It was a sunny Saturday on November 8th at Marc Mantone Field, where the Carey Seahawks were prepared to take on the Valley Stream South Falcons to start their playoff run. Earlier this year, they had taken on the Falcons at home on homecoming to defeat them 35-0, and the Seahawks were looking to repeat.
The Carey Seahawks were coming off of a 2 game losing streak to Wantagh and Bethpage, and when asked about if this affects their mindset, coach Mike Stanley said “I don’t think losing two games affects our mindset. What our mindset needs to be, and this has been communicated to our players, very clearly, that we need to operate with urgency this week and all days going forward; win you move on, lose and you go home.” Another question I asked him was what the team learned about Valley Stream South from their past matchup. His response was “I think we’ve learned more about Valley Stream South. throughout their season. They have a dangerous offense that has moved the ball against all opponents and have had weeks that they’ve put up a lot of points; it’s a great challenge for our players.”
To start the game, the Falcons received the ball and took it up to the 37 yard line. However, Carey forced them to punt after a 3 and out. On Carey’s first drive, they would reach the first down marker once, thanks to a big 34 yard run by Justin DiPietro, ending the drive with a 32 yard receiving touchdown by James McGrath, followed by a 2 point conversion on a run by McGrath to put them up 8-0 early in the game. The Falcons started their next drive on the 20 yard line after a touchback, getting a first down, but cornerback William Cooper picked off their quarterback on a deep pass attempt, giving the Seahawks the ball on the 35 yard line. Carey was moved back 5 yards on a false start penalty, preventing them from getting a first down and making them punt it back to Valley Stream South. The Falcons ended up getting a first down, but the Seahawks forced them to punt, where the return was brought up to the 38. But on their first play James McGrath would take the ball on a 46 yard run, bringing them to the 19 yard line, where they ended the first quarter.
Carey would start their 2nd quarter with a bang, giving Justin DiPietro the ball for a 16 yard run into the end zone for a touchdown, followed by an extra point by Michael Lombardi to put them up 15-0. However, on their first play, Logan Alvizures would get Carey’s second interception of the game, putting Carey at Valley Stream South’s 29 yard line. But Carey wouldn’t be able to reach the first down line, opting to punt it instead, giving the Falcons the ball on the 5 yard line. The Falcons reached the first down three times, but cornerback William Cooper would get his second interception of the game, putting Carey on the 47 yard line. Carey got to the first down marker three times, capping off the drive with a 4 yard rushing touchdown by Justin DiPietro, followed by an extra point by Michael Lombardi to put Carey up 22-0. The Falcons started their drive on the 30 yard line after the kickoff, but Carey would take the ball back after a punt, starting their drive at the 45 yard line, but on their first play of the game James McGrath would receive a pass from Tristan Hickis for a 55 yard touchdown, followed by an extra point by Michael Lombardi to extend their lead to 29-0. Valley Stream South took the kickoff up to the 30 yard line again, but Logan Alvizures picked off the ball for his second interception of the game, giving the ball to Carey on the 49 yard line. Carey started their drive with a huge 45 yard reception by Jayden Radow, followed by a 5 yard receiving touchdown by Matthew Carbone and an extra point by Michael Lombardi to put Carey up 36-0 at the end of the half.
Carey received the ball to start the half, bringing it up to the 35 yard line. Luca Lentini came into the game at quarterback. Carey reached the first down line, but they ended up punting it, which landed at the 1 yard line. The Falcons got a first down four times on their drive, ending the third quarter at the 27 yard line.
To start the 4th quarter, Valley Stream South would go for it on fourth down, but the pass would nearly be picked off, giving the Seahawks the ball on the 27 yard line. However, the Falcons made a bunch of big stops, preventing Carey from reaching the first down marker and forcing them to punt, starting their drive at the 47 yard line. On their first play, Valley Stream South would take the ball all the way to the end zone for a 53 yard rushing touchdown to get on the board, making the score 36-8. Carey started their drive at the 28 yard line. Carey got 3 first downs on their drive while running out the clock, ending the game with a 36-8 win.
After the game, I had an interview with Will Cooper, who had 2 interceptions. When asked about having this performance in his last home game, he said “It just makes it feel great. Your last game as a senior at home, it’s amazing.” Another question was what this performance from the defense, who had 4 turnovers and only allowed 8 point, tells us about them. His answer was “It really excels. We put a lot of time and effort into the defense and it really shows on the field.” Finally, one more question was what we should expect from their defense in their next game. He said “I think we’re going to do better. We’re going to prepare even harder and we’re going to work even harder throughout the week.” Carey plays Wantagh next Sunday at Hofstra.
Photos by Vincent Farina
