Massapequa linebacker Anthony DiNello wins Piner and Flatley awards

Massapequa had yielded a touchdown just before the intermission. The lead was down to 13, and now Oceanside was moving again on its opening drive of the third quarter in this Nassau Conference I championship game.

Then an inside linebacker got his hands on a pass at the Massapequa 19 and ran 20 yards in the other direction with a very large interception.

“It was a momentum turn,” Anthony DiNello said that November night at Hofstra’s Shuart Stadium about his pick.

Massapequa went on to win 55-18 and clinch a county three-peat and then claim a Long Island Class I three-peat with a defensive-fueled 14-12 victory over Ward Melville, finishing a perfect 12-0 run.

It surely helped to have the 6-foot, 195-pound DiNello on its side.

The senior received two impressive honors for his work. They came during the Nassau County High School Football Coaches Association awards banquet Wednesday night at Crest Hollow Country Club in Woodbury — the Flatley Award for most outstanding defensive player in the county and the Piner Award for most outstanding linebacker.

“I’m just really, really happy for him,” coach Kevin Shippos said. “It’s been a three-year process for him. As a sophomore, he was the backup to Ryan Wieczorek, who ended up winning the Piner Award that year, and he learned a lot from him.

“And I knew that just from his mentality, even as a young player, he had that edge that he needed to play linebacker and play it at a high level.”

DiNello served as the quarterback of the defense. He excelled against the run and the pass.

“He really took a step up this year in terms of his play, his leadership,” Shippos said. “We know he’s a tough kid. He’s the guy in the middle that set the tone. It was no more evident than the Oceanside county championship game where he was all over the field.”

On both sides of the ball.

Besides the interception, a fumble recovery and a sack, he threw a 24-yard TD pass on an option play.

His offensive role the last two seasons was as a starting fullback/tight end.

“He’s just a great all-around player,” offensive coordinator Mike Ambury said. “I know he gets a lot of publicity for his defense, but he was one of the most important guys that we had on offense for a lot of the same reasons — his toughness, his athleticism.

“But also for me, it’s about his versatility, too . . . He can catch the ball and get open just like some of the best receivers on the Island.”

DiNello catches more than just footballs. He also catches for the baseball team.

His next-level team will be the baseball team at SUNY Oswego.