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Babylon Football: Panthers come back again, edge Knights 17-13 For the second straight time, the Babylon Panthers came from behind to win in the fourth quarter. They scored fifteen points in the final nine minutes to edge the Glenn Knights, 17-13, in Babylon's Homecoming game, Saturday at Williams Field. The Senior Class won the Homecoming Float competition with "We're So Good, It's Scary" as the theme. Vying for Homecoming Queen were Christina Halpin, Emily Loudon, Shannon O'Malley, Colleen Pisciotta, Ali Weldon and Vanessa Zocchia. Homecoming King nominees were Dylan Bustamante, Patrick Flanagan, Sean Gargiulo, Alex Grant, Pete Menchini and Willie Rivas. Filling in for football players Gargiulo and Rivas were Robby Pritchard and Robby Freyer. Gargiulo and Pisciotta were declared King and Queen. Coach Rick Punzone was happy with the game victory. "Sometimes winning isn't pretty. Glenn played a great game and had a good game plan. Their quarterback was very good. But our defense stepped up in the second half and was able to stop the attack. Griffo (Babylon QB Greg) provided a needed late spark." Glenn's strong passing attack led to a first half surge and they maintained a lead until the final stanza. Working from a shotgun with three wideouts, Michael Massa was particularly sharp, completing 14 of 30 passes for 212 yards and a touchdown. The Knight's fine offensive line, Evan Wickstrom, Steven Jeanty, Matt Schwier, MinSuk Kim and Nick Capobianco, provided a fine front for the passing game against a strong Panther rush. Austin Cohen raced for 88 yards on 18 carries. Receivers Malcolm Eugene (5 catches for 75 yards), Dennis Gannon (4 for 102) and Sean Kessler (5 for 35 and a TD) ran the sharp patterns needed for a superb aerial attack. Their offense chalked up 15 first downs and netted 308 yards. Babylon's offense showed up, as well. They netted 167 yards rushing and 161 passing for a total 328 yards and 13 first downs. QB Willie Rivas was 7 of 13 for 128 yards and a TD passing. Tailback Aaron Pinto had 28 carries for 108 yards and a TD. Wideout Alex Grandal caught three for 100 yards and a TD. Back from injury, Mike Augello, and up from the JV, Dylan Hopkins, Mark Panarelli and Jaquan Pate were all suited up for the game. Pate made his varsity debut. Glenn drew first blood on their initial possession. They drove 65 yards on eleven plays. The key was a fake punt with Cohen running 22 yards to the Panther 42-yard line. His next carry was through left guard to the 25. Six plays later, with first and goal at the 4, Massa hit Kessler in the end zone on a square out to cap the drive. Lining up for an extra point kick, Cohen faked and attempted to sweep right. He was nailed short by cornerback J. T. Pate. Babylon's first possession was stopped at their own 47. Matt Lauria's punt went 49 yards to the Glenn 4. On the first play, the ball was stripped by a hard charge and bounced beyond the end line for a safety, making it 6-2. Following another fine punt by Lauria to the Glenn 3, The Knights drove 97 yards on eleven plays with Jack Moorehead banging in over right guard from the 1 for the score. Reyes Guevara kicked the extra point and Glenn led 13-2. Babylon's next drive was stopped when the Knights recovered a loose ball at their own 32. But the Panthers flipped that turnover on an interception by J. T. Pate. Late in the half, Glenn drove to the Bab 10 and were stopped on fourth down when Lauria charged into the backfield to bat a pass. In the second half, Babylon's first drive was stopped on a shared sack by Eugene coming in from the left defensive end and linebacker Nick Terdick. An errant punt put the ball at the Babylon 24. But the Black D stifled the Knights in four downs. The next Glenn possession was stopped immediately on a fumble recovery by linebacker Cory Ruden at midfield. The Panthers drove to the Glenn 15, but were stopped there. Kerry Carlock's attempt at a 32-yard field goal hit high on the right upright and fell into the end zone. Momentum really shifted on Glenn's possession. They were stopped at their own 26 and went into punt formation. Then Cohen attempted to run through what appeared as a wide gap around the right side. But a pride of Panthers swooped in to stop him short of a first down. The Panthers then went 28 yards on five plays. Griffo passed to Beau Bachety for 15 yards to the 11. Grandal swept right end to the 2 and Pinto blasted in through the left side into a hole between Keith Menger and Pat Pietrowski for the TD. On the extra point attempt, Pinto took a side lateral and then passed to Bachety in the left side of the end zone for the 2-pointer. Glenn's lead was cut to 13-10. The Knights began the next possession at their own 30. Massa calmly brought them deep into Babylon turf through the air. The key was a left fly to Gannon that took them to the 6-yard line. Doom loomed. Knowing the importance of a live crowd, Babylon's Mike Sullivan went over to the track in front of the stands on the Babylon side of the field. Rapidly and repeatedly pumping his arms, he screamed at the serene crowd exhorting them on to get vocally into the game. It worked. The crowd was in it. And the Panther defense responded and held. On fourth and goal from the 3, Massa's pass was hauled in by Eugene, but the receiver came down on the end line for an incomplete. Now Babylon went to work. Griffo got them out of the hole with a left buttonhook to Bachety for 18 yards to the 24. Two plays later, Rivas returned to guide the team and gunned deep to Grandal on a left fly. The fleet receiver caught the pass between two defenders at midfield, spun away from a tackle and raced for the end zone and a TD. The play went 76 yards. Carlock kicked the extra point and the Panthers led 17-13. Carlock's ensuing kickoff went all the way down to the Glenn 1 where it was mishandled and a swift Kevin Foret trapped the ball carrier there. A sack by Lauria and a batted pass by Marc Martinez thwarted the Knights deep. Their final thrust ended with Massa's desperation pass. The Mary was picked off by Grandal at the Babylon 44 to end it.
Saturday, Babylon (5-1) hosts the tough Amityville Warriors (5-1) at Williams Field. Game time is listed at 2 pm. Recordwise, the two are tied at the top of the division with Mount Sinai.
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