Saturday, November 7, 2026
Defending Nassau County Conference IV football champion Seaford entered the playoffs with one more loss than much-improved North Shore, but the battle of Vikings on Friday night was mostly one-sided.
Junior quarterback Finn Curry was nothing short of dominant in third-seeded Seaford’s rain-soaked 49-22 victory. He threw touchdown passes to three different receivers — Carmine Pandolfino, Brock Conway and Brady Falk — and ran for two scores as the offense produced a season high in points.
“We all have a great bond on and off the field," Curry said. “Our line always gives me time to throw and the receivers work to get open. They make my job easy.”
Seaford (6-3) advances to face No. 2 Lynbrook in the semifinals next Saturday at Hofstra University. The Owls rallied from an 11-point deficit to beat the Vikings in the season opener, 24-21. Seaford’s three losses are by a combined six points.
North Shore (6-3), the No. 6 seed, won only two games last season and was the preseason 10-seed. Junior quarterback Joey Cristofari threw two touchdown passes to senior Casey Gates and one to senior Greg Kleinman. Gates had 100 yards on the ground.
“We had outstanding senior leadership and it was a great run,” North Shore head coach Bill Madigan said. “Seaford’s an excellent team and their offense had a lot of success against us tonight. In the end, I couldn’t be more proud of our kids and the coaching staff.”
Seaford led 14-0 after the first quarter and 35-8 at halftime.
Senior Mikey Kofod opened the scoring midway through the opening quarter with a dynamic 50-yard touchdown run that took him sideline to sideline. Pandolfino caught a 19-yard scoring strike from Finn on the last play of the quarter, and an interception by junior Logan Difondi put the offense back in business early in the second at the North Shore 44.
Curry accounted for every yard on a three-play drive that upped the lead to 21-0. Then, senior Nick Paluzzi electrified the crowd with a stunning 55-yard punt return for a touchdown and it was 28-0.
“I thought it was going to bounce right to me, but it hit the turf and went straight up in the air,” Paluzzi said. “When it came down it just stuck, so I picked it up and took off. Our guys always have great blocks. It felt great.”
North Shore got on the scoreboard with a safety and was starting to build some momentum after Gates’ first touchdown grab with 53 seconds left in the half made it 28-8. But Kofod ripped off a 64-yard run and Seaford was back in the end zone 10 seconds before halftime on Curry’s 3-yard run.
Conway had a 27-yard touchdown reception and Falk’s came on a 5-yard underhand flip from Curry. Senior kicker Vincent Catalfomo went 7-for-7 on extra-point tries.
“We lost to Lynbrook by three points, South Side by two and Floral Park by one,” Seaford head coach Mike McHugh said. “This was just the second game all year we’ve had our starting O-line together, and Finn Curry is a special quarterback.
“Lynbrook is a great team and I’ve got a lot of respect for head coach Dave Yaker,” he added. “We’re happy to have another shot at them.”
