-yard TD run earlier in third quarter, darted eight yards for another TD. He finished with a team-high 81 yards.
“We know the offense is going to have some off days,” DeSilva said. “So we had to pick them up.”
The defense provided one more pick-me-up late in the fourth quarter when Longwood drove to the 4-yard line. But the Colonials, with Lacey, DeSilva and Moore making big stops, kept the Lions from scoring and from trying an onsides kick that could’ve made things dicey in the final minute.
“My heart is still pounding,” Longo said. So was his defense.