Oceanside draws rival Baldwin

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When Massapequa’s Dan Meaney sacked Charlie McKee for a 10-yard loss on the opening play from scrimmage in Sunday afternoon’s Conference I showdown at Oceanside High, few thought the play would serve as a harbinger.

But, things never got much better for the Sailors. The Chiefs beat Oceanside in every aspect of the game and walked off with a 31-15 win. Senior Angelo Petrakis carried the ball 22 times for 153 yards and a touchdown to lead Massapequa. McKee, a freshman quarterback, finished 33 of 55 passing for 320 yards and two touchdowns as the Sailors fell to 6-2. Senior Eddie Mannone had eight tackles.

With the loss, Oceanside dropped to the No. 3 seed in the conference and will host rival Baldwin on Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. The No. 6 Bruins come in with a record of 5-3.

Oceanside head coach Rob Blount didn’t mince words. “We didn’t show up for a big game,” he said. “We came out flat and they executed. Our blocking wasn’t great early on, we dropped some balls, and we didn’t tackle well. Look, Massapequa was a two-seed at the beginning of the season for a reason. They were pretty banged up all year, but they’ve got some great players.”

The Chiefs opened up the scoring on their second possession after a fourth down stop gave them the ball at the Oceanside 45. Kenny Galvin found Garrett Gibbons streaking down the middle of the south end zone for a 23-yard touchdown reception to put Massapequa (5-3) on the board. Eric Marsh’s kick split the uprights to give the Chiefs a 7-0 lead with 2:43 to play in the opening quarter.

After a personal foul call on the ensuing kickoff, the Sailors started from their own seven-yard line and drove to midfield before turning it over on downs. Senior Jake Lazzaro (13 catches for 161 yards and two touchdowns) had three catches before the drive stalled. Later in the game, Lazzaro would become the all-time leader in touchdowns in a career by a receiver at Oceanside.

Massapequa was beneficiary of another personal foul call that led to its next score. Using its running game and short passes, the Chiefs went 70 yards in 13 plays with Gibbons running it in from five yards out to give the visitors a 14-0 lead. The Sailors had the ball for 16 plays on its last drive of the half, but couldn’t score.

After falling behind 21-0 early in the third quarter, Oceanside saw its chance of a victory fade away when it was stopped at the four-yard line after a 12-play, 74-yard drive. Junior Nick Platia had 16 catches for 130 yards. Sophomore running back Thomas Flavin ran for 75 yards.

“We feel good going into the playoffs,” Blount said. “Today was good for us. We didn’t have many close games, this year. We have to learn to play a complete game. We’ll regroup, get healthy quick, and prepare for Baldwin. They have good team. We’re going to have to fight and scrap to beat them.”