Sachem, Crossan Make Statement with Win Over Longwood [Photos]

Dalton Crossan has done some remarkable things in his 15 career games with Sachem, but Saturday night’s performance stood out among the ordinary.

Take away his 156 rushing yards and four touchdowns on 13 carries, old news for the stud back at this point, and look at the intangibles.

Ahead 21-14 in the fourth quarter he returned a punt 47 yards to Longwood’s 10-yard line, allowing Malik Pierre to score on the next carry and put the Flaming Arrows up by two possessions.

With less than two minutes left in the ball game, Longwood (3-1) clawing at a 28-21 deficit, Crossan blasted through his line and put the game away with a 56-yard touchdown, securing an eventual 35-27 victory at Fred Fusaro Alumni Stadium.

Seconds later he jogged over to check on his brother Trent, who injured his left leg in the third quarter and sat idle on the Sachem sidelines for the remainder of the game. It’s unclear the extent of his injury.

“After Trent got hurt, Dalton stepped it up to another level,” said Sachem coach David Falco. “That was impressive.”

He also pumped his fists in excitement often, conversed with teammates in pressure situations, blocked an extra point and made several key tackles on defense.

“I took the game on my shoulders today,” said Crossan. “Coming in I knew I would have to have a big time performance in order for us to pull out the victory. Everybody played the best they played all season.”

Prior to the contest, Sachem (4-0) heard lots of talk about Longwood’s talented line. While the Lions have been dominant through three weeks of the regular season thus far, even beating top-seeded William Floyd in Week 2, Sachem won the line war today. Players like Jacob Starling and Vin Juliano led the charge and opened holes for Sachem, who compiled 295 rushing yards on 45 carries.

“We put in some new plays, some counters,” Dalton Crossan said. “We ran a lot of option, got outside and used our speed against them.”

Crossan’s first two touchdowns of 54 and 20 yards were complete end-around runs that left Longwood’s interior in the dust as he bolted down the sidelines.

Sachem spread the ball offensively with Trent Crossan carrying 12 times before his injury for 49 yards, Tyler Andreassi barreling through with 15 carries for 46 yards and Pierre, who proved to be a weapon on both sides of the ball, with 4 carries for 44 yards, one touchdown run and one interception.

Falco praised his defensive coordinator Dave Caputo and offensive coordinator Mike Marrato for their preparation and precision in play calling.

“They do a phenomenal job scheming,” Falco said. “Coach Caputo does a great job lining guys up and bringing pressure from different spots. At the high school level it’s very difficult to see where guys are coming from. To bring pressure and cause chaos, which is what we try to do, really paid off for us.”

Sophomore Mike O’Donnell played quarterback for the first time in a varsity game once Trent Crossan was injured. He led Sachem on three scoring drives in the second half. O’Donnell could still be playing JV football, but opted to be a back up with varsity.

“He sacrificed and said he would be ready to go if someone goes down,” Falco said. “He was ready to go.”

“He stepped up big time for us,” Dalton Crossan said, “and I give him a lot of credit.”

Davonte Booker opened the game with a 30-yard touchdown run for Longwood with 1:54 remaining in the first quarter. Crossan scored his first two touchdowns in the second quarter, giving Sachem a 14-7 lead at the half, then another in the third for a 21-7 advantage.

Booker ran a 2-yard dive play for a touchdown in the fourth to narrow the gap to 21-14 before Crossan’s big punt return and Pierre’s 10-yard run with four minutes left in the ball game.

Longwood again stayed within arms reach when quarterback Danny Farrell threw a short hitch pass to Kavaughn Wiggins of which he scored a 61-yard touchdown. Crossan answered again with his final score to secure the win moments later.

“We’re still a very young team and I still don’t have a feel for how they are in these big time moments,” Falco said. “They stepped up to the plate tonight and played as hard as they could play.”

Fourth and Long

• Pierre’s touchdown is the first one scored by a player without the last name Crossan for Sachem this season. Sachem has scored 17 touchdowns this season: Dalton Crossan 15, Trent Crossan 1 and Pierre 1.
• Players on both teams wore pink gloves, socks and arm bands in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness month, which began Oct. 1.
• Alums Mike Andreassi (UMass) and Jake Cabble (Robert Morris), Class of '11, were in attendance Saturday. Both are playing college lacrosse.
• Next up: Sachem travels to Connetquot on Thursday for Week 5 action at 3:30 p.m.

                        1           2          3          4             F

Sachem          0          14         7          14           35

Longwood       7          0          0          20           27

-L: Booker 30 run, Aponza kick

-S: D. Crossan 54 run, Morris kick

-S: D. Crossan 20 run, Morris kick

-S: D. Crossan 5 run, Morris kick

-L: Booker 2 run, Aponza kick

-S: Pierre 10 run, Morris kick

-L: Farrell to Wiggins 61 pass, Aponza kick 

-S: D. Crossan 56 run, Morris kick

-L: Wiggins 3 run, blocked kick