Jawara Keahey runs for 258 yards and 5 TDs as North Babylon beats Northport
Jawara Keahey of North Babylon runs in a touchdown with less than a minute in game play to put his team back in the lead during a Suffolk Division II football game against host Northport on Saturday. Credit: Dawn McCormick
They play old school football in North Babylon. While the majority of programs around Long Island have turned to the spread offense, the Bulldogs continue to rely on a punishing running style.
Junior halfback Jawara Keahey rushed 23 times for 258 yards and scored all five touchdowns in North Babylon’s 33-27 win over Northport Saturday in a Suffolk Division II game.
Keahey capped an 8-play, 78-yard drive with a 33-yard touchdown run over right tackle for the winning score with 45 seconds left. He followed a big block from quarterback Chris Stumpf and then broke away from two defenders toward the end zone.
“He’s a 145-pound back that plays like he’s a 245-pound back,” said North Babylon coach John Rowland. “He refuses to go down and plays with tons of heart. He the best pure football player on our team. He stepped up his aggressiveness and took his game to a whole new level.”
Keahey carried most of the workload after star halfback senior Joel Lomax exited the game after a big third quarter hit. Lomax had rushed for 60 yards on eight carries to that point.
North Babylon totaled 434 yards of offense, including 368 on the ground.
“I listened to my quarterback and followed our offensive line,” Keahey said. “They were great in what was a really physical game.”
Northport went toe-to-toe with the physicality and ground and pound style of the North Babylon offense.
The Tigers never backed down going punch-counter punch with the Bulldogs.
Northport took the early lead when they opened the game with an 11-play, 80-yard scoring drive that consumed 5:47 of the clock. Fullback Giancarlo Valenti scored on an 8-yard run, and the Tigers led 6-0.
“They took it to us too,” Rowland said. “I thought we had to many blown assignments on defense, too many offensive penalties and things we need to clean up. We were sloppy.”
On the first possession, North Babylon drove 62 yards in 11 plays, but the Bulldogs were stopped on a fourth down and three inside the Northport 10. Keahey was stopped by Michael Campoli and Matt Lugo at the 7-yard line, a yard shy of the first down. The Bulldogs controlled the ball for 7:13 but failed to score. The teams had one possession each in the first quarter which lasted just 21 minutes.
On the Bulldogs next possession, Stumpf hit Keahey with a 29-yard pass to the Northport 35. Three plays later Keahey scored on a 15-yard run. Jacob Serignano kicked the point after for a 7-6 lead with 5:34 left in the half.
Northport regained the lead with eight seconds left in the half. Christian Campoli caught a 5-yard scoring pass from quarterback Enrique Hernandez for the 13-7 lead.
North Babylon took over in the third quarter and scored on all four possessions in the second half. The Bulldogs opened the third quarter with a 10-play, 75-yard drive capped by a Keahey 1-yard scoring run with 6:11 left for the 14-13 lead.
“We came out fired up in the third quarter,” said tight end Jake Miele. “It was a physical game, and we like that.”
The Bulldogs defense forced a three and out and after a short punt, took over on its 45. Two plays later, Keahey followed a massive block by Miele for a 47-yard touchdown and a 21-13 lead.
The teams traded touchdowns in the fourth quarter, then Northport’s final score came after a 62-yard march with 3:13 left. On fourth and 2 from the North Babylon 33, Valenti burst up the middle for a 33-yard scoring run. On the two-point conversion attempt, Michael Campoli went over right tackle and in an extra effort lunge barely reached over the goal line to tie it at 27.
North Babylon never flinched and went back to work, back to the ground and pound. And Keahey iced the win with his fifth touchdown.
“It’s what we do,” Keahey said. “We run right at you.”
Gregg Sarra is Newsday's high school sports editor and has been on the beat since the mid-1980s.
