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Overcast Mules grind out opening win
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Malverne senior Jackson Hayes rushed for 93 yards and two scores in the Mules' 27-12 win.
Kathy Leistner/Herald
When Malverne and East Rockaway get together on the football field, the hitting is vicious and the emotion is unbridled. This year’s battle for Ocean Avenue bragging rights met all expectations, but in the end, the Mules’ ground attack was too much for the Rocks.
Senior running back Jackson Hayes gained 93 yards on 11 carries and scored two touchdowns to lead Malverne to a 27-12 victory over visiting East Rockaway, giving Kito Lockwood a win in his debut as head coach. Hayes’ second touchdown run, late in the third quarter, broke the game open. Junior Cory Alexander added 94 yards and a score for the Mules, who amassed 272 yards on the ground.
Lockwood couldn’t have been happier to get in the win column on opening day. “There is a lot of hoopla surrounding the team with the new coaching staff and with expectations being so high,” Lockwood said. “Emotions were flying in the school and throughout the community, and there was so much anticipation. I’m very happy to get the first win.”
By no means did the victory come easy. After Rocks’ quarterback Andrew Bashford hooked up with Michael Castellano for a 35-yard gain late in the second quarter, the junior running back took it in from a yard out to give East Rockaway a 6-0 lead.
It looked like the Rocks would take the lead into the locker room, but Malverne mounted a furious drive in the waning moments of the opening half. After an interference call gave the Mules the ball deep in East Rockaway territory, senior quarterback Brandon Michaels hooked up with Brandon Hightower. The senior wide receiver was brought down at the one-yard line. Hayes ran it in to tie the score. Alexander’s kick split the uprights to give Malverne a 7-6 lead.
On the first drive of the second half, the Rocks drove to Malverne’s 18-yard line, but the Mules’ defense picked it up a notch. Led by senior Steven Wong, Hightower and Hayes, Malverne stifled East Rockaway’s running game and took over on downs. Wong and Hightower both finished with seven tackles.
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