Patriots Drop Division I Football Opener to Commack

Two long touchdown runs by Commack turned a nine-point deficit into a 22-point hole that the Ward Melville varsity football team just could not escape in Tuesday's Division I opener at Commack High School.

Commack amassed more than 400 yards of offense and ran for 352 yards in a 41-20 victory by the Cougars.

Ward Melville had enjoyed a healthy run of dominance over Commack in recent years, winning the last five meetings between the division rivals, according to Section XI records. In the previous three seasons, the Patriots had outscored the Cougars, 127-30. Commack's last win over Ward Melville was a 33-7 victory in 2004.

Ward Melville quarterback Pat O'Hea completed his first six passes of the game and finished 9-for-15 for 94 yards and one interception. Frank Lucatuorto had 75 yards rushing on seven carries with a touchdown, and added five receptions for 47 yards to lead the Patriots offense. Brendon Hegarty and Kenny Troy each had 34 yards rushing and Troy scored two touchdowns, while James Cashen added 53 yards rushing to a Ward Melville ground attack that totaled 191 yards.

"There were some positive things, some good individual performances," Ward Melville coach Rob Neugebauer said. "We're upset about the outcome, but it's stuff that can be fixed. We'll try to get better each day."

Commack opened the scoring on the game's first possession when quarterback Tyler Smith escaped the Patriots rush, rolled right and found Connor McQueeney in the end zone for an 18-yard score. The point-after kick by Josh Bacon made it 7-0.

Ward Melville answered with a seven-play drive that began with a 22-yard run by Hegarty and ended with a 20-yard touchdown run by Lucatuorto. The two-point conversion failed and the Patriots trailed by one.

Cook opened the ensuing drive with a 50-yard run and capped it five plays later, taking a shovel pass from Smith into the end zone for the score and a 14-6 Commack lead.

Once again, the Patriots responded, going 81 yards on 10 plays, scoring on a three-yard run by Troy. Lucatuorto had receptions of 16 and 25 yards in the series. Another failed two-point conversion kept Commack's lead at 14-12.

Commack took the next kickoff into Patriots territory, and four plays later, Cook leapt across the goal line to up the Commack lead to 21-12, which was the score at halftime.

The Cougars took over in the third quarter, recovering a fumble at their own 27. On the next play, Cook took an inside handoff, busted through a huge hole and scampered 73 yards for his third touchdown of the day and a 27-12 Commack lead.

"Overall we're a pretty young team and we played like a young team," Neugebauer said. "We made a lot of mental errors, but that's stuff that comes with experience."

Commack's defense forced the Patriots into a three-and-out situation, and two plays into Commack's next possession, Cook took the ball on a draw play and rumbled 56 yards up the middle of the field for his fourth score, increasing the Cougars' lead to 34-12.

Ward Melville came back with a 19-yard touchdown run by Troy with 4:40 left in the third quarter, but Commack answered with an 18-yard run by John Donavan.

Ward Melville's next game is Thursday, Sept. 16 at home against Walt Whitman.