Calhoun powers through Kennedy

Calhoun jumped out to an early lead on the strength of several big plays, then pulled away by grinding out a few more touchdowns on the way to a 41-14 road victory over district-rival Kennedy in a Nassau Conference II football game last Saturday.

Senior quarterback Mike Zito turned in perhaps his best performance of the season and the defense forced four turnovers helping the Colts (2-3) win for the second time in their last three games.

“[The win] is impressive for two reasons,” Calhoun head coach Brian Moeller said. “It put the team back on [the winning] track, and it’s always good to win a rivalry game against a quality opponent.”

Kennedy (2-3) dropped its third straight game, though the game was within reach deep into the second half. The Colts scored touchdowns on their last two possessions to put the finishing touches on a lopsided final score with senior Anthony Calamusa (12 carries, 90 yards) rumbling for touchdown runs of eight and 15 yards. “They ultimately started wearing us down and their quarterback made some good decisions,” Cougars head coach Tom Durnin said. “He did some real heads up things.”

Zito ran for a game-high 153 yards on 12 carries showing excellent judgment when to pitch and when to tuck and run on his option reads. “When the quarterback makes his reads it really opens things up for the offense,” Moeller said.

Zito opened the scoring when he sprinted 68 yards to the end zone on the fourth play of the game and also scored on a 24-yard run in the third quarter to help Calhoun open up a 28-14 edge. And while the ground attack is the nuts and bolts of the Colts offense, Zito also made his pass attempts count, completing two of his three passes, including a 50-yarder to senior Greg Grippa that officially went for 30 after a block-in-the back call. “[Zito] has a real nice burst and he’s a north/south runner,” Durnin said.

Grippa took an inside handoff into the end zone from four yards out early in the second quarter. Senior Danny Tack capped a six-play, 60-yard drive in the second quarter with an 18-yard touchdown run in the second quarter, blasting his way through an arm tackle at the Kennedy 10.

The Cougars were led on offense by junior running back Dom Brocco, who piled up 141 yards rushing on 21 carries and scored on a 4-yard run in the third quarter. He also hauled in the ensuing two-point conversion pass from senior quarterback Nico Racalbuto. “He’s really become a student of the game,” Durnin said of his first-year runner who’s already broken the 100-yard rushing barrier three times in five games. “He’s studying all the time.”

Racalbuto answered Zito’s opening drive score with a touchdown run of his own on Kennedy’s first possession. He capped an eight-play, 59-yard drive by following the block of freshman Marco Travaglione and then spinning into the end zone from four yards out.

The Cougars hit the road for a battle with Jericho this Saturday, while the Colts travel to Garden City. Both games kick off at 2 p.m.