This Week in Sachem Football: Suffolk County Division I Semifinals

Every week I breakdown each game and measure what it means from a historical perspective in the football programs at Sachem North and East. Here's the information from Friday's Suffolk County semifinals:



Playoff Data

• The 42 points Sachem scored against Northport ties a single game playoff record for the program. The Arrows also put up 42 last week against Brentwood in the quarterfinals and 42 against Brentwood last season.
• Sachem is 27-20 in the playoffs, all-time.
• In playoff games, Sachem leads all opponents, 887-760, in scoring.
• In even number years, Sachem is 15-8 in playoff games.
• In the 47 post-season games Sachem has played, only five actually featured scores of 40 points or more, and three were against Brentwood: (2002) 48-20 loss to Patchogue-Medford (Fred Fusaro's final game), (2006) 46-26 loss to Brentwood, (2009) 42-6 win over Brentwood, (2010) 42-14 win over Brentwood and (2010) 42-21 win over Northport.
• Sachem has played Northport three times in the playoffs: Friday's 42-21 win, a 27-24 win in 1989 and a 35-0 loss in 1991.  
• This was the third highest combined point total in Sachem playoff history. The 60 points falls behind the 48-20 loss to Pat-Med in 2002 (68), and the 46-26 loss to Brentwood in 2006 (72).
• This the first time Sachem has ever put up 40-plus points in back-to-back playoff games. In fact, Sachem has never even scored 30-plus points in consecutive playoff games.
• Just in case you're wondering, Sachem has appeared in 14 Suffolk County championship games, winning six - good enough for a .538 winning percentage in the big dance.

Season Historical Notes

• This is just the second team ever to earn 10 wins in a season at Sachem; last year's group finished 10-1.
• Dating back to the final game of the 2008 season, North has won 21 of its last 22 games.
• Sachem has scored 388 points this season, making it the highest scoring team in program history. The 388 points are the third most on Long Island this season behind Freeport (413) and Oceanside (397).
• Sachem's defense has allowed 92 points, the least in Division I and the second least in Suffolk County behind Smithtown West (82). The Bulls, however, were eliminated in the quaterfinals and played less games than Sachem.
• In fact, only 23 other teams in the history of Long Island football have scored more points than this group. Football on Long Island has been played since 1884.
• Sachem currently has 3,953 yards of total offense. It needs 600 more yards to tie last year's mark of 4,553 - a program record.
• It also has rushed for 3,407 yards, 508 away from tying last year's record of 3,915.
• Sachem has scored 40-plus points in six of its 10 games this season and no fewer than 28 in a game. The 40-plus points in five breaks the 2009 team's record for most 40-plus point games in a season.
• Sachem is 16-3-2 all-time against Northport. Their first meeting was in 1977, and resulted in the biggest win in Sachem's history, a 55-0 drubbing. The Arrows went on to win the Rutger's Trophy that year and Brian Dehler won the Hansen Award. Northport did not win a game against Sachem until 1991.
• Of the 16 wins against the Tigers, Sachem has scored 28 or more points against Northport seven times.
• Sachem leads in all-time scoring against the Tigers, 440-258.
• Northport's 21 points are the most a team has scored against Sachem all season.
• Sachem has scored first in all 10 games this season.
• Sachem is the only undefeated team in Division I. The other Suffolk County schools without a loss: Glenn (Division IV), which is coached by Sachem alum Dave Shanahan and assistant Fred Fusaro. Nassau's undefeated schools: Carey and Seaford. St. Anthony's of the CHSFL is also 10-0.
• The Andreassi File: With his 10 carries and 57 yards against Northport, he is still in 8th on Sachem's career rushing list. He has 1,908 yards on 289 career carries and 23 touchdowns. Next up: Anthony Quezada (1,967, 2007-08).
• The Scanna File: For his four-year career at Sachem, he has 161 carries, 1,468 yards and 16 touchdowns (rushing). Scanna is the 11th all-time leading rusher in Sachem history. Next up: Walter Carey (1,539: 1981-1982). On defense, Scanna has over 300 career tackles, which is a Sachem record. (Final defensive stats will be reported at the end of the season.)
• The Armine File: The three-year varsity player has compiled some impressive career stats. Even though he has limited throwing attempts because of Sachem's ground attack, he is 35-for-63 and has thrown for 600 yards. He also has tossed eight touchdown passes, which is one away from tying him with two others for fourth all-time in Sachem history and two away from tying him with two others for third all-time. He has also rushed for 724 yards on 108 carries and scored 10 touchdowns on the ground (7 in 2009).

Stats at a glance (through 10 weeks)

-Bonifacio Aguila: 7 catches, 120 yards, 17.1 avg., 2 touchdowns

-Michael Andreassi: 137 carries, 977  yards, 7.13 avg., 14 touchdowns/ 2 reception for 27 yards/ 0-for-1 passing

-Angelo Armine: 38 carries, 363 yards, 9.55 avg., and 14-of-22 passing for 304 yards and 4 touchdowns, 3 rushing touchdowns

-Davon Christopher: 20 carries, 124 yards, 6.20 avg., 2 touchdowns

-Dalton Crossan: 73 carries, 881 yards, 12.07 avg., 1 catch for 59 yards, 13 rushing touchdowns, 2 return touchdowns, 1 receiving touchdown, 2 interception touchdowns

-Trent Crossan: 21 carries, 260 yards, 12.40 avg., 1 rushing touchdown, 1 interception for a touchdown

-Mike McCarthy: 22 carries, 143 yards, 6.50 avg., 1 touchdown and 2-of-5 passing for 58 yards and one touchdown, 1 INT

-Bryan Morris: Converted 38 of 47 point after attempts

-Jesse Scanna: 68 carries, 765 yards, 11.25 avg., 11 rushing touchdowns/ 4 receptions for 58 yards and 1 receiving touchdown … 1 fumble recovery for a touchdown

Points by quarter

99

Interesting Facts

-Total offense gained: 3,953 yards (3,407 rushing / 362 passing)

-Total offense allowed: 1,915 yards (1,050 rushing / 848 passing)

-Total rushing touchdowns: 46

-Total passing touchdowns: 5

-Total interceptions for touchdowns: 3

-Total returns for touchdowns: 2

-Total red zone touchdowns: 29

-Offensive touchdowns of 50-plus yards: 11

-Offensive touchdowns of 40-plus yards: 14

-Touchdowns on first down: 22

-Touchdowns on second down: 18

-Touchdowns on third down: 10

-Touchdowns on fourth down: 1

-First half points: 247

-Second half points: 141

-First half points allowed: 32

-Second half points allowed: 66

-Most points for: Week 3 vs. Brentwood ... 48

-Least points for: Week 5 vs. Northport ... 28

-Least points against: Week 4 vs. Connetquot ... 0

-Most points against: Semifinals vs. Northport ... 21

-Most touchdowns in a game by one player: Dalton Crossan ... 4 vs. Northport in semifinals

-Most carries in a game by one player: Michael Andreassi ... 22 vs. Lindenhurst

-Most rushing yards in a game by one player: Scanna 173 vs. Connetquot

-Longest rush of the season: Trent Crossan, 84 yards vs. Northport in semifinals

-Longest pass of the season: Armine to Crossan, 59 yards vs. Longwood

-Longest run against: Karl Allison - Bay Shore, 54 yards

-Longest pass against: Pat-Med, 51 yards

-Most total offensive yards in one game: 513 vs. Connetquot

-Longest kick return: 85 yards, Dalton Crossan vs. Floyd

-Longest play: Dalton Crossan's 100-yard interception record vs. Brentwood

Fun Facts from Previous Games

• Sachem's win over Connetquot marked the first time Sachem has scored 45 or more points in back-to-back weeks in program history. 
• The shutout over Connetquot was the 59th shutout in program history.
• This season is the first time Sachem has scored 33 or more points per game in the first four games of the year.
• If you're wondering, the fewest points allowed in a Sachem season was 35 in 1977. For this year's Sachem team to be in the top five in program history, it would need to stay within the 50 point range: 1980 (38), 1986 (44), 1961 (46), 1983 (56) and 1978 (59). It has allowed 57 points in seven games.
• The 20 points Sachem scored in the first quarter of Week 6 were more than Floyd allowed in any previous quarter this season.
• This is the first time since 2002 that William Floyd has lost back-to-back games.
• Floyd has not allowed more than 28 points in any games dating back to 2004.
• Bay Shore, Sachem's Week 8 opponent, has outscored the Arrows, 181-154. It is the only other school besides William Floyd to have outscored Sachem in its history. 
• Bay Shore and Lindenhurst are the only teams to score first against Sachem this season.
• Sachem head coach Dave Falco played on the 1983 team that started 7-0-1 and assistant coach Dave Caputo played on the 1995 team, Sachem's last to win a county title and only group to appear in the Long Island Championship. Falco was just starting his career as a coach with Sachem in '95.

New York State Sportswriters Association Ranking: 3 ... Though it's not the final ranking of the season, it is the highest ranking Sachem has ever achieved from the NYSSWA. The organization has been ranking teams in New York since 1969. Sachem has been ranked in the top 25, 12 times … its highest spot ever was 6 in 1979.

Next up: No. 1 Sachem will host No. 2 William Floyd for a rematch in the Suffolk County Championship at Stony Brook University next Friday.