Big plays carry Mepham past Calhoun

Mepham turned a blocked punt and interception into two touchdowns as part of a 22-point, first-quarter outburst in a 29-3 Conference II road victory over district-rival Calhoun last Saturday.

 The Pirates (2-1) were well rested after an 18-day layoff thanks to a Week 2 forfeit win over Jericho but showed hardly any rust. The Colts' (1-2) first offensive series ended when sophomore end Joe Aliberti broke through the line and blocked a punt, giving Mepham possession at the 16-yard line.

That play kick-started a Pirates offense that scored three times in just eight plays and included a 67-yard touchdown run on a reverse by senior Vin Moryc, a 30-yard keeper by senior quarterback Nick White and a 24-yard burst by junior Kevin Tauriello. “We got rolling and got some momentum," Mepham coach Anthony Cracco said. "They’re a good team. If we didn’t jump [out fast] it would have been a slugfest.”

White directed four scoring drives in all, and finished two of them with touchdown passes. He had a 12-yard strike to junior Kyle Berlin in the third quarter and a five-yard scoring pass to Moryc in the first, completing 8 of his 11 throws for 78 yards overall. White also added 79 yards rushing and threw a key block to spring Moryc down the sidelines on his 67-yard scoring run. “He’s a weapon,” Cracco said of White. “He’s smart with the ball and can run with it. It’s his third year [as the starter] and he’s a leader on offense.”

Tauriello led the team with nine carries and 71 yards rushing, while junior Miguel Shaw scored the game's first touchdown just 4:02 into the first quarter on a 2-yard run to cap a three-play, 35-yard drive. Senior Dom Manzella converted the two-point conversion with a pass to senior Nick Deternova on a fake for an early 8-0 lead. 

The opening quarter onslaught was sudden and swift, and as much as White and the offense put exclamation marks on each drive, it was the work of the defense, specifically the upfield push generated by the Mepham line, that prevented Calhoun from gaining any momentum. "Their lines beat our lines and that's where the game was won and lost," Colts coach Joe Bianca said.

Senior Chris Shevins had two tackles for loss and was a part of all three of the Pirates sacks, teaming up with Aliberti, senior J.T. Castaldo and sophomore Ra-Lik Goodman on the quarterback drops. "Our defense sets the tone for the whole team," Cracco said. "They came to play and were aggressive, physical and disciplined. Our defensive coordinator puts the kids in a position [to make plays]."

Calhoun's defense was led by junior linebacker Rob Rinck, who registered one sack and three tackles for loss, while senior kicker Nick Marcello boomed a 37-yard field goal in the fourth quarter for the Colts' only points.