A season to remember -- and savor
Newfield's Julian Santiago (22) goes up for the catch while East Islip's Nick Osburn defends. (Nov. 18, 2011) Credit: Alan J Schaefer
It happens this time every year. The high school sports scene goes into championship mode and the level of excitement erupts. It was a banner year for Long Island teams, who earned 10 state titles.
Long Island has become a soccer hotbed. Hicksville, Jericho and Port Jefferson won boys soccer crowns and MacArthur, South Side, Friends Academy and St. Anthony's took home girls soccer championships. Sachem East won the field hockey state crown and Glenn earned a girls volleyball state title.
The North Shore girls cross country team won the state Class B race and is rankedNo. 3 in the United States by ESPN Rise.
And while those teams were making their mark throughout the state, the football season was approaching the pinnacle for local teams -- the wildly popular Long Island championships.
Eight county champions were decided during a four-day span that left fans delirious this past week. Glenn is the only defending champion to earn its way back into the 20th year of the LIC. Floyd, Garden City and Sayville return looking to avenge last year's title-game losses.
Some programs are constants in the LIC: Garden City qualified for the 13th time, Floyd is in its eighth final and Sayville is making its sixth appearance. But it is such a long road to qualify.
Newfield is the only newcomer to the LIC stage. The Wolverines are the 51st team to qualify for the LIC. Fifty-nine schools never have played in an LIC, which started in 1992.
To get a taste of the LIC, Newfield had to overcome a midseason slump, three straight losses, and find the keys to unlock a struggling offense. Coach Joe Piccininni never wavered in his belief that this team could be LIC- worthy.
"I thought we would be a tough out for anyone in the playoffs,'' Piccininni said after winning the first Suffolk football title in school history.
Newfield won five straight road games against five playoff teams -- avenging two regular- season losses -- including a 14-13 defeat of East Islip for the Suffolk II title Friday night.
East Meadow was equally impressive in a Saturday night thriller. The Jets avenged an early-season loss to Freeport with a dramatic 34-33 comeback win over the Red Devils. The Jets refused to give in to the Freeport mystique and battled to the final seconds, stopping the Red Devils in the red zone for the win. When the fourth-down pass from the incomparable Isaiah Barnes fell incomplete, the defending two-time Class I champions were finished, and mayhem ensued.
And the finale of what was a spectacular championship weekend featured an individual duel between Sachem North's Dalton Crossan and Floyd's Stacey Bedell, as each tried to will his team to the LIC. Both lived up to lofty expectations. But in the end, it was the play of A.J. Otranto, who saved his best game of the season for showtime and a county title. Otranto, who didn't throw a pass in the first half, connected on his first two attempts for long touchdowns to speedy wide receiver Vantrell Nash in Floyd's 35-20 victory.
Otranto also had critical tackles for losses to key the Colonials' defense, as his contributions led Floyd back to the LIC for the sixth time in seven years, the past three over Sachem North.
The giant that is St. Anthony's in South Huntington seemed vulnerable this season as the Friars dealt with a multitude of devastating injuries. But great programs find a way to win and the Friars relied on an opportunistic defense, led by the hard-hitting Pat McHugh, that willed close wins. St. Anthony's earned its 10th CHSFL title in 11 years with a 14-0 win over Stepinac.
The championship victory allowed coach Rich Reichert to tie Joe Cipp Jr. of Bellport for the most wins by a Suffolk coach at 211.
What should not be lost in the footsteps to the LIC was the path taken. It is always about the journey. A journey that began when they threw their first ball, tackled the first halfback or scored the first touchdown. It started when they were young, playing in a field, on a street, or in the living room. It goes so fast.
The fall season ends next week with the Long Island football championships. The memories will last a lifetime.
