Lawrence wins third straight L.I. title

For the second time in three years, Lawrence’s defense provided the difference against Sayville in an exhilarating Long Island Class III football championship game in front of a packed house at Hofstra.

This one may go down as “The Mavruk Miracle.”

With Sayville leading by a point and just a few yards from sealing the deal late in the fourth quarter, Lawrence's Mike Spinelli caused a fumble that Melik Mavruk scooped up and returned 82 yards for a touchdown with 1:06 remaining for an unlikely 40-35 victory on Friday evening.

“I figured somebody was going to catch me around the 50,” Mavruk said. “When I was still going at the 20, I wrapped my arms around the ball as hard as I could to protect it. To go 80-something yards and score was amazing.”

The Golden Tornadoes (12-0) still had more defensive work to do in the final minute — sweating out three passes into the end zone by Sayville’s record-setting quarterback Jack Coan — before they could celebrate a history making third straight L.I. title.

“That’s unbelievable what just happened,” Lawrence head coach Joe Martillotti said. “Somebody upstairs wanted us to win.

“As far as I’m concerned, everyone just watched the two best teams on Long Island,” he added. “We’ve played three of the last four years and each game could’ve gone either way. Both teams played great tonight.”

The difference before Mavruk’s heroics was a missed extra point after the game’s first touchdown — a 1-yard run by Lawrence’s Jordan Fredericks, who starred with 225 yards rushing and four touchdowns, as well as a 26-yard touchdown pass.

“Jordan showed why he’s the best player on Long Island,” Martillotti said. “They couldn’t stop him.”

After getting the Golden Tornadoes within 21-20 on a scoring strike to Tevine Johnson with 26 seconds remaining in the half, Fredericks twice answered Sayville touchdowns in the third quarter in dynamic fashion.

A 14-yard scoring dash by Coan (16-for-38 passing, 315 yards, one touchdown, one interception) put the Golden Flashes (11-1) ahead 28-20, but Fredericks responded on the first snap of the ensuing series with a 65-yard touchdown run. Then, after Matt Selts (122 yards, three touchdowns) scored from three yards out to give Sayville a 35-27 lead, Fredericks again needed just one play to race 57 yards and bring Lawrence back within a point.

“Every time we play them it’s back-and-forth,” Martillotti said.

The four touchdowns in the third came in a span of 1:08, but more than 16 minutes would elapse before the score changed one last time.