MacArthur rallies past Wantagh for title

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A week after MacArthur dethroned two-time defending Nassau Conference II and Long Island Class II football champion Carey by scoring 22 unanswered points, the Generals captured their first county title since 2002 in similar come-from-behind fashion against neighboring Wantagh last Friday night.

Senior tailback Vin Martino rushed for 184 yards and three touchdowns, and senior Vin Thron’s interception return for a touchdown with 1:29 remaining in the third quarter put No. 3 MacArthur ahead for good in its 28-14 victory before a crowd of more than 3,500 at Hofstra. The Generals, who trailed by 14 early, will face Newfield for the L.I. crown this Friday at 4:30 p.m. at Hofstra.

“It’s a great feeling,” MacArthur head coach Bobby Fehrenbach said. “Beating Carey last week was a tremendous accomplishment, but my message to the kids was don’t let that be the highlight of our season.

“Tonight we had a bad start, but we fought through it and finished the job,” he added.

Martino had touchdown runs of 3 and 36 yards in the second quarter as the Generals (9-2), who beat fourth-seeded Wantagh 38-21 in Week 1, went into halftime tied for the second week in a row. Martino’s third score, a 5-yard scamper with 4:30 to go, sealed it.

“Vin has been my best friend forever, so to see him have such a big game on a big stage was awesome,” said MacArthur senior quarterback Jimmy Kelleher, who noted there was plenty of trash talk leading up to the game when members of both teams waited on line for breakfast or lunch at nearby L&E Bagels and Wantagh Bagels on any given day last week.

“You never want to fall behind 14-0,” he added. “It’s not what we expected. We made some early mistakes, myself included, but we didn’t let it bother us.”

Fourth-seeded Wantagh (8-3) scored on its opening possession when senior quarterback Robert Tucker connected with junior Jimmy Joyce on a 40-yard touchdown, and the Warriors led 14-0 after senior Dylan Beckwith’s 81-yard interception for a touchdown with 1:17 left in the first quarter. “We came out prepared and played well,” Wantagh head coach Keith Sachs said. “We just didn’t possess the ball enough.”

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