Seaford blanks West Hempstead in semis

Despite the fact that three yards and a cloud of dust has been replaced by three yards and a spritz of cryogenic rubber and silica sand, legendary Ohio State coach Woody Hayes had to be smiling down on this one.

In a game that lived up to its billing as a one that would be played out on the ground, Seaford’s vaunted rushing attack wore down West Hempstead late in the fourth quarter and the Vikings advanced to the Conference IV final with a 10-0 victory Nov. 14 at Shuart Stadium on the campus of Hofstra University. 

Junior Patrick Bizzarro ran for 86 yards on 22 carries and scored the game’s only touchdown as No.2 Seaford secured a berth in the championship game for the sixth time in the past nine years. The Vikings will play No.1 Roosevelt (10-0) for conference supremacy on Thursday night at 7 at Hofstra.

After Seaford’s defense came up big when senior captain John Lauretti stood up Enrique McFarlane and senior linebacker Tom Galante helped bring him down to hold West Hempstead on 4th and 2 at midfield with 7:11 remaining in the game, the Vikings embarked on the only touchdown drive of the game. 

Bizzarro carried the ball five times for 35 yards during the scoring drive, capping it off with a seven-yard touchdown run with 3:28 to play. Senior Matthew Murphy’s kick gave Seaford, which improved to 8-2, a commanding 10-0 lead.

West Hempstead head coach Dom Carre gave Seaford its due. “They’re a physical, aggressive team,” Carre said. Our defense did an awesome job, but we were a little bit gassed on the last drive. The defense was on the field a lot in the fourth quarter. They just wore us down on the last drive.”

With neither team able to sustain a drive for nearly all of the first half, Seaford finally capitalized on a turnover. After advancing to the West Hempstead nine-yard line, the drive stalled as Rams’ captain Donovan Steele came up with big play after big play. Steele had 12 tackles and recovered a pair of fumbles.

The Vikings called on Murphy to try to break the tie with 30 seconds remaining in the half. The senior kicker lined up on the right hash mark and snuck the ball inside the left upright to give Seaford a 3-0 lead at the break.

Both teams were handed opportunities to score after turnovers all night, but the defensive units held strong. Seaford’s Joe Bongiovi had 87 yards on 19 carries. The Rams got 63 yards from Bruce Gibbs and 54 from McFarlane. 

Seaford lineman James O'Hagan, who had his hands full with West Hempstead's Michael Sands, was happy with how the game played out. "We're a team that likes to run the ball, and we do a good job stopping the run," O'Hagan said. "They're a well-coached, high-scoring team with two great running backs, so it was a big challenge for our defense. This was the type of game we like to play."

Gibbs, McFarlane, Steele, and Sands all earned All-County honors. Christian Jean-Louis picked up All-County Honorable Mention.

“This is probably the most talented group I have had,” Carre said. “They were a quiet group that always played hard. We lose a lot of seniors, but we should be OK. The guys we bring back and some talented underclassmen should help out with the transition.”