11-22-08 CHSFL Class AAA Final 48-35 L

Senior Kevin O’Malley found the end zone against Iona Prep.

BY JONATHAN WALTER

It was a big day for Jeffery Mack and the top-seeded Iona Prep Gaels as they defeated No. 2 St. Anthony’s, 48-35, in the CHSFL Class AAA championship on a cold and windy Saturday evening at the Mitchel Athletic Complex in Uniondale.

Mack rushed for 396 yards and scored all seven of Iona Prep’s touchdowns. The Gaels ended their season a perfect 12-0, beating St. Anthony’s (9-3) for the second time this season and ending St. Anthony’s seven-year championship run.

The Gaels started out strong, scoring on their first possession of the game. After getting the ball at their 20-yard line, Mack burst through the pile and with his great speed, outran the Friars defensive backs for a 50-yard run all the way into the end zone.

The Friars offense on the other hand, looked nothing like the impressive unit that dominated all season. After catching a short pass from quarterback Brendan Schroeder, Nicholas Mercurio fumbled the ball and Gaels defenders fell on top of it. Iona Prep capitalized upon the Friars’ error, and with the help of a 16-yard run from Mack, took a quick 14-0 lead.

Nicholas Ferrara put the Friars on the board with time running down in the first quarter and with the howling wind at his back. He nailed a 37-yard field goal.

But that didn’t change the game plan of Iona Prep. The Gaels continued to hand the ball off to Mack, who ran for 55 yards on the next drive. Mack’s 6-yard score, his third of the game, made it 21-3.

The Friars made things interesting going into halftime. On an 8-minute, 18-play drive starting at their own 25, the Friars ate up the second quarter and scored on an 8-yard Kevin O’Malley touchdown. The Friars scored again after linebacker John Burk intercepted a pass from Iona Prep quarterback Tyrae Woodson-Samuels.

A 31-yard run from Nicholas Flynn pulled the Friars to 21-16 going into halftime.

An eighth straight title was not meant to be. The Gaels ran away with it in the second half. Mack added two more long touchdown runs, including a 71-yarder, to increase the lead to 19 points.

The Friars rallied late and scored 19 points in the fourth quarter, including a 78-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Flynn, but would fall short.

SCORING
TEAMS………………..1…..2…..3…..4 — FINAL
St. Anthony’s…………3….13…..0….19 — 35
Iona Prep……………14…..7….14….13 — 48
IP – Mack 50 run (Carthy kick)
IP – Mack 16 run (Carthy kick)
SA – FG Ferrara 37
IP – Mack 6 run (Carthy kick)
SA — O’Malley 8 run (run failed)
SA – Flynn 3 run (Ferrara kick)
IP – Mack 47 run (kick failed)
IP – Mack 71 run (Mack run)
IP – Mack 19 run (kick failed)
SA – Flynn 78 kickoff return (run failed)
SA – Martin 4 pass from Schroeder (pass failed)
IP – Mack 38 run (Carthy kick)
SA – Mercurio 48 run (Ferrara kick)

Pursuit Of Perfection

Forwards rarely get this good a look at Alex Naples.

BY JASON MOLINET

Fuzzy childhood memories still carry Alex Naples today. He was just a toddler when Jeremy Pracher, his uncle on his mother’s side, played soccer for Bellport High School. Naples recalls being at many of the games.

It’s not just past recollections imprinted in Naples. Soccer is apparently embedded in his DNA too. That’s because his father, Michael Naples, was a goalkeeper on one of the first soccer teams at St. Joseph’s College in Patchogue.

All that soccer knowledge has been passed down. And it was on display Friday night when St. Anthony’s played one of the biggest boys soccer matches in program history. The 5-11, 170-pound Naples was in goal. The Friars downed Buffalo-Nichols, 4-0, in a state CHSAA semifinal at Adelphi.

Actually, Naples was never challenged by Nichols. The defense in front of him wouldn’t let anyone through. But he may be tested in the title game at 3 p.m. Sunday when the Friars face Molloy.

“He’s very athletic and fearless,’’ Friars coach Gene Buonaiuto said. “He’s actually made great saves in a lot of games. He’s only given up four goals this year.’’

Credit plenty of soccer experience at a young age. It began with advice and tips from his uncle and father. Naples graduated to sessions with trainers at the age of 12.

“I’ve learned a lot from [my uncle and father] growing up,’’ Naples said. “I was never the tallest goalie and that’s a big thing. So I needed to make up for it technically. So I tried to make up for it trying to be technically perfect. I’m athletic but I don’t fit the mold of a goalie.’’

But where Naples really came into his own was in the last year playing for Queens-based Met Oval, one of 64 teams in the fledgling U.S. Soccer Developmental Academy. In June, Naples was named All-Conference in the Northeast Division.

And with two seasons in goal for the Friars, the senior has several options to play at the next level. If Naples gets accepted early decision, then Penn is the likely destination. Naples wants to major in business. But Holy Cross, Northeastern and Adelphi are in the mix.

Naples chose St. Anthony’s over his home school district of Bellport, namely for the academics. So don’t be surprised if that’s the deciding factor in a university.

College can wait. Naples still has one game left in his St. Anthony’s career. And it’s been a wild run.

“We knew we had a good team,’’ Naples said. “We lost in the semis last year. Our main goal was to win the league outright this time. I’m not saying we expected it. But we had the talent and ability to do that.’’

That mission was accomplished with an impressive 3-2 win over defending champ Chaminade. Now if the Friars can clear one more hurdle, they can lay claim to being one of the best teams in the country – and program history.

That’s a memory that may never fade.

Football Preview: Mount St. Michael

How will the Friars respond against Mount?

BY JASON MOLINET

This is the week where coaches earn their pay. They have the challenge of refocusing the St. Anthony’s football team after a loss to unbeaten Iona Prep that was stunning in its completeness. It was just the second defeat at the hands of a CHSFL foe since the start of the 2001 season.

You can forgive the players for any hangover. Four straight weeks on the road, capped by a tough-to-stomach loss, would give any teenager pause.

The coaches have no such luxury. Rival Mount St. Michael awaits in the regular-season finale at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Cy Donnelley Field in South Huntington. It’s been a mostly disappointing season for the Mountaineers after facing the Friars in back-to-back CHSFL Class AAA championship games.

Unless St. Francis Prep can knock off Iona Prep this weekend, St. Anthony’s (6-2 overall, 5-1 CHSFL) is locked into the No. 2 seed. But that matters little. The Friars will have home field advantage in its quarterfinal and semifinal games. And the title game is at Mitchel Athletic Complex, another edge considering the Friars won’t have to leave Long Island again this season after road trips to Philadelphia, Staten Island and Westchester.

Likely quarterfinal opponents are St. Francis Prep or Stepinac. Stepinac can earn the No. 7 seed if it beats Xaverian on the road, a more realistic proposition than St. Francis Prep upsetting first-place Iona Prep.

But St. Anthony’s must take care of business. The Mountaineers (3-5, 3-3) have lost to Holy Trinity and Xaverian and beaten St. Francis Prep and Farrell. The offense has been stuck in neutral all season long — just the thing for a St. Anthony’s defense that couldn’t stop Iona Prep in the rain last Saturday.

Tom Schreiber will have to get the passing game back on track after two flat performances. And offensive coordinator Fred Gallagher must find that replacement for Atiq Lucas (broken leg) to pair with the versatile Nick Mercurio.

Those issues were obvious against Iona Prep. Luckily for the Friars, these Mountaineers haven’t put up much of a fight this season. It’s the perfect game for what ails St. Anthony’s. Just in time for the playoffs.