Kicker Mark Escher drills winning FG to lead Garden City past Carey
Mark Escher of Garden City makes a kick to give his team the lead over Carey during a Nassau Conference II football game on Saturday, Oct. 17, 2026 in Garden City. Credit: Dawn McCormick
All eyes were on the right leg of Mark Escher.
The 6-3, 185-pound lineman serves as Garden City’s kicker. And his prior field goal attempt to give the Trojans the lead had missed wide left.
Now, the junior was kicking with the wind in his face, and seven seconds left in the game with Garden City trailing by two points.
The snap from Ben Smith and the hold by Brayden Robertiello were clean. Escher swung his leg and watched his kick go over the outstretched hands of two Carey rushers and head toward the left upright.
The ball stayed just inside the post and the 25-yard field goal was good with 2.5 seconds left, lifting host Garden City to a 13-12 win over Carey in Nassau Conference II football Saturday afternoon.
“The wind at the last second blew it back to the right,” Escher said. “It’s a really special moment. I’m going to remember this for the rest of my life.”
For more on this Nassau II matchup, check out Matt Lindsay's game story.
Matt Lindsay is a high school sports reporter who joined Newsday in 2022 after graduating from Stony Brook University.
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