VSN blanks Clarke on Homecoming

Valley Stream North made big plays on both sides of the football last Saturday, beating visiting Clarke, 26-0, in a Conference IV contest. Four long touchdowns and five takeaways sparked the Spartans (4-2) in front of a large homecoming crowd. With the loss, the Rams dropped to 4-2.

“We’re starting to do a better job on the edge with our stalk blocking and things like that open up when that happens,” VSN head coach Tom Schiavo said of his team’s long touchdown plays.

After a scoreless first quarter, North’s senior wideout James Capoziello caught three passes, and all three went for touchdowns of more than 44 yards. Senior quarterback Anthony Martelli got off to a rough start in the pocket, missing on each of his first five throws, but heated up late in the second quarter and didn’t throw another incompletion, finishing 5-for-10 with three touchdowns. Senior running back Billy Patsos, had 23 carries for 233 yards, including a 57-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.

Clarke’s offense moved the ball well, but made four consecutive turnovers deep in Spartan territory that proved costly.

With the game still scoreless early in the second quarter, senior quarterback Jake Louw threw an interception to Stephen Giuliante on third and 14. On the Spartans ensuing possession, Clarke’s special teams made its presence felt when senior Andrew Eannucchi blocked a punt. 

The Rams appeared poised to take the lead as they marched 36 yards on five plays to the Spartans 1-yard line. Peter Falgione took the snap for Clarke and attempted a quarterback sneak. After initially coming up empty, Falgione attempted to run to his left, but Capoziello, who also plays defensive back, stripped the ball and Giuliante recovered it in the end zone.

“On defense when you run to the ball good things happen,” Schiavo said, “and we were running all over the place today.”

After Martelli and Capoziello hooked up for their first touchdown (49 yards) to put the Spartans up 6-0, Clarke’s offense tried to get on the board before halftime. Louw hit seniors John Fogarty and Karl Grgas on back-to-back plays of 23 and 15 yards, respectively. The Spartans then committed a personal foul penalty, setting up Clarke with a first down at North’s 12-yard line. But Clarke fumbled with 1:14 remaining in the half, ending the Rams’ scoring chance.

The Rams first possession of the second half ended inside the Spartans’ 10 with an interception by North sophomore Brian Carroll.

“We just had too many turnovers to win,” Clarke head coach John Boyle said.

Late in the third quarter, Martelli lofted a pass into tight coverage, but Capoziello timed his jumped perfectly to make the catch and scamper into the end zone for a 58-yard touchdown, his third of the day.

The Rams will look to rebound this Saturday at 2 p.m. when they host Locust Valley. “We better come together as a team,” Boyle said. “We have to if we want to get to where we want to go this season.”

The Spartans will travel to Seaford. “Going into Seaford, we needed something positive to build on and that’s exactly what we did,” Schiavo said.