Freeport rallies for key win

After starting the season with three losses in its first four games, Freeport received a much-needed lift last Saturday with a come-from-behind win against Syosset.

Trailing by one midway through the fourth quarter and Syosset driving for a possible back-breaking score, Freeport’s Jonathan Meza forced a fumble into the end zone recovered by the Red Devils. Senior quarterback/running back D’Angelo Gordon then ran for a 52-yard touchdown run and held on for an 18-13 win in rainy conditions to improve to 3-3 with two games remaining.

“Our backs were against the wall and we put ourselves squarely in this position with a couple of losses that could have gone the other way,” said longtime Freeport head coach Russ Cellan. “They are a well coached team and they make some big plays, but the rain definitely hindered them in their passing game.” 

The winning touchdown capped off a big day for Gordon, who finished with 184 yards on 26 carries and reached the end zone three times.. He rushed for a one-yard touchdown and then a five-yard score in the first quarter that gave Freeport a 12-0 lead.

Gordon also proved pivotal on defense when he forced Syosset quarterback Mustafa Mozawalla to a six-yard loss with a sack from his defensive back position after the Braves drove to the Freeport 28-yard line late in the game. Senior linebacker Landon Daley then forced a five-yard loss on a running play two snaps later and the Red Devils defense ice the game with an incompletion on a fourth-and-21. 

Daley and junior middle linebacker Anthony Velazquez were instrumental in the win with both recovering Syosset fumbles. Sophomore defensive back Glen Person also recorded an interception.

Freeport entered the season as the No. 3 seed in Conference I and dropped a tight opener to Oceanside, 31-20, in which the Sailors picked up a key fourth quarter touchdown while clinging to a two-point lead. After a convincing 36-0 win against Valley Stream Central, Freeport suffered a heartbreaking 21-20 defeat at Hempstead on Sept. 30 despite 156 yards rushing from Gordon in which the host Tigers rallied from a 12-0 deficit. 

“We gave up big plays and didn't finish in the red zone a couple of times,” Cellan said of the Hempstead defeat. “We had 17 first downs to their six.” 

With two games remaining in the regular season, Freeport is looking to cement one of the eight available playoff seeds in Conference I. Cellan said wins in both games it will likely receive a six or seven seed. 

The Red Devils host Uniondale this Saturday for a 2 p.m. kickoff. The final regular-season game will be held on Oct. 28 at home against longtime rival Baldwin at 2 p.m. Homecoming festivities were moved from last Saturday to the finale.

“The kids have been great and are at practice every day on time with no problems,” Cellan said. “We have none of that baggage that sometimes you get when things aren’t going well.”