Football: Carmel beats Mamaroneck, repeat as Section 1 champs – The Journal News
MAHOPAC – The Carmel memories these last two years are almost all big-picture ones. There were championship achievements, huge stat lines, dominant wins. And yet at no point during what is now a 26-game winning streak were the Rams tested for four quarters.
Not until Saturday night.
Carmel’s two-plus years of dominance were nearly halted by Mamaroneck, which gave the Rams more than a challenge. They led them deep into the fourth quarter, until Carmel, the defending state champs, produced its drive for the ages.
The Rams, tested like never before, survived thanks to a late touchdown pass that gave them a 31-28 victory in the Class AA championship game at Mahopac High School and a repeat atop Section 1.
There’s been pressure, but the players never cracked.
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“I’m just so proud of them,” Carmel coach Todd Cayes said. “All this pressure of this streak and and to continue to play through it, it’s a lot for these kids. But we got the ball back and I said, let’s see if we can go down and be champions. And we did.”
The key play, the one now forever etched in program lore, was Matt Gay’s 36-yard touchdown pass over two defenders and into the outstretched arms of Chris Nerys. It came with 1:04 remaining on the clock, giving the team its 31-28 lead.
That Gay and Nerys were the heroes was emblematic for a Rams team chasing history with so many new faces and without the 23 seniors graduated off last year’s 13-0 team.
Carmel actually trailed by four, 28-24, after Mamaroneck’s Jason Cox, always rolling and improvising, slipped a pass over a defender and into the hands of Damari Hamilton for a 24-yard go-ahead score with 7:38 to go. The Tiger defense then stopped Carmel on downs at their 13 on the next possession, but the Rams regained possession near midfield after their defense forced a three-and-out.
Said star safety Nick Rosaforte: “We didn’t lose our composure.”
Even the winning drive was kept alive when Gay was sacked but sophomore Tristan Werlau scooped the fumble and charged his way back to the line of scrimmage. Carmel also needed Rosaforte to convert on fourth down.
“I’m real proud of our guys,” Mamaroneck coach Anthony Vitti said. “It just hurts right now.”
What it means
Carmel’s 26th straight victory was far and away its closest. The Rams had won their last 25 games by three touchdowns or more.
They’ll look to extend that streak against Newburgh, the winner of eight straight, and the team they beat in last year’s state quarterfinal. The teams are slated for a 3 p.m. kickoff on Saturday at Middletown High School.
Player of the game
Nick Rosaforte, Carmel. The senior battled through fatigue all night, running 22 times for 174 yards and a touchdown while anchoring the Rams’ secondary against Mamaroneck’s dangerous offense. Fittingly, the game ended in his hands with an interception on the Tigers’ final drive.
“We were all battling,” Rosaforte said. “It was a really physical game all four quarters and I needed to stay on the field. I couldn’t keep coming off. All our guys persevered, we played through it, and we pulled it out on top.”
By the numbers
Carmel (10-0) – Gay went 10 of 21 for 149 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Damien Santiago had four catches for 49 yards, including a touchdown. … With the offense being held scoreless in the second half until the winning touchdown, Jeremy Smith returned a tipped screen pass 30 yards for a score in the third quarter.
Mamaroneck (9-1) – Damari Hamilton had 10 carries for 120 yards, highlighted by 51 and 56-yard touchdown runs in the first half. He then added a 24-yarder when Jason Cox slipped a pass over a defender as Hamilton ran up the sideline. … Cox, who was forced to scramble all night, went 10 of 24 for 145 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.
They said it
“They put up an amazing fight,” Rosaforte said. “They are undefeated for a reason. We didn’t think we were going to blow them out and I don’t think they thought they would blow us out. It was just two great teams battling it out and we fortunately came out on top.”
“I just loved the mindset of these young men,” Vitti said. “As I’ve said all year, they never surrendered.”
Josh Thomson is the Sports Editor for The Journal News, Poughkeepsie Journal and Middletown Times Herald-Record. He can be reached by e-mail at jthomson@lohud.com, on Twitter at @lohudinsider, and on Instagram at @lohudinsider.
“All week, you talk about composure. You have to keep your composure. Down by three, up by three, you have to just play the same,” said Gay, a first-year starter at quarterback.