“We gave this 60 minutes of pure Lindy football — tough, gritty football,” senior quarterback Jack Randazzo said. “We wanted to play how we play.”
He wasn’t kidding.
With a handful of interceptions and big-yard plays that led to touchdowns in a 21-7 win over Ward Melville Saturday, Lindenhurst football proves its consistent balance on both sides of the field could take the team far, again.
“We had a couple of mistakes here and there, but overall, it’s a good win,” Randazzo said. “I give it all to our coaches — it’s all strategy and gameplay and the balance is great.”
The Bulldogs’ (2-0) defense started the game off strong with two tackles for loss before a Ward Melville 31-yard catch just under a minute-and-a-half into the game. But Lindenhurst’s Brady Dolan was having none of that, and forced a fumble that teammate Danny DeFelice covered to give the Bulldogs the ball on Ward Melville’s 31-yard line with 8:44 left in the quarter. That drive led to senior running back Marvens Brutus’ 25-yard touchdown and an early advantage. Senior kicker Nick Antos, who remained perfect on the evening, split the uprights to give the Bulldogs a 7-0 lead at 6:22.
“We were looking to score. We do what we can do,” Brutus said. “It was good competition.”
But Ward Melville (1-3) had plenty of fight, especially in junior wide receiver Nolan Fontana, who came up with gains of 21 and 31 yards early in the second quarter. He was strong on the other side of the ball, too. After senior cornerback Asher Heilbron broke up a pass at 7:29, Fontana, at safety, came up with his own stop and Ward Melville was right back at it. Despite DeFelice grabbing an ankle to stop forward progress in the first play from scrimmage, Fontana grabbed an 11-yard pass for third-and-2 from the Patriots’ 22. Unfortunately, it was as far as they’d go that drive, and Lindenhurst made them pay with a long march led by senior running back Jack Winey all the way to the 1-yard line. Randazzo punched it in on quarterback sneak with 17.1 seconds left in the first half.
“This whole game was very chippy, but our line got it done; we ran the ball really well,” the senior said. “We’re working hard. We’re in shape. We’re conditioned.”
Ward Melville ended the second quarter and started the third with a few lateral trick plays, but still the Patriots could not sustain a drive. That is, until senior small safety Kyle Raber made an interception at the 11:53 of the fourth quarter. Two plays later, Fontana scored on a 41-yard touchdown catch from junior quarterback Chris Prussen. Senior kicker Tommy Dellaporta’s extra-point attempt was good to cut Lindenhurst’s lead in half, 14-7.
“We made some mistakes, we just have to go and fix them and prepare for the next game,” Brutus said. “But we’ve been waiting for this. I’ve been preparing for this since January. We hope all this hard work pays off.”
For Brutus, it did. With 2:32 left to play, after Jake Trovato re-extended the lead with a 15-yard touchdown run, the senior countered with his own interception in the red zone, and ran the ball all the way back and into the end zone. While an illegal block in the back brought play back to the spot of the turnover, the Bulldogs still had the ball, and that was all they needed.
“We have a lot of depth on both sides of the ball,” Brutus said, smiling. “And we can always get somebody in quick that’s going to make the play.”
After the first and third games of the season were canceled due to COVID-19 protocols, Randazzo said he was happy to be back on the field, and can’t wait to see what his Suffolk County and Long Island Championship-defending team will do next.
“It feels great to be back. This is my senior season, and I’ve been playing with these guys since I was 5, 6 years old,” Randazzo said. “It’s been one hell of an experience, but we need to keep playing like we play football, because we’re looking to win another championship.”
