The Babylon Panthers went to the Suffolk County Division IV Championship game for the 13th straight year and won it at Stony Brook University's LaValle Stadium, last Saturday evening. It was the eighth County Championship for the Panthers during that stretch. They edged the Glenn Knights 13-7 in a contest played in the cold and wind. Temperatures dipped to 27 degrees with a wind chill of 16.

The Knights entered this one having allowed only 68 points this year, the fewest in the County. The Panthers scored half of those points in the regular season meeting between the two clubs. Glenn won that one, a 37-34 overtime thriller at Babylon on October 18. Babylon's defense has also been stingy. The freeze and wind helped both.

This time, Babylon was a bit better. From scrimmage, the Black D held the Knights to only 92 yards rushing and 5 passing, shutting Glenn down to 97 yards and 6 first downs on 56 plays. Babylon went with a four back secondary against Glenn's heralded passing attack. It worked well for the Panthers who employed the same defense to eliminate the defending champs, the Amityville Warriors, in the previous week. In 53 plays, the Panthers went 212 yards, 201 rushing, with 9 first downs.

Coach Rick Punzone praised both teams for an outstanding game in tough conditions. "Our kids refused to lose. I can't say enough about our defense and the game plan prepared by coach (Mike) DeJoseph. Glenn was dynamite. Our hats are off to them." He applauded his club in an emotional post game huddle. "This is one where you won the championship. No one can ever take that away from you." Athletic Director Bob Mayo also heaped praise on the team's efforts. "Schweitzer played his best game - particularly on defense." His reference to Bryan Schweitzer was well deserved. The senior tailback carried 28 times for 173 yards and scored both Babylon touchdowns. And from his linebacker position, he was in on many key tackles at critical moments.

The first quarter saw aggressive defense by both squads. Glenn's Steve Christofides covered a loose ball at the Babylon 37-yard line on a punt play. Babylon safety Steve Loudon intercepted a pass at the Babylon 43 and hauled it to the Glenn 49, his fourth pick of the season. Richie Smith blocked a Glenn punt attempt. Despite each of these key plays, the offenses couldn't bring it in.

Then to begin the second period, Babylon's great offensive line went to work. The Big Cats led the way to a 70-yard scoring drive on 11 plays. Schweitzer took it 53 of those yards on 7 carries and capped it with an 18-yard burst off right tackle, cutting right and into the end zone for the TD. Alex Grandal kicked the extra point.

For most of the first half and on into the final quarter, Glenn's strong defensive line contained the Panthers. The front four - Nick Capobianco, Steve Jeanty, Malcolm Eugene and Phil Ammirato - held their own against the Big Cats. Late in the second quarter, Eugene moved in for a sack and caused a loose ball, recovered by Jeanty at the Babylon 25. But the Black D was just as tough and stopped the threat in four plays and the Panthers took a 7-0 lead into halftime.

The third quarter saw a pair of blocked punts, one by Babylon's Sean Melow, which squibbled ahead and was covered by Glenn's John Cinnante to maintain Knight possession near midfield. The second was blocked by Joe Princiotta of the Knights giving them a first down at the Babylon 27. Austin Cohen, Glenn's fine running back, ate up most of the needed yardage from there. On fourth and four from the 21, he swept the left side to the 9. Then he ran the right side to the 4. He capped it from there slashing off left tackle and breaking left and on into the end zone. Reyes Guevara kicked the extra point to tie it, 7 up.

Midway in the final period, the Black D stopped the Knights at the Babylon 40. Glenn lined up to punt on fourth and eight. But the ball was snapped to Cinnante in a blocking back position. He ran off right tackle and was stopped at the 33, a yard short of the first down, and the Panthers took over. They moved it to the 47 on four plays. Then, the play of the game. Schweitzer broke off left tackle, slashed to the left sideline and took it home - a 53-yard gallop for the gamer with 3:27 remaining. But the super back wasn't finished yet. From his linebacker position on defense, he broke in on fourth and one to nail the ball carrier for a 2-yard loss stopping Glenn's last effort. With 1:26 on the clock, he carried three times for 11 yards and a first down, allowing quarterback Greg Griffo to kneel it out.

Other stuff: A tip of the hat to the bands and cheerleaders of both sides, to the Babylon Panther and to the faithful of both teams who braved the cold to back their teams. Helped by the wind, the Panther linebackers and secondary - Griffo, Ryan Bliss, JT Pate, Grandal, Mike Sullivan, Loudon, Max Lockwood - held the Glenn passing attack to only two completions for five yards. Glenn's Cohen had 25 carries for 75 yards and a TD and linebacker Nick Terdick was a monster on defense. According to school records, it was the seventh time that a Babylon team eliminated an opponent in postseason who had beaten the Panthers during the regular season. It's tough to knock off a good team twice.

Previously unbeaten, Glenn completed their year at 10-1. A well deserved salute to the senior Knights who completed their high school careers with a great game - #2 Randall Exantus, #3 Dan Lopez, #6 Randall Holloway, #7 Malcolm Eugene, #12 Mike Massa, #21 John Cinnante, #23 Rich Valdez, #50 Evan Wickstrom, #56 Nick Capobianco, #78 Kevin Motyka, #88 Donald Brown.

Babylon (10-1) now moves on to the Long Island final against the unbeaten Seaford Vikings (11-0). The Vikings defeated the Roosevelt Rough Riders 21-14 in the Nassau County Conference IV final. The Panthers and Vikings have met twice before in the LI final. They split as the Vikings won 23-12 in 1998 and the Panthers evened it, 30-6 in 2002. Seaford features a gambling approach and a strong defense. They've yielded only 62 points this year, the stingiest total of all Long Island's teams. Babylon's 410 points is the highest among the Island's teams. Should be a good one - at Stony Brook's LaValle Stadium, Saturday, 4:30 pm.