The 11-year-old Hicksville Crusaders suffered their first defeat of the season at the hands of the Farmingdale Hawks on Sunday at John Walker Field.
Both defenses found it extremely difficult getting untracked in the first half. The Crusaders defenders, led by Vincent Barretta, Julian Franco, Sean Lewis and Nick DeLaney, did a remarkable job keeping Farmingdale’s offense confined. Late in the second quarter, Crusaders safety Ryan McBride intercepted a Hawk’s pass, spoiling a drive that was poised to put points on the board for Farmingdale.
In the second half, the Hawks finally broke through taking the ball 50 yards in nine plays for the score. Both defenses battered each other throughout the rest of the quarter keeping the score Farmingdale 8, Hicksville 0.
In the final period of the game, Farmingdale was able to mount another attack that led to another score; however, the Crusaders were not yet ready to roll over! The orange and black offense, behind the blocking of Matt Zwickel, Tom Fleming and Connor Dalton, sprang Stephen Ketelsen on a wonderful reverse. After Ketelsen took the ball all the way to Farmingdale’s 11-yard line, Quarterback Peter Capel, on an end around, took it to the end zone for the tally.
Although the final score was 15-6 in Farmingdale’s favor, it doesn’t portray how hard the Crusaders actually fought. There are 48 minutes in these football games, and the 11-year-old Hicksville Crusaders continue to battle for the entire time.
