Seaford rebounds with big win

Vikings knock off East Rockaway on Homecoming

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Reeling from its only loss of the season following a perfect September, Seaford had to endure one of the toughest weeks of football practice longtime head coach Rob Perpall ever constructed.

The result, however, was worth it — a dominant Homecoming performance against an opponent which hadn’t lost since Week 1. Junior Thomas Viscio rushed for three touchdowns, senior Joe Angelastro rumbled for 282 yards and a pair of scores, and senior kicker Andrew Cuchel went 6-for-6 on extra points and booted a field goal to lead the Vikings to a 45-16 win over East Rockaway last Saturday in a key Conference IV matchup.

“We weren’t happy with the way we played against Cold Spring Harbor,” said senior Luke DiCapua, referring to Seaford’s 20-point defeat on Oct. 6. “We really practiced hard this week and everything came together.”

DiCapua contributed a dynamic one-handed 25-yard touchdown grab on a pinpoint toss from junior quarterback Logan Masters with just 1:47 remaining in the second quarter to provide the Vikings (5-1) with a 17-8 halftime lead. Junior Brandon Wren (two sacks) and senior Ryan Butler’s interception led the defensive effort.

The Rocks (4-2), who were seeking a fifth straight win and led by a point after the first quarter, has their own Homecoming to look forward to with Clarke visiting Saturday for a 2 p.m. kickoff. Senior quarterback Andrew LaBarbera scored their lone touchdown on an 8-yard run late in the first quarter.

“We came in here playing well and riding high,” said East Rockaway head coach Russ Pajer, whose squad had impressive September victories over Locust Valley and Cold Spring Harbor. “Seaford just played great and we didn’t bring our

‘A’ game,” he added. “They got a tremendous push at the line of scrimmage from both lines.”

Seaford drove 97 yards on its first possession to take a 7-0 lead on Viscio’s 10-yard touchdown. Angelastro, playing for the first time in three weeks after missing the previous two games due to injury, did most of the heavy lifting with runs of 65 and 14 yards to set up the score. “He’s one of the top backs in the county and it’s big to have him back,” Perpall said of Angelastro, who has 740 yards and seven touchdowns on the year.

East Rockaway answered quickly, with LaBarbera connecting with senior Stefano Cilluffo for a 32-yard gain through the air to set up his 8-yard touchdown run. Cilluffo then found senior Dylan Henshaw off some trickery for the two-point conversion and an 8-7 lead.

The Vikings went ahead for good midway through the second quarter on Cuchel’s 30-yard field goal. Already leading by nine at the half, the hosts continued their momentum in the third quarter with Angelastro busting through the blocks of linemen Paul Scaccia, Nick Brandi, Joseph Cain, Sean Kelley and Pat Quinn for touchdowns of 41 and 60 yards.

Viscio had 50- and 56-yard touchdown runs in the fourth quarter before East Rockaway’s Isaiah Brathwaite capped the scoring late. Seaford travels to Mineola on Friday at 6:45 p.m.

“The kids and coaches worked hard

and long all week and earned this win,” Perpall said.