Offense sparks VSN victory

Valley Stream North’s football team is headed to the semifinals at Hofstra for a third consecutive year after its offense proved too much for Locust Valley to handle for the second time in as many postseason meetings.

The fifth-seeded Spartans went on the road the beat the No. 4 Falcons, 41-27, in a Nassau Conference IV opening round playoff game last Saturday. Junior quarterback Joe Ruscillo was in a rhythm from the opening snap and tied a county playoff record with five touchdown passes, including a pair to Thomas Canny.

Ruscillo went 12-for-14 for 167 yards and directed six scoring drives on eight possessions as North (6-3) advanced to meet top-seeded defending champion Roosevelt in the semifinals on Thursday at 4 p.m. The Spartans, who beat Locust Valley 61-40 in last year’s playoff opener, lost the 2012 title game to the Rough Riders as well as a semifinal matchup in ‘11

“We’re thrilled to be playing Roosevelt a sixth time in three years,” VSN head coach Tom Schiavo said. “You know you’re doing something right when you’re running into a great opponent like that at Hofstra. 

“I’m really happy and excited for our kids,” he added. “We’re down some key players, but for every kid that went down we had four others step up.”

The Spartans were minus running back/linebacker Mike DiRico (knee), safety Chris Case (ankle), and receiver/cornerback Pat McGreevy (mono) at Locust Valley but got lights-out performances from Ruscillo, Brian Carroll (187 yards rushing, two touchdowns, 14 tackles, one fumble recovery), and the offensive line.

“Joe made some ridiculous plays,” Schiavo said of his signal-caller, who suffered an ankle injury in September and missed one game. “He broke containment numerous times, stopped on a dime and threw touchdown pass when the defense thought he’d run,” he added. “He was 100 percent for the first time in five weeks, so we opened the playbook. He was awesome.”

North never trailed. Joe Abruzzino capped the game-opening drive with a 5-yard touchdown grab, and it was 7-0 after Ruscillo’s extra point split the uprights. Ruscillo threw three touchdown passes in the second quarter — one each to Carroll, Canny and Joe Kempton — and the Spartans led 27-20 at halftime.

“We didn’t play them during the regular season for a second straight year,” Schiavo said of Locust Valley. “It would’ve been a long ride home if it didn’t go our way.”

The Spartans didn’t get the ball until 1:15 remained in the third quarter, but their defense held the Falcons out of the end zone after a 17-play drive stalled inside the 20 thanks to a gang tackle of John Pedranghelu (65 yards) for a loss on fourth-and-1. North followed with an 84-yard scoring drive, capped by Carroll’s 17-yard run, to lead 34-20.

Schiavo praised the play of offensive linemen Pat Brady, Tim Sarro, Rich Rinaldi, Shomari Jackson, Jamil Gaspard, and Tom Pryke. “They picked a great time to jell,” he said.