Michael Anderson, Jayden Barber run show as Lindenhurst wins semifinal
Mike Anderson #27 of Lindenhurst takes the ball from Michael Varela #15 of Lindenhurst during the football game on Nov. 10, 2018 in Lindenhurst, New York. Credit: Anna Sergeeva
The Lindenhurst football team normally relies on its potent passing attack to put points on the board, but after being shut out in the first quarter and facing strong winds, the Bulldogs knew they needed to make a change.
“In the first we had the wind with us and wanted to throw the ball,” Lindenhurst head coach Nick Lombardo said. “But we kind of blew away 12 minutes of football and really put ourselves behind the eight ball. For the third straight week the wind was troublesome for us, so we had to find alternate ways to score.”
The Bulldogs turned to running backs Michael Anderson and Jayden Barber to do just that.
Anderson ran for 102 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries, and Barber added 129 yards and a score on 10 carries to lead No. 2 Lindenhurst past No. 3 Centereach, 14-7 Saturday in a Suffolk II semifinal at Lindenhurst Middle School.
The turning point in the game came late in the third quarter when the Bulldogs' defense stopped Centereach on fourth down on the Lindenhurst 15-yard line, halting a potential game-tying scoring drive.
On the first play following the turnover on downs, Barber ripped off an 85-yard touchdown run to put the Bulldogs ahead by two TDs with three minutes remaining in the third quarter.
“I was just trying to give us a bigger lead to close out the game,” Barber said. “The line gave me a perfect hole and set me up perfectly.”
Anderson opened the scoring with a 2-yard touchdown rush with 31 seconds left in the first half. His touchdown capped a 14-play, 70-yard drive.
Centereach’s only score of the game came with just over two minutes remaining on a 1-yard touchdown run by Devin Demetres. The touchdown was set up by a 65-yard hook and ladder pass play.
Following the touchdown, the Bulldogs recovered the ensuing onside kick and ran out the clock. Sunkonmi Agunloye made 11 tackles, and Jeff Perez added nine to lead the Lindenhurst defense.
Lindenhurst (7-2) will face No. 1 West Islip on Friday at 7 p.m. at Stony Brook in the Suffolk II championship.
“I try and tell these kids that it’s a privilege. It really is a special thing and it’s not an easy thing,” Lombardo said. “Like any other team, being in the game isn’t enough, you want to win the game. Our expectation is to go there and win.”
