Ferreira, Sayville pull away from Islip
Sayville quarterback Steven Ferreira hands the ball off to Zarachy Sirico in the Suffolk high school Division III football game against Islip. (Sept. 16, 2011) Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
It was a broken play that fixed Sayville's offense Friday night before a SRO crowd at Islip High School.
Facing third-and-20 from their own 32 in a tie game, Sayville quarterback Steven Ferreira danced around in the pocket trying to find an open receiver. When his protection finally wilted, Ferreira scrambled and had the ball knocked from his grasp by Islip's Travis Molin. Play over? Not quite.
"Usually, we tell our quarterbacks that if they fumble, just fall on the ball," Sayville coach Rob Hoss said. "Especially with Islip's swarming defense. Steven really showed his composure in the pocket."
The ball bounced into the air, so Ferreira merely picked it up and looked downfield, where Tom Hannan had gotten free on a deep post pattern. Ferreira hit Hannan in stride for a stunning 68-yard touchdown that launched the Golden Flashes to a 35-14 victory over Islip in a rematch of last year's Suffolk III championship game, also won by Sayville. The Flashes are 2-0; Islip is 1-1.
"No question that play turned the game around," Hoss said. "It's a tough play for Islip. It's really difficult for a defensive back to stay with a guy for all that time on a broken play."
It was a play that, ultimately, broke Islip's back as well as its heart. The Buccaneers couldn't muster much offense in the second half and Sayville shifted into cruise control after its big back John Haggart broke away on a 47-yard run early in the fourth quarter. Haggart finished with 15 carries for 125 yards and a first-quarter touchdown on a 1-yard run. Tom Dieckhoff concluded the scoring on a 6-yard run.
Ferreira struggled against a fired-up Islip defense that collapsed the pocket all night. Still, Ferreira managed to complete 10-of-20 passes for 196 yards and two touchdowns. In a 14-14 first half, Ferreira hit Zach Sirico for a score on a 16-yard screen pass.
Islip quarterback Joe Sabbatino played a gritty all-around game. He scored on a 39-yard run in the second quarter and also threw a 42-yard touchdown pass to Johnny Maher.
