Elmont 3-2 after loss to Carey

Like South Side, Wantagh, Long Beach and Garden City before it, Elmont got an up-close and personal look at a Carey football team running like a well-oiled machine on both sides of the ball.

The Seahawks played spoiler on homecoming day for the Spartans and remained undefeated with a convincing 41-0 Conference II victory last Saturday before a jam-packed crowd. Senior quarterback Ray Catapano threw five touchdown passes in the first half, and junior Kyle Bourne returned a fumble for a score in the second half, to lead the visitors to a fifth dominant performance in as many games.

“They’re very talented and well-coached,” Elmont head coach Jay Hegi said of the Seahawks, who seek their first county championship since YEAR. “We wanted to get some pressure on the quarterback, but we couldn’t do it,” he added. “They had the wind at their back in the first quarter and took advantage. He [Catapano] was spot-on, and the receivers ran perfect routes.”

The Spartans (3-2) had a couple of solid drives but ultimately became Carey’s third shutout victims. “We know their starting defense hasn’t given up a point all season,” Hegi said. “We wanted to be the first opponent to score [on them.] We did a few good things, but we couldn’t sustain a drive.”

After Elmont’s game-opening possession culminated with a punt, the Seahawks scored on their first offensive snap when Catapano (15 of 21, 240 yards) hit Dylan DeMeo for a 49-yard touchdown on a quick sideline pattern. DeMeo caught the ball at the 35 and raced to paydirt with less than two minutes gone.

DeMeo (seven receptions for 139 yards) caught a 20-yard scoring strike later in the first quarter, and in the second Catapano hooked up with Nick Spillane for a 28-yard touchdown and with Matt Robison on touchdowns of 28 and 25 yards.

Elmont’s defense allowed a total of 41 points in the first four games. Hegi said Matthew Brutus, Valdy Valere, Kendall St. Louis and Isaah Flaherty are the unit’s leaders, and they all came up big in a 27-15 win over Mepham in Week 4. Brutus and St. Louis (two interceptions) also caught touchdown passes from senior quarterback Sydney Flowers, who was making his first start.

Flowers, undersized at 5-foot-5 and 155 pounds, had a strong second half, Hegi said, including the offensive play of the season so far when he launched a pass nearly 50 yards in the air to Brutus, who caught it in stride for a 59-yard touchdown. “That was one of the best passes I’ve ever seen,” said Hegi, who noted junior Tony White has been leading the running game. 

All of the Spartans’ points came in the second half. They opened the campaign with easy victories over Westbury (35-6) and Kennedy (44-6) before self-destructing with seven turnovers in a 14-7 loss at Wantagh.

Elmont has road assignments at Calhoun and MacArthur before closing the regular season at home versus Garden City on Nov. 2.