He finished with 276 passing yards on 19 completions with four touchdowns. ![]() After throwing three interceptions, Morwood’s performance emerged in the fourth quarter with three crucial touchdowns. Morwood’s athleticism, vision and elusiveness outside the pocket made him a threat West Islip couldn’t contain. West Islip led 28-7 heading into the fourth quarter. I couldn’t believe it I just saw everybody running to me. “I stretched over and I just started crying. “The defender stopped me short,” DiStasio said. Senior quarterback Jay Moorwood rushed out of the pocket avoiding pressure and connected with DiStasio, who was running on a deep slant and caught the pass at the 2-yard line before lunging with outstretched arms over the goal line for the 20-yard touchdown. Photo by Jim FerchlandĪfter a 32-yard field goal by West Islip’s Bobby Dicapua, Centereach had an opportunity to win the game with a touchdown. After West Islip was held to a field goal, Centereach senior Jesse DiStasio scored the game-winning touchdown in a 34-31 come-from-behind thriller. Even though the season didn’t end the way we wanted it to, the seniors have really shaped the program into what it is today.”Ĭentereach’s football team scored four touchdowns in 18 minutes to erase a 28-0 West Islip lead and send the game into overtime Oct. “They lead by example on the field, in the classroom and in the community. “Buying in to everything we do and making other players better around them is why I consider them leaders,” Barrett said. On a third and long, Morwood threw a Hail Mary pass near the end zone where a North Babylon corner leaped in front for the interception, and with it, victory.īarrett said that seniors Alec Kiernan, Vinny Liotta and Mike Grieco have led the team to places he hasn’t seen, and were a big part of the team’s success. With less than two minutes remaining in regulation, Centereach mounted a drive downfield connecting on a pair of long pass-plays, one of which was a 32-yard toss to Marcus Garcia-Miller, but both were called back because of offensive pass interference. After North Babylon recovered, the team completed three plays before Estrella sauntered into the end zone once more for a 14-7 lead. On the opening drive of the second half, a Centereach fumble proved costly. Marcus Garcia-Miller drags a tackler as he moves the ball up the field. Sophomore kicker Matt Robbert completed the point-after attempt to make it a new game. The spark for the Cougars offense came three plays later, when senior quarterback Jay Morwood handed a pass to junior Devin Demetres, who despite seeming to be stopped at the line of scrimmage, broke outside and defended against four would-be tacklers while covering 65 yards during his touchdown run. North Babylon threatened again with six minutes left in the half, but the Cougars defense made a stand, forcing the Bulldogs to punt on fourth-and-15. They ground out yardage and sustained the drive until ultimately finding the end zone on short yardage with four minutes left in the opening quarter. On their opening possession, the North Babylon Bulldogs began a march down the field from deep inside their own territory, leaning on running back David Estrella. Having a great core of young coaches that bought into the program and the system that I brought here and having them relate to the kids is a big factor as well.” ![]() ![]() “Having leaders that want to be the best they can be, and never settling has really helped the younger kids contribute. “The players have really committed to the offseason program and took the necessary steps to improve each year, which was key,” he said. The Cougars had a historic run, opening the season on a five-game winning streak and completing the season with an 8-2 record.Ĭentereach head coach Adam Barrett said the transformation of his team to finally become a playoff contender was due to several factors. Chris Witherspoon leaps up in an attempt to intercept a North Babylon pass. Centereach fell to North Babylon 14-7 in the county semifinals Nov. Centereach threatened to retie the game late in the fourth quarter, but a costly interception halted the Cougars march down the field, and with that, went the football team’s chance to compete in the Division II finals.
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