Tuesday, October 13, 2026
MacArthur entered halftime of last Saturday afternoon's Conference II football game at Roosevelt in a scoreless tie before the offensive floodgates opened up.
The Generals scored 19 points in the third quarter en route to a 19-6 road win to improve to 2-3. The key win marked the second victory in three games for MacArthur as it looks to end the regular season strong to claim one of the league’s eight playoff bids.
“In the first half everything went against us with the ball at our end the whole time with two turnovers and just couldn’t make any plays,” said first-year MacArthur head coach Steve Fazzolari. ”We took the opening kickoff in the second half, back to around midfield and then just went to work on the ground and and the momentum shifted,.”
Senior running back Ethan Shapiro led the charge Saturday for the Generals rushing for 138 yards and a touchdown. His one-yard third quarter score gave MacArthur a 13-0 lead.
MacArthur also got a big day on the ground from senior running back Tyler Centonze, who had 42 yards rushing. He started the scoring with one-yard plunge that gave the Generals 7-0 lead following a John Cardone extra point.
Senior quarterback Vinny Szucs put an explanation point on MacArthur’s explosive third quarter with a 25-yard rushing touchdown that made it 19-0.
The Generals’ defense keyed the win with senior defensive back Colin McDermott recording an interception and senior strong safety Jake Henschel recording two sacks. Centonze also stepped up big defensively with a team-leading eight tackles at linebacker.
“Tyler definitely led the charge there with great reads and making plays in the backfield,” Fazzolari said. “He was all over the field for us.”
MacArthur, which entered the season ranked seventh in Conference II, earned its first win of the 2026 campaign with a 20-15 upset against East Meadow in a non-league crossover game on Sept. 28. Shapiro clinched the win when he registered a tackle on a fourth down play late in the game that enabled the Generals to run out the clock.
Fazzolari credited his offensive line for helping to power the two wins led by left tackle Bryan Lynch, left guard Sebastian Vasilou, center Trisitian Waters, right guard Jimmy DeSetto and right tackle Connor Schmidt. Senior tight end Mike Lane and junior Jason Dall’Aste tight end have also been key to opening up holes in the running game with their blocking abilities.
“Our offensive line has really taken pride in running the football,” Fazzolari said. “They really have done a fantastic job opening holes and playing hard throughout the entire game.”
MacArthur will look to keep the winning ways going with a Friday home game against New Hyde Park kicking off at 6 p.m. The Generals conclude the regular season at Valley Stream Central on Halloween afternoon for 1:30 p.m. kickoff.
“The goal is always to go 1 and 0 every week so right now that is our focus,” Fazzolari said. “The kids will get ready during the week and try to handle business on Friday night.”
