Saturday, November 8, 2025
In a back-and-forth game with plenty of offensive fireworks, Plainedge answered the bell on both sides of the ball when it mattered most in a battle of unbeatens under the lights last Friday at Lynbrook.
With the visitors clinging to a three-point lead following a 44-yard touchdown pass from Chase Samelson to Orji Agwu, the Red Devils responded on the very next play from scrimmage when Jaxson Torres found Dimitris Vardamaskos for a 59-yard reception to the 1-yard line. Torres then raced in a score on quarterback sneak for what proved to be the final points of a 45-35 Plainedge win in which it constantly regained momentum as each time it appeared the Owls were on verge of victory in the key Conference IV football showdown.
“We had a couple great individual efforts,” said 30th year Plainedge head coach Rob Shaver. “Our guys were resilient. They have been in a lot of big games and know what it’s about.”
Vardamaskos produced another game-changing play minutes before his decisive touchdown when he returned an interception 32 yards for a touchdown to make it 38-28.just Lynbrook appeared poised to take the lead after the Owls’ defense held the Red Devils to a field goal in the red zone.
Another crucial play came when Torres completed a 51-yard competition to Taylor Nitsch on a third-and-17 early in the third quarter that set up a 29-yard field goal by Jonluca Rucci that gave Plainedge the lead for good.
Torres shined in the back-and-forth game that featured four ties with 243 yards through the air on 9-for-16 passing and two rushing touchdowns.
Senior running back Dylan Fella also shined for the Red Devils in his first game of the season with 128 yards rushing, two touchdowns and 89 yards receiving. He helped ice the game down the stretch with a 12-yard run on a third-and-7 play to help Plainedge run out the clock.
“Jaxson in my eyes is the best quarterback on Long Island,” Fellas said. “Our o-line blocked great and I feel I get the ball in my hands I can make a play but it doesn’t happen without everybody.”
Lynbrook quarterback Chase Samelson also had a big offensive night to keep the Owls in it with 362 yards passing and three touchdown tosses. The passing attack featured six catches for 146 yards from Tim Odiah with two touchdowns and Orji Agwu hauling in eight receptions for 162 yards and one score.
“There was multiple times throughout the course of that game where we proved our mettle and we proved our toughness and we proved that we're hopefully in this for the long haul,” said Lynbrook head coach David Yaker. “All-in all despite losing I think we gained some confidence in ourselves and proved that we can stand toe to toe with the better teams in the league.”
The Owls were also bolstered by a running game that featured Thomas Potas, Paolo Palleschi and Samelson rushing for nearly 200 yards combined.
Plainedge (4-0) will look to stay unbeaten at home this Friday night against West Hempstead. Lynbrook (3-1) will host Island Trees Saturday at 2 p.m. The two teams could be on collision course for a rematch in the playoffs next month.
“Lynbrook made a couple real good calls when we were off coverage,” Shaver said. “They're coached very well.”
