Castellano helps drive E. Rockaway over Floral Park
East Rockaway's Anthony Tesoriero breaks free of defenders to score touchdown in East Rockaway 26-13 win over Floral Park. (Nov. 6, 2010) Credit: Patrick E. McCarthy
Michael Castellano was still flabbergasted 15 minutes later - chin bloodied, out of breath from the game, the excitement, and the rush of being carried not once, but twice, on the back of a euphoric teammate.
"It was amazing," he said. It was so good. I don't know what to say."
From that, most people would think that No. 3 East Rockaway had won by the thinnest margin, when really, the final: 26-13 over No. 6 Floral Park in the first round of the Conference IV playoffs Saturday, indicated a relatively comfortable late-game lead.
But this is new territory for the Rocks, a team which hasn't advanced past the first round since 2000; Castellano has earned his excitement.
In the third quarter, when East Rockaway trailed 13-12 with about nine minutes left to go, he earned it with his speed, his hands and, in the case of a 1-yard dive over the middle of the scrum and into the end zone, his grit. His score capped a 13-play, 7:02 drive, that included three Castellano catches. He caught Andrew Bashford's fourth-and-six, 23-yard offering and, later, corralled a 31-yard bomb at the Floral Park 30 while falling out of bounds.
"He's our big guy," coach Russell Pajer said. "We give him the ball, he makes the big plays." He's not the only one, and maybe that's what's making the difference.
Castellano had 70 yards on 20 carries and three catches for 51 yards, while Anthony Tesoriero (14 carries for 117 yards and two TDs) and Nick Massari (12 carries for 77 yards and two TDs), helped round off a cohesive offensive onslaught. On defense, Mike Lores (three sacks) and James Parzych (two sacks) severely handicapped Floral Park's passing game, while limiting the Knight's leading rusher, Ronell Jones.
Floral Park went up 7-6 with 8:20 left in the second quarter on Casey Giarrantana's 3-yard scoring pass to Chris Jimenez - a play that was set up by Jimenez's blind, over-the-shoulder 19-yard catch on the previous play. Though East Rockaway retook the lead 12-7 on Tesoriero's 7-yard TD run in the waning seconds of the second, Giarrantana's 29-yard pass hit Jimenez again on the post to give Floral Park a 13-12 lead with 8:56 left in the third. Despite the change of fortunes, "you keep your head up," Massari said. "If you get down, you get other people down . . . it's the power of belief."
It's belief in a dream long-deferred. "Since seventh grade," Parzych said - that's how long they've been playing together and how long they've dreamed of Hofstra. "Since we were 12 years old. [It's important because] we're underdogs . . . We have a small enrollment and we have the hardest fight."
East Rockaway will certainly need to fight, as it faces hard-hitting Roosevelt Saturday at 4 p.m. at Hofstra.
Castellano isn't too worried, though: "Anything can happen," he said. "It's any given Sunday . . . technically Saturday."
