By Andrew McClure
Quarterback Paul Serpico hooked up with Cesar Munoz for the game winning two-point conversion, with just over a minute remaining, to give the Rocks a 23-22 victory in one of the most dramatic victories in the history of the program. The conversion followed a four-yard touchdown run by Tom Dwyer, which capped off a dramatic 84-yard drive.
The game was played on a muddy field with a light rain falling, intermittently, throughout the chilly afternoon. The Mustangs scored first and led 7-0 for the majority of the first half. Late in the half, a poor punt gave the ball to East Rockaway at Mineola's 40-yard line. It was on this drive that the Rocks' junior quarterback erased any doubt as to why he's calling signals for East Rockaway. On consecutive plays, Serpico connected with senior tight end Matthew Collura, bringing the Rocks to the Mineola 16-yard line. Two plays later, Serpico calmly faded back and lofted a perfect pass down the right sideline into the hands of John Cardus. The senior wide out pulled the ball in deep in the south end zone. The orange and black lined up for the point after, but instead of kicking the ball for the tie, they used a bit of trickery. Dwyer took the snap from center, faked placing the ball down, and tossed the ball over his right shoulder. Munoz, who had lined up to kick the extra point, caught the toss and sprinted to his right, untouched, into the end zone for the two-point conversion, which gave the Rocks an 8-7 halftime lead.
Both teams emerged from the locker rooms fired up for the second half, but most of the third quarter would belong to the Mustangs. Mineola, 2-4 in Conference IV, would have their way with the Rocks, scoring the next 15 points and appearing to have put the game out of reach.
Trailing 22-8 late in the third quarter, the Rocks took over at their own 14-yard line. On second and long, Serpico stepped back and threw the ball into double coverage looking for Collura. The ball deflected off one defender's hands, was nearly intercepted by another and then popped up into the air before Collura pulled it in. Collura bolted towards the end zone, but was caught after a gain of 66 yards. After three plays yielded just five yards, the Rocks faced fourth and five from the Mineola 15-yard line. Serpico took the snap, rolled to the left, but found no open receiver. He tucked the ball in and sprinted toward the left sideline, alluding two tacklers along way. Serpico ran out of bounds at the five-yard line and was drilled by a Mineola linebacker long after the whistle had blown. There was no call on the play, but the hit fired up the Rocks. Two plays later, Serpico ran it in from five yards out. Munoz' kick split the uprights and made the score 22-15.
The fourth quarter would be a gut test. More than once, Mineola appeared to put itself in great position to clinch the victory, but the Rocks' defense wouldn't break. The emotional leader, Dwyer, wouldn't let this one get away. "We just kept telling each other that we only get to play high school football once," said Dwyer. "We had to come up big and find a way to get it done."
After a Mineola drive stalled, the Mustangs punted and pinned the East Rockaway at its own 16-yard line. With 84 yards to go and having to drive into a stiff wind from the north end of the field, Serpico was confident that they could get the job done. "Nobody seemed nervous, just focused," said Serpico. "The line was the key. People don't realize what a major role the guys up front play and how they can affect the outcome. They were outstanding all day."
The drive began with a scintillating run by Munoz. The junior halfback, who had 89 yards on 12 carries, took the hand off, cut left, and then broke outside to the right for a gain of 54 yards. On the very next play, Serpico hit Cardus down the right sideline for another 24 yards. The Rocks were now in striking distance. East Rockaway drove to the four and then asked Dwyer, 56 yards on 9 carries, to carry them home. Dwyer took the handoff and bulled his way into a pile of Rocks and Mustangs. As he did all day, Dwyer carried defenders on his back. This time he ended up in the end zone.
Trailing by a point with a minute and a half remaining, the Rocks' coaching staff quickly determined that they would go for the win. Mineola called a timeout to prepare their defense for the play that would decide the game. The Rocks came out with a spread formation, twin receivers to the right and Munoz in the backfield. With the emotional barometer of the crowd set for a spell of frenzy, both receivers ran slant patterns to clear out the right flat and a composed Serpico rolled to the right. He saw Munoz break free from his defender in the corner of the end zone, let the pass go and the sliding Munoz made the grab and cradled the ball tightly as the Rocks and their partisan crowd celebrated wildly.
Mineola would get the ball back, but the Rocks' defense would come up huge. Jarring hits by Munoz and Victor Navarro left the Mustangs facing fourth down and just half a yard to go from their own forty. Mineola attempted to run the ball up the middle, but didn't gain an inch as John Nicolosi stood the ball carrier up behind the line of scrimmage. The game belonged to the Rocks.
An emotionally spent Dwyer, who was awarded the defensive player of the game, tried to sum things up. With his eyes swollen and filled with tears, the senior talked about the final drive. "It's homecoming, our last chance, the biggest moment of our high school football careers and we got it done. We just kept coming, we didn't give up and we won." When asked to speak about the performance of Serpico, the offensive player of the game, Dwyer was again overcome by emotion. The young man, whose heart screamed loudly all afternoon, was suddenly at a loss for words. Dwyer tried to compose himself, but could only say, "Paul was great ... I'm just speechless."
East Rockaway, 2 - 4 in the conference, will play Malverne Saturday at home, 2:00 p.m.
Amabile leads JV to 30-18 victory
Halfback Robert Amabile rushed for 132 yards on eight carries and scored twice to lead the East Rockaway junior varsity team to a 30-18 win over Mineola. Larry Ulip carried seven times for 111 yards and also scored two touchdowns for the Rocks. Marc Castellano added a 57-yard touchdown run on his only carry of the day. The defense was led by middle linebacker Shane Murphy's nine tackles. Defensive end Matt Marra added two sacks as East Rockaway improved their record to 4-2. The Rocks will travel to Malverne High School for a 9:00 a.m. matchup with the Mules Saturday.
