Plainedge football defeats Seaford on Jaxson Torres-to-Alec Anderson pass on final play for Nassau IV semifinal victory

There was only enough time left for Plainedge to go full Hail Mary on fourth-and-17 from the Seaford 38. It seemed likely that the teams would have to work overtime, but the Red Devils did have two things going for them on this fling for the win.

“A guy that runs really fast and jumps really high and a quarterback that can throw it as far as the field,” coach Rob Shaver said. “Yeah, that helps.”

Jaxson Torres is that 6-3 sophomore quarterback with the big arm and Alec Anderson is that 6-4 senior receiver who’s able to fly and jump. Torres sent the ball sailing toward the left side of the end zone, and Anderson came down with it. The score was untied. The clock was at 0:00.

A 38-yard touchdown pass. A Hail Mary to win a Nassau IV semifinal and earn a ticket to the championship game. Hard to beat that.

Final score Thursday night at Hofstra’s Shuart Stadium: Plainedge 33, Seaford 27.

“We had four seconds left; there wasn’t much to do,” Torres said after throwing for 115 yards and two scores. “We gave our best wide receiver a chance. He went up and got it. That’s what he does.

“It feels amazing,” he said of his winning toss. “Amazing.”

The top-seeded Red Devils train for situations like this.

“We’ve done it a couple of times in practice, more than you think,” Anderson said. “But I practice jump balls quite a bit. I work out. I’ve got strong hands. Everything comes together.”

So Plainedge and third-seeded Wantagh, the two 9-1 teams that dropped down from Conference III after the last school year, will play for a county crown at 4 p.m. on Nov. 22 at Hofstra.

The teams indeed had to work overtime when they met in the regular season. The Red Devils won at Wantagh, 33-27, in Week 5. Wantagh crushed Cold Spring Harbor, 55-6, in Thursday night’s other semi.

Asked how much confidence there is that his team is going to win a championship, Torres said, “A lot of confidence. That was a good boost of momentum.”

The end-of-the-game boost capped an 11-play, 61-yard drive that covered the final 3:28 and included Torres’ 5-yard pass to Tyler Gribbin on fourth-and-4.

The drive followed a 13-play, 59-yard journey by fifth-seeded Seaford (5-5), the defending champ, that covered 7:35. Brian Falk’s 2-yard run tied it at 27, but the PAT was blocked.

“Good and bad,” Shaver said of his feeling. “I wish it were a little easier.”

Falk returned the opening kickoff 84 yards for a touchdown and Dylan Fella (194 yards, 27 carries) scored on a 5-yard run for Plainedge. Giancarlo Belgiorno’s 1-yard TD run gave Seaford a 14-7 lead 3:07 into the game.

Dimitris Vardamaskos’ 3-yard TD run tied it at 14 in the second quarter. Michael Spinella hit Kyle Britton for a 54-yard touchdown on the final play of the half to give the Vikings a 21-14 lead.

Plainedge tied it on Torres’ 1-yard keeper in the third, then went ahead 27-21 on his 22-yard TD pass to Vardamaskos on the second play of the fourth.

Now they’re moving on to the final.

“On to the next,” Anderson said. “That’s what’s important.”