Clarke wins OT thriller as East Rockaway celebrates homecoming

Rocks Homecoming Queen and King Emily McLauglin and Josh Warner rode the field during the ceremonies.

Kathy Leistner/Herald

The Rocks took the field.

Kathy Leistner/Herald

East Rockaway's Nick Massari, left, stiff-arms Clarke's Anthony Gomes.

Kathy Leistner/Herald

Clarke quarterback Mike Martiello's third touchdown of the game won it for the Rams.

Kathy Leistner/Herald

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One constant in Nassau Conference IV football games has been gut-wrenching finishes, so there was no surprise last Saturday’s matchup between Clarke and East Rockaway turned into one of the most intense of the season.

Mike Martiello’s 2-yard keeper, his third touchdown of the game, gave Clarke (4-3) a thrilling 27-21 overtime victory over host East Rockaway in a game with major playoff implications. Martiello carried the ball 25 times for 184 yards and junior Kyle Wenzel led the Rams defense.

Clarke head coach John Boyle was pleased with the win and impressed with the play of Martiello. “Coming into it, we knew this game was pretty much for everything,” Boyle said. “We had to pull out all the stops. Mike left everything he had on the field. To play on both sides of the ball, and be involved pretty much in every play is quite a feat. This was a very big win.”

The Rocks fumbled on the first play of overtime and James Morace recovered to give Clarke the ball. On the first play from East Rockaway’s 20-yard line, the Rams called for a waggle pass, and Martiello (10-for-15 for 140 yards) hooked up with Anthony Gomes for a 16-yard gain to set up the winning score. Junior John Fogarty had three receptions for 70 yards for the Rams. East Rockaway fell to 3-4.

Clarke came in knowing stopping East Rockaway’s vaunted rushing attack was a key. The first drive didn’t go well for the Rams. After junior David McClure returned the opening kickoff to midfield, the Rocks needed only seven plays before Nick Ulip found the end zone from 11 yards out. John Neckles split the uprights to give East Rockaway a 7-0 lead.

Clarke trailed for just 22 seconds. On its second play from scrimmage, Martiello went 70 yards virtually untouched to put the Rams on the board. The extra point attempt failed.

The Rocks ate up much of the first quarter clock on their next drive. East Rockaway started on its own 17-yard line and embarked on a 12-play drive that set up a 33-yard field goal attempt by Neckles. The kick had plenty of distance, but sailed wide right. The Rocks scored again prior to the half to take a 14-6 lead.