Stevie Finnell helps Garden City football race past Mepham
It only took a New York minute for Garden City to make a statement.
Senior halfback Stevie Finnell broke a 47-yard touchdown run on the third play from scrimmage and the Trojans grabbed a lead they’d never relinquish.
Finnell scored the first of his three first-half touchdowns and Garden City opened a three-score lead on the way to a 35-18 win over previously unbeaten Mepham in a Nassau Conference II football game played Saturday in Garden City.
Finnell added a leaping 57-yard touchdown reception from quarterback Cole Webber and a 5-yard scoring run. He finished with 151 yards on 16 carries and one catch for another 39 yards.
“They jumped on us quickly and we were playing catch up all game,” said Mepham coach Matt Moody. “This became an important learning experience for our team.”
Garden City (5-0) extended Long Island’s longest winning streak to 23 games. The Trojans beat Mepham for the 24th straight time and have a record of 39-1 over the Pirates since 1981.
“I was obviously very happy with the way we came out today,” said Garden City coach Dave Ettinger. “We’re healthy and have a bunch of guys contributing and playing well. This was a good win.”
After Finnell set the tone with the opening score, he made a super athletic play for the second touchdown. Finnell adjusted to a slightly underthrown pass and jumped over the shorter defensive back to make the catch. With the defensive back on ground, Finnell turned and sprinted to the end zone for the 57-yard score and a 14-0 lead with 4:52 left in the first quarter.
“I adjusted to the pass and got in a good position to make the play,” Finnell said. “I bobbled it at first because he got his hand on it. It definitely gave us a very fast start.”
Webber, who completed seven of 13 passes for 193 yards, was on target with his next scoring toss. He hit Jack Archer in stride for a 22-yard touchdown for the 21-0 lead.
Mepham (4-1) responded with a five-play, 63-yard drive capped by a Dom Novello 1-yard run to make it 21-6. Novello keyed the march with a 51-yard pass to a streaking Chris Norris to the Trojans 1.
"They’re a very physical team and they weren’t going away,” said Finnell. “We needed to take the momentum back.”
Garden City would answer in a big way, scoring on its fourth straight possession. Finnell capped an eight-play, 60-yard drive with the short scoring run for the 28-6 lead. The drive featured the hard running of RJ Votruba, who accounted for 24 yards.
“When we have RJ, Finnell and Archer all healthy, it gives us many options,” Ettinger said.
Mepham closed the first half with a key defensive stop. Steven Mulqueen intercepted a short Webber pass at the goal line as Garden City threatened to blow the game open.
“That gave us some momentum into the half,” Moody said. “We talked about winning the second half. I was proud of the way we handled ourselves. We have a lot of work to do to get better. I’m sure we’ll see them in the playoffs.”
Mepham opened the third quarter with a five-play, 70-yard touchdown march. Novello hit Norris on a skinny post for a 64-yard touchdown pass to bring the Pirates within 28-12 with 9:15 left. The Pirates then took advantage of a muffed punt that was recovered at the Trojans 30. Five plays later, Novello scored from a yard out to make it 28-18 with 1:22 left in the third. Novello completed 7 of 19 passes for 153 yards and added 72 yards on the ground.
“They had momentum and made a run,” Ettinger said. “Our defense came up with a key turnover and set up the final score.”
With Novello cramping on the sideline, quarterback Kevin White tried to beat safety Matt Liberopoulos deep down the sideline. Liberopoulos made his second interception in as many weeks.
On the ensuing play, Votruba, who had 142 all-purpose yards, raced 56 yards for the clinching score." Everyone contributes here,” Ettinger said. “That was Libby’s second big pick.”
And like the start, the finish was also sudden.