Ramblings Part 2

November 8, 2011

Props to the Varsity Football team.

After three consecutive seasons without a playoff victory, the Chiefs (7-2) pulled off an upset of the Baldwin Bruins (6-3) this past Saturday.  Although the team should have been the higher seed, Baldwin stunned the county by beating top-ranked Freeport in their regular season finale.

The Chiefs beat the Bruins 28-14 homecoming weekend, and they proved they did not need home-field advantage to secure a victory.  They didn’t simply beat the Bruins, they outplayed them.  The offense was lead by a set of stellar runs by standout sophomore Jack Korber, who finished with 101 yards and a touchdown on two carries, and junior Vasillis Grigorakos, who added two touchdowns.

“Going into the game we were given no respect and we thought we had something to prove,” senior lineman Mike Sollenne said.  Sollenne makes a great point: the boys are no strangers to comments about how the team receives too much funding and is usually one of the less successful Fall sports.  “Just getting to Hofstra isn’t our goal. Our goal is to win the whole thing,” Sollenne later added.  His thoughts ran right alongside those of senior Captain Mike McCarren, who believes the team is better than the rankings critics have given them.  “No one was giving us respect or credit for what we had accomplished in the regular season, we have worked hard since winter and have earned the right to play at Hofstra,” McCarren said.

Obviously, the Chiefs are in for it as two of the remaining teams (East Meadow and Freeport) are ranked in the top 10 teams on Long Island by Newsday.  “We have to forget about the lights and just play hard nose football and come out with the W,” senior wide receiver Dan Muller said.  Muller, who leads Nassau County in receptions and touchdown passes, has been very influential in the team’s performance.  A lacrosse stand-out, he decided to play football this season with the hopes of earning a county championship. “Over the season we have grown closer as a team and feel as if we are a family and all have each other’s backs,” Muller added when asked about the team’s chemistry.

With perennial powers’ Boys and Girls Soccer premature exit from their respective playoffs, the Football team has its eyes on regaining the prowess they once enjoyed in the 90’s.  “We’re going to take full advantage of the opportunity,” McCarren said, eying the team’s first visit to the County Championship since 2008.  “Our goal is to win the whole thing and we’re working hard to make sure that happens,” Sollenne said.

I have long been a critic of the Football team, but after their stellar regular season and trouncing of Baldwin, I’ve jumped on the bandwagon.

Best of luck to the boys as they play East Meadow in the county semi-final this Saturday, November 12 8:30pm at Hofstra.