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Dalers revel in Homecoming victory over Uniondale

by Dominic Grasso Student Intern

Above, Dalers celebrate their homecoming victory. Below, cheerleaders and fans do their part in securing the victory. Photos courtesy of The Paper Lion newspaper

Green and white was on display in the stands, and on the field, as Homecoming weekend influxed both the students, and the town of Farmingdale with incredible amounts of school spirit.

Despite the bad weather, many students and residents filled the stands to cheer on the Dalers to a 43-22 victory over the visiting Uniondale Knights.

"It was an amazing event," said Kristy Brennan, an excited fan.

The win, which was without question a team effort, included stand-out performances by Anthony Barskdale, Willie Warren, and Kenny Reid. The Dalers victory secured them the number two seed in the conference, and ended any post season dreams that Uniondale players may have had.

Homecoming excitement filled the air.

"The crowd is pumped, the team is pumped, everyone’s just very excited and to be a part of that is just really special," said Jackie Zabelski, a cheerleader.

School Officials also came to cheer on the Dalers.

"As a graduate of Farmingdale High School, it was a great and exciting day for me," said Russ Catanzaro, newly elected trustee to the Farmingdale Board of Education. "I’m truly happy that the tradition of homecoming in Farmingdale lives on."

The Dalers took the lead early, and never looked back. By 3:30 into the first quarter, Kenny Reid flew past the Uniondale offensive line, blocked Alberto Ayala’s punt deep in Uniondale territory, and recovered the ball to take it in for a touchdown. Reid’s outstanding special teams play was only the beginning of the Dalers’ scoring frenzy.

Early in the 2nd quarter, Ryan Bagnasco completed a beautiful 40-yard pass down the field to Charlie Starke, which set up a three-yard touchdown run by Willie Warren, making the score 14-0 Dalers.

Warren finished the game with 62 yards on the ground, part of a 251 yard rushing attack for the Dalers.

While most of the yards came from star players such as Barksdale, Warren and Nakyle Bethay, the Farmingdale ground attack could never have been as successful without the excellent play of the offensive line, led by veterans Matt Bullen, John Cinelli, and Chris Ball.

Uniondale would soon get on the board, thanks to Craig Ratley’s 90 yard touchdown kickoff return. After a two point conversion, it was 14-8 Uniondale, near the end of the half. However, the Dalers weren’t done. With little over a minute left in the half, Kenny Reid blocked his second punt of the day, setting up a field goal by Tom Maca, making it 17-8 Dalers at halftime.

After an impressive homecoming halftime show, featuring not only the band and the dalerettes, but four very floats led by the sophomores "1950s" float, the crowd was psyched for an exciting second half.

Band members have been preparing for months to perfectly execute the homecoming halftime show, and when the moment to perform finally arrived, "It was definitely worth it," said Freshmen band member Joe Diliello. "I love how homecoming gets everyone involved," said cheering fan Jackie Quercia. "If they’re not into the game, there’s floats, the band plays, everything’s happening on Homecoming weekend."

Neither team was about to let down their fans, scoring a combined 40 points in the second half.

Nakyle Bethay jump started the scoring for the Dalers with an electrifying 29-yard touchdown run. Later on in the quarter, after passing 25 yards to Kenny Reid, Anthony Barksdale punched in a five yard touchdown, making the score 30-8 Dalers at the end of the 3rd quarter.

The Dalers didn’t stop scoring in the fourth, with a touchdown scored by Jared Adams. Dalers place kicker Tom Maca was pumped up after the game.

"The game was great, real exciting and everything. I can’t wait until the playoffs start, can't wait," he said.

Uniondale showed heart and resiliency by fighting back and scoring two touchdowns towards the final minutes of the game, but it was too little too late against a Dalers team that came out, running on all cylinders, giving their fans plenty to cheer about on Homecoming weekend. Former All-Conference offensive linemen Rob Hermes, now in college, expressed his feelings about the showing by the Dalers.

"With them playing like they did today, they’re not going to be stopped in the playoffs," he said. "I’m confident in them, and the town is confident in them."