Article by Matt Diano
More important than what a scoreboard read on a dreary Wednesday night at Mitchel Field, the memory that will last a lifetime is that for one final occasion, the best and brightest of the NYCHSFL’s class of 2023 got to strap on some pads and play the game they love…It is this sense of camaraderie, of passion, and of sportsmanship that defined us on November 30th, as former rivals were transformed into teammates and brothers!!!
That having been said, a score was kept and when the final horn sounded after 60 minutes (running time) of fierce action that witnessed both sidelines pour their entire being into the pursuit of victory, it was Team Long Island owning the gridiron, as they piggybacked off of the St. Anthony’s Catholic State title win (27-20 over St. Francis) by emerging with a 38-21 triumph over the contingent from New York City!!!
A proper send-off that was much closer than the final box score will suggest (was 24-21 at the end of the 3rd quarter), those in attendance that willingly weathered the storm were treated to non-stop action as the two all-star rosters took turns trading explosive “home run” plays from start to finish…
Jumping out to a 14-0 lead less than 5:00 into the opening quarter were the representatives from “Strong Island” as it was 2x Metro Catholic championship team member, Andre Kirton (Holy Trinity) turning on the rockets to returning the opening kickoff 95 yards to the house to give LI the 7-0 edge just 17 ticks into the contest…
The cushion doubled approximately 4:30 minutes later when Holy Cross running back, Nakai Maupin, plunged into the end zone from 1-yard out…This score was set up when the St. John the Baptist duo of Sean Dennehy (knocked it loose) and Elijah Alvarez (pounded on the football) created a turnover on the first play of scrimmage by NYC to give possession immediately back to LI on the opponent’s 28…Chaminade WR, Gavin Creo, hauled in a 12-yard pass over the middle from UPenn bound QB, Devin Page (Kellenberg) to move the ball to the 16…Maupin then had a 15-yard run to put himself on the doorstep!
The score unchanged for the remainder of the 1st and the majority of the 2nd, Long Island successfully tacked on a late FG (beat the buzzer) when HT’s Evan Glusic, booted a 31-yarder between the uprights to send his squad into the locker room up 17-0….As he did on the earlier march, Creo was again instrumental, helping his unit cash in on optimal starting field position (short punt gave them the “rock” on the NYC 35) by catching a pair of passes for 10 + 5 yards from Isaiah Decruz (St. Francis Prep) to propel the ball inside the red zone (City 17)!
Down three scores after 30 minutes, the four borough (Queens with loaned to LI) flock wasted no time in putting themselves back in the ballgame, as turnabout was fair play on special teams…
After watching Kirton take the kickoff to the promised land to commence the 1st half, it was Serge Lagardere (Stepinac) giving the Island a dose of their own medicine when he returned the favor to begin the 2nd half, bolting down his own sideline and not stopping until he reached paydirt to cut the deficit to 17-7 a mere 12 seconds into 3Q…
After forcing a punt on “D”, the comeback effort continued on “Gotham’s” first official offensive series of the 2nd half, as Lagardere would take the pitch on 2nd & 9, spin out of a tackle, and toggle “ludicrous speed” mode on his way to a 55-yard cruise that moved the ball from his own 41 to the LI 4-yard line…Mauricio Cetina (Monsignor Farrell) fought his way in from a 1-yard out three snaps later to bring his brigade to within 17-14 (6:01 to go in the 3rd quarter)….
Both offenses clearly clicking on all cylinders, the short touchdown run by the Lion tailback [Cetina] was the first of FOUR consecutive marches up and down the field from the two opposing armies during the next seven minutes as points started flying on the board in droves…
In response to the NYC touchdown, Maupin struck for his second TD trek of the night, as he took the HB draw to the outside, made one cut back to the middle and then was gone in a flash, motoring 62 yards undeterred to make the score 24-14 (4:58 left in 3Q)…
The 10pt difference lasted all of 1:11, as Staten Island played pitch-and-catch with Westchester when Moore Catholic All-State field general, John Michalski, threw a 75-yard bomb to Stepinac’s Gjok Dedvukaj (mid-stride adjustment to grab the ball over the other shoulder) to again trim LI’s edge to 24-21 (3:47 remaining in the third stanza)…
Preserving the trend of back-and-forth jabs, it was soon-to-be Fordham Ram (baseball), Matthew Dieguez (Chaminade) converting a 4th & short on the last snap of the third quarter (road paved by fellow Flyer, Mason Dietrich) and then going big when on the second play of the 4th quarter, he dropped back and unleashed a 40-yard missile into the waiting arms of Jayson Zeva (SJB) to supply some insurance (31-21; 13:54 still to go in regulation)….
Pulling away in the last 12:00 of the 2022 season, Long Island finally broke the streak of TD exchanges, when Kellenberg defensive back, Sean Cannon, capitalized off of a 2nd & 23 heave from Michalski by leaping up for an interception on the NYC 37 with 11:54 showing on the clock…The Firebird was more than pleased to reap the benefits, but equal credit must be bestowed onto the persons of Titans—Christopher Bacon & Irv Briggs IV…Routinely in opposing backfield harassing rival QBs, it Bacon earning the sack that created the 2nd & forever, while Briggs (committed to UConn) applied the pressure on the desperation hurl…The B&B boys had previously produced a turnover on downs at the onset of the 2nd quarter (10:54 before the intermission) when they united for a combo sack on 4th & short!
With blood in the water, Kirton’s 20-yard run on a reverse put the pigskin inside the City 20, and then it was the Ethan Cummings show the rest of the way, with four carries in a row from the KMHS RB culminated on a 1-yard power-run where he fearlessly bulldozed his way at and through two defenders who met him at the goal line to close out the scoring, 38-21 (8:05 to go in the 4th)…
During the postgame festivities, the four individuals recognized were as follows:
*Long Island Defensive Player of the Game: Christopher Bacon (Holy Trinity)
*Long Island Offensive Player of the Game: Nakai Maupin (Holy Cross)
*New York City Defensive Player of the Game: Shawn Keegan (Monsignor Farrell)
*New York Offensive Player of the Game: Serge Lagardere (Stepinac)