In a much-anticipated Nassau Conference III football showdown between two run-heavy offenses in Wantagh and South Side last Saturday, the Cyclones’ backfield combination of junior AJ Magaraci and sophomore Ethan Johnson got the upper hand against the Warriors’ talented due of sophomore Luke Martini and senior Joseph Nicholson.
South Side took the matchup featuring four of the county’s best running backs, 24-14. Both teams are 3-2.
Both teams were coming off tough losses. The Cyclones fell to Bethpage, 8-2, while Wantagh was stunned by Clarke, 36-34.
Magaraci and Johnson gashed Wantagh’s defense with more than 250 yards combined. Magaraci finished with 180 yards on the ground on 19 attempts, capping off his second-highest total of the season with a touchdown. Johnson ran for 72 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries.
“It’s great when you have one very good running back; we happen to have two,” South Side head coach Phil Onesto said. “I can’t stress enough how well the offensive line played today, how the receivers made their downfield blocks. We wanted to execute offensively, it was something we didn’t do last week and we did a very good job this week of doing it.”
Already leading 7-0 on Owen Marigliano’s 12-yard touchdown grab off a toss from sophomore quarterback Rob Cesario, the Cyclones capped off a 13-play drive in the second quarter with a 7-yard touchdown run from Magaraci and led 14-0 at halftime. Thanks to gaping holes from the offensive line in senior left tackle Jayden Johnson, junior left guard Jalen Hurt, junior center Patrick Lamparello, senior right guard Ryan Healey and senior right tackle Jack Sciallis.
“Just following [Johnson] lead blocking me, or just getting a nice cut and trusting my offensive line to make their blocks,” Magaraci said regarding his dominant season. “And my receivers hold their blocks on the outside, holding their blocks long enough just for me to get by the corners.”
Wantagh threatened to score on its opening drive of the second half, until South Side sophomore Kieren Vetter recovered a fumble. Ethan Johnson converted the turnover into points with a 17-yard touchdown run to take a commanding 21-0 lead. Johnson added five tackles, making his presence felt on both sides of the ball.
“It’s really just about keeping your head in the game and if I screw up, I have to have short-term memory and go into the next play,” Johnson said.
Wantagh got on the board in the third quarter, thanks to a 45-yard touchdown pass from senior Carter Loughman to senior Devin Paccione. “Devin’s just a great athlete, [with] great work ethic,” said Wantagh head coach Keith Sachs. “He showed a little bit of everything.”
Martini, who came into this one as the county’s second-leading rusher, was held to 59 yards. Nicholson, who was Nassau’s 16th leading rusher, ran for 48 yards. Both made their presence felt in the receiving game, as well as on defense. Nichelson recorded 54 yards on five catches and a touchdown, to cut the deficit to 28-14 in the fourth quarter. Each of them intercepted a pass on defense, as well.
“Those three guys [Martini, Nichelson and Paccione] are everything to us,” Sachs said. “They show what athletes they are.”
The Cyclones sandwiched a 2-yard touchdown run from junior running back Reagan Petrone in between the Paccione and Nicholson touchdown grabs.
South Side is back in action Friday at 6 p.m. against Floral Park (4-1) at home, while Wantagh hosts Bethpage (5-0) Friday at 6:30 p.m.
