LIC notebook: Garden City's Justin Coppola hurdles problems

Justin Coppola knew he had to stick the landing.

The Garden City running back made a highlight-reel play on Friday, hurdling over a Lindenhurst defender to score on an 8-yard scramble and give the Trojans a 13-point lead with 5:37 in the second quarter. 

Garden City went on to defeat Lindenhurst 19-0 in the Long Island Class II Championship at Stony Brook.

“I thought about doing it and went for it,” Coppola said. “I know if it didn’t work it’d be a problem, but getting it was incredible.”

Coppola said Garden City was running a sweep play and he was looking to go right when he took the handoff. As soon as he saw he was one-on-one with the nearest defender, Coppola was confident he could pad the Trojans’ lead. 

“I got some good blocks and I knew if I made the play I’d be able to make him miss,” Coppola said. “I had my eyes on the end zone.”

Coppola’s athletic play highlighted Garden City’s offense, but he was quick to add that it wouldn’t have been possible without his line.

“It’s all them,” Coppola said. “None of us would be able to do anything without them.”

Halftime adjustments

The Lindenhurst defense faced a tough task going up against Garden City’s high-powered offensive attack that averaged 38.6 points per game entering the LIC.

After trailing by two touchdowns at halftime, the Bulldogs defense went back to basics.

“We tried to express to our kids to just trust our reads,” Lindenhurst coach Nick Lombardo said regarding his second-half adjustments. “Our defense came out firing in the third quarter, and did a great job trying to control their potent running game.”

After allowing 151 rushing yards and 178 yards of total offense in the first half, Lindenhurst stymied the Trojans, holding them to just 21 yards in the third quarter and 84 yards in the second half. For the first time all season, Garden City was held under 20 points.

Sophomore middle linebacker Jack Winey led the Bulldogs with eight tackles (seven solo), and Jack Hogan and Jayden Barber each added six solo tackles.

Getting the jump

The Cold Spring Harbor football team wanted to speed things up on Friday.

The Seahawks set a blistering tempo in their 42-20 victory over Shoreham-Wading River in the Long Island Class IV Championship at Stony Brook, getting to the line quickly and keeping the Wildcats from settling in on defense. 

“We were snapping the ball quick because they were trying to adjust,” quarterback Ray Costa said. “I think we kept them on their toes”

Cold Spring Harbor’s pace opened up the Seahawks' offense, particularly on the ground. The team rushed for 331 yards.

“We have so much speed on the outside that when they’re not ready, we can blast out,” Costa said. “That quick push is everything for us.”

Costa also said the Seahawks used a variety of snap counts and audibles at the line to keep Shoreham-Wading River from finding its defensive rhythm.

“It’s something we’ve keyed on every week,” Costa said. “We want to keep the other team off balance using the count because then we’re a step ahead.”

‘X’ Marks the spot

Xavier Arline’s season did not end the way he hoped it would, but his performance was a bright spot for the Shoreham-Wading River football team all year long.

The dual-threat quarterback rushed for 73 yards and two scores, including a 41-yard TD run, on 17 carries, and was 8-for-14 passing for 124 yards and a touchdown in the LIC.

Arline amassed over 2,200 yards on the ground and totaled 43 touchdowns (33 rushing) in his junior year.

“It was a special season and we had a special group of guys,” Arline said. “Nobody remembers a team that came in second place, but we’ll be back.”