Carson Kraus and Michael Berkery each score 2 TDs to lead Garden City

Michael Berkery of Garden City, left, gets congratulated by teammate Justin Gisolfi after rushing for his first of two touchdowns in the afternoon during the second quarter of a Nassau Conference II football game against Carey at Garden City on Saturday. Credit: James Escher
Blake Cascadden and his Garden City football teammates defend something each week.
The Trojans have won five of the last six Long Island Championships and seven straight Nassau titles.
There’s a target on their backs, and the Garden City locker room knows it.
“We know other people around think, ‘This is our year to beat Garden City,” Cascadden said. “We have a saying right now, ‘Hold the standard.’ We’re working as hard as we can to keep that tradition going.”
Garden City’s winning tradition continued at home on Saturday in a 30-6 win over Carey. Garden City (5-0) entered the season as the top seed in Nassau II, and Carey (4-1) started as No. 2.
Carson Kraus and Michael Berkery each scored two rushing touchdowns against the Seahawks. The Trojans won their 35th consecutive game, dating back to March 2021.
“We’re another special group. We’re holding the GC standard,” Berkery said. “We bent in the beginning, but we didn’t break. That’s what we do.”
Carey forced and recovered a fumble on Garden City’s third play from scrimmage. TJ Wakely then caught an 18-yard touchdown pass from Christian Boswell as the only touchdown of the first quarter to give the Seahawks a 6-0 lead.
Kraus scored on a fourth-and-three bootleg down the right sideline less than two minutes into the second quarter. Christopher Desiderio, who converted three extra points, added a 22-yard field goal with 4:20 left in the first half.
Cascadden sacked Boswell on Carey’s next possession and forced a fumble that Brady Karol recovered on the Seahawks 11-yard line. Berkery scored from four yards out with 23.6 seconds left in the half to give the Trojans a 16-6 lead before halftime.
“We figured let’s blitz the edges, see what they can do with it, and luckily I got that arm on the QB to cause the fumble,” Cascadden said.
Berkery, who rushed for 124 yards on 17 carries, scored a 50-yard touchdown with 3:14 left in the third quarter. Kraus added his second touchdown with 2:27 left in the fourth.
The Seahawks, who averaged 36 points per game in their first four games of the season, didn’t capitalize on two turnovers that started their offense in Garden City’s territory. Aidan Considine led the Trojans with eight tackles, Cascadden made seven and Jack O'Neill made six tackles.
“You never know what to expect when you play Carey. We’ve always had some great battles with them,” Garden City coach Dave Ettinger said. “Giving up six points to a team like that, that’s been scoring every week, is a great job.”