Owls Soar Past Valley Stream South in Homecoming Blowout

Harrison Simon and Dylan Burfield|September 27, 2018

After an exciting spirit week and eventful pep rally on Friday afternoon, the varsity football team claimed its first victory of the season at the homecoming game against Valley Stream South Falcons, winning 35-0. The Owls, now 1-2, were led by the three-headed rushing attack of Jonathan Cabral-Martin, Danny Martinez, and Ethan Hoyte; all three scored touchdowns, as the team walked all over the Falcons. 

Hoyte, the only sophomore on the team, opened the scoring for the Owls with back-to-back carries for 33 combined yards, the latter going for a touchdown. However, the action stalled when a Valley Stream player unfortunately went down with an injury early in the second quarter. The game was delayed for around 15 minutes, as an ambulance had to be called to the field to take the Valley Stream player off. Thankfully, it appears that things are looking good for the player, according to Owls’ senior captain Jimmy Murray.

After a brief stretch, both teams were good to go again, but from that point on, it was all Lynbrook. The Owls would march down the field on the ensuing drive all the way to a 3-yard touchdown run by Cabral-Martin, who also scored the 2-point conversion to give the Owls a 14-0 lead going into the second half.

Lynbrook’s defense dominated Valley Stream, as the Falcons continued to struggle to find success on offense. The Owls began to thrive on both sides of the ball, as senior quarterback John DiBenedetto added a 20-yard score followed by a blocked punt returned for a touchdown by Tyler Heaney. The defense would only improve as the game wore on. Senior Dan Schneider recovered a fumble with 8:47 left in the 4th quarter that led to a 2-yard rushing score by Martinez. After Valley Stream began to drive down the field in the game’s closing minutes, senior Vincent Luchesse recovered a fumble with 1:48 left to play to seal the shutout for the Owls.

This was a critical win for the Owls, as a disastrous 0-3 start would likely have put an end to their playoff hopes. “It felt especially great in the fourth quarter, because the starters played well enough to get the backups in on both sides of the ball,” commented senior guard Anthony Andrews. “It was awesome to be able to put all 37 of our seniors in,” said Head Coach Steve LoCicero, “The entire senior class did a fantastic job.”

The Owls are highly confident that this success will spill over into their upcoming games against the likes of South Side, Bethpage, and Floral Park. “It felt really good to get that first win, to get that chip off our shoulder,” mentioned senior Tyler Heaney. “We have the talent to win, and we finally started clicking against Valley Stream.” Murray believes that for the team to be truly successful, they must believe in one another and play as one: “The senior class has a good bond, and we have been playing together for years. The juniors on the team will be relied on heavily this year in every aspect of the game, both on the field and on the sidelines. As long as we stay together and have faith in the coaches, I have no doubt that we can fight our way back to Hofstra.”

The Owls take on the South Side Cyclones this Saturday, September 27, with kickoff scheduled for 5:00 pm.