by Jerry Burke
The No. 3-seeded Rams finished a very good season with a 6-3 record after falling in the Nassau Conference III semifinals to the Wantagh Warriors, 41-7. A crowd of about 400 braved the windy weather to watch the Warriors take an early 14-0 lead on the game's first two possessions.
After Wantagh running back Rob Smith capped a 61-yard opening drive with a 6-yard touchdown carry, Wantagh coach Keith Sachs called for an onside kick, which caught the Rams by surprise. The Warriors recovered the kick and running back Mike Procida took the ball into the end zone for the second score.
Down 14-0 before they'd touched the ball, the Rams' backs were against the wall. "It took us right out of our game plan," West Hempstead coach Tom Riordan said. "You can't give up that much at the beginning of the game."
The Rams' first possession was a perfect illustration of how the day went for West Hempstead: Punter Brent Richburg barely managed to pick up a low snap, and picking it up was all he could do, though. After a brief scramble, he was taken down at the 20-yard-line. A few minutes later, Wantagh capitalized with another TD.
The Rams' defense had no answers to Wantagh's barrage: the Warriors scored on each of their first six drives. West Hempstead's lone score came on a 4-yard run in the closing minutes of the second quarter by Ram' MVP running back Obozua "Bo" Ehikioya, who had 137 yards on 24 carries for the day. The touchdown was West Hempstead's only trip to the red zone.
Although most of Ehikioya's yardage came with the game well out of West Hempstead's reach in the second half, the talented senior limped off the field to cheers from the West Hempstead crowd.
When these teams last met, back in Week 2, the Rams were edged by Wantagh 34-28. The win sends the Warriors to face undefeated Bethpage in the Conference III finals.
