NWE/Putnam Grid Notebook 10-05-21

Hen Hud Stuns Ardsley, Turns Class B Upside Down, Somers Topples Yorktown, Carmel Crushes John Jay EF

By Ray Gallagher, Examiner Sports Editor @Directrays

The win of the week goes to CLASS B host HEN HUD after Coach John ‘Big Cat’ Catano’s Sailors stunned state-ranked (No.12) Ardsley, 12-7, last Friday. In doing so, the rumbling Sailors (2-2), who had an impressive fourth-quarter, goal-line stand to preserve the win, sent reverberations throughout Class B, which is seemingly up for grabs after this massive upset of the two-time reigning sectional champs. And a healthy Hen Hud squad is now firmly in the mix with the likes of Ardsley, Pleasantville, Nanuet and reigning champion Byram Hills. Indeed, Class B looks like a dog fight from here on out after Sailor RB Scott Lupi (5 carries 48 yards, 47 yards receiving) showed his burst and versatility while RB Anthony Panettieri (16 carries for 56 yards) did the grinding and was rewarded with a pair of rushing TDs from five and three yards out. Dan Martinez (5 carries for 23 yards) and QB Chris McGuire (7 carries for 17 yards, 4 for 11 passing for 103 yards) were key contributors for the Sailors.

Defensively, DB Will Richer showed a nose for the ball with two interceptions, a fumble recovery and four tackles. Lupi (10 tackles, 1 caused fumble) was a monster on D. Dajhan Daniels and Ben Andersen added five tackles apiece to thwart the recent two-time sectional champions (2018-19).

“We were able to get on the board first with two first-half scores, and then our defense came up big, especially late in the game on our final goal-line stand,” Catano said. “The boys really came to play. Beating a club like Ardsley; this is one of our program’s biggest wins in recent memory.”

CLASS A

SOMERS needed just 12 plays from scrimmage — three of which found paydirt for a 21-0 edge — before host YORKTOWN knew what hit them en route to a 35-0 Tusker triumph of the rival Huskers last Friday. Somers RB’s Ravi Dass (2 rushes, 41 yards), Derek Marcus (3 rushes, 16 yards) and Luke Savino (4 rushes, 49 yards) each rushed for a score while Trey Mancuso (43 yards) and Dass (64 yards) reeled in long scoring strikes from QB Matt Fitzsimons (6 of 10, 135 yards, 2 TDs). The long flag route to Mancuso provided a four-score cushion and killed what was an otherwise glorious mood at Yorktown, which featured a pink-out by its massive Crop to help support local cancer funding. (The $1,065 raised in the 50-50 raffle was not claimed by someone who deserves a nod of approval and will be donated directly to Support Connection to support breast cancer).

As for the Mancuso TD. “Matt just threw a nice back shoulder pass and I just adjusted to it,” said Mancuso, who made a couple of shifty moves inside the 10 before plowing in for the score.
While the mood dampened on the Husker sideline, Somers Nation was out in force to support their state-ranked (No.13) Tuskers.

“We knew that it was gonna be a big game; it’s Somers against Yorktown, and it was their homecoming, but we knew what we had to do and we did it,” Somers senior captain TE/LB Ethan Kraus said after landing five tackles for a defense led by senior DL Dylan Faller’s eight sticks, three for loss. “There were a lot of factors that took a part in that win.”

Beginning with the fact that Somers is just scratching the surface of its playbook while buying into a get better or go home mantra.

“We have come a long way so far but it’s not over yet,” Krauss said. “We get better every week no matter who we are playing because like coach d always said, ‘You either get better or worse, you never stay the same’. A lot of us live by that and it’s helping us form into a better team each week.”

The offensive and defensive lines were dominant in the trenches, led by Faller and Krauss on the defensive side and massive junior OT Jake Polito on the O-line. The 6’3” 285-pound Polito suggested that the entire community has bought in to what the Tuskers are selling.

“It’s the whole community right now,” Polito said. “We are also just getting closer as brothers and everything’s just clicking like you said. We make a conscious effort to be deliberate everyday in practice to “beat” the other team on a given day, then we go out on a Friday and do it one more time.

“Also I’d like to give a shoutout to Sal’s Pizza in Lincolndale on Lovell Street for always hooking it up after our practices,” Polito added. “He said he’ll name a pie after me if I shouted him out.”

(Let’s hope Big Sal is a man of honor. Might I suggest the Jake Scar-Polito Pie; a total ripoff of Chicken Scarpariello, a classic Italian-American recipe with juicy chicken chunks, sweet Italian sausage, and a vinegary, sweet-sour pan sauce.)

Husker RB Marco McKnight (44 yards, 17 carries) found little room to run all night, but did help set up a 45-yard field goal attempt in the first half, which was blocked. Husker QB Justin Meyreles departed early in the second-quarter with an apparent injury, opening the door for backup QB Vito DeBellis’ 40-yard pass to Thomas Costello, but the Huskers (1-3) fumbled inside the five on their only realistic scoring attempt.

MAHOPAC found the sledding tough at John Jay CR where the host Wolves (3-1) snapped a 14-all deadlock with the game’s final score en route to a 20-14 League A-North win over the Indians (2-2). Four Mahopac ball carriers combined for just 100 yards rushing on 26 attempts for a shade under four yards per carry, which won’t get it done against a high-flying, up-tempo attack like John Jay. Indian junior RB Joey Koch rushed 10 times for 35 yards and a fourth-quarter, game-tying scoot to paydirt while senior RB Steven Perone had seven carries for 24 yards and the game’s initial score. Mahopac QB Anthony DeMatteo was limited to 7-of-15 passing for just 45 yards (four grabs to Max Gomes for 34 yards) and another 31 rushing yards on five totes.

After tying the score at 14, the Mahopac defense, which had been stout all night behind sacks from Anthony Porco and Adam Montalvo, did not come up strong on the Wolves’ final drive. Still, Montalvo, who took the loss hard, believes the Indians were their own worst enemy.

“I think that we lost to ourselves,” the senior captain said. “I think that we came in with a wrong attitude and that led to us not playing well. I do think that John Jay was better than we expected but was not better than us. We lost to ourselves.”

With playoffs getting closer and the Indians on the brink, that is something the they’ll need to address this week.
BREWSTER (3-1) is making the most of its potential, putting itself in a strong position to make the playoffs should Coach Ed Mulvihill’s Bears finish strong with a couple of tough games on the horizon. After handling WALTER PANAS with ease, 40-6, Friday, Brewster is set to host Mahopac this Friday (7:30 pm) in a Week 5 tilt that Mahopac desperately needs to stay afloat in A-North. The Bears will also visit John Jay (3-1) in Week 7, leaving the very little wiggle room for losses and a highly intriguing matchup with the Indians.

Against the Panthers (0-4), the Bears rushed for over 300 yards on Homecoming Day. RB Will Martinez paced the Bears with 78 yards on 11 carries with a TD while teammate Massimo Parrello ran for 54 yards on four carries, including a TD. Alex Rienzi added two carries for 51 yards and a TD. Parrello also connected on 4 of 7 passes for 49 yards, including a 19-yard TD strike to Nick Sayegh, who also brought the house down with an 82-yard punt return for a score. “It was homecoming and the atmosphere was electric,” Mulvihill said. “The stands were packed, the fans were loud, lots of smiles on the Brewster side. We have a great community, which always supports us. It’s a great place to play.”

LAKELAND led Lourdes 14-12 at the half but the Hornets (1-3) couldn’t stop a punishing Warrior (2-3) ground game in the second half of a 30-18 A-North setback. Lakeland QB Stevie Dedvukaj continued an impressive rookie campaign by hitting on 12 of 25 passes for 143 yards and three TD strikes to big-play threat Tyler Ronk (7 catches, 3 TDs, 103 yards). Lakeland’s defense was led by Stephen Carroll (9 tackles), Joey Malaspina (8) and Connor McGannon (7).

Lakeland has been bitten hard by the injury bug, including four of their five starting linemen and a pair of key skill players, and Coach Mike Meadows has been forced to run out second- and third-stringers who have impressed with their will to compete.
“They are fighting and giving me everything they have,” the coach said. “The kids continue to play hard and make no excuses. I was so proud of Dedvukaj and Ronk.

CLASS AA

CARMEL (4-0) got on the board first when senior RB Nick Shields pushed in from two yards out for a 6-0 lead at 7:09 of the first quarter en route to a 40-7 AA-North victory over host John Jay EF.

A 67-yard TD jaunt by Jay RB Aidan Gallagher after the ensuing kick gave Jay 7-6 lead at 6:49.

Carmel WR Andrew Fiore had the answer and gave the state-ranked (No.16) Rams a 13-7 lead at 10:23 of the second quarter, hauling in a seven-yard TD strike from QB Kevin Dall. Shields had a huge third-down sack on the ensuing Jay possession, followed by a bad snap on fourth down, which gave the Rams the ball on the Jay 16 (a holding call pushed the Rams back to the 26). Shields finished the short drive from five yards out at 4:49 before the half for a 20-7 lead.

After another three-and-out, Carmel took over another short field (at the Jay 31) with 2:58 before the half. Dall went naked-bootleg on 4th-and-1 for a 22-yard TD scoot with 1:06 to go for a 27-7 lead… game, set, match! Rams RB Thomas Keating added a pair of second-half TD runs for the final margin.

CLASS D

HALDANE put down host Hastings, 20-13, behind a pair of scores from RB Evan Giachinta (4-yard rush, 17-yard pass) and two TD strikes from QB Ryan Van Tassel (183 passing yards), including a 79-yarder to Julian Forcello and the game-clinching strike to Giachinta (16 rushes, 75 yards). The Blue Devils (3-1) were led on defense by Ryan Irwin (9 solo tackles, 4 for loss, 4 assists, 1 sack). Haldane will host Croton Friday (7 pm) in its only night game of the regular season before a staunch Week 6 test from Valhalla.