John Jay Falls 29-13 to Lakeland

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After falling 46-7 last week against Somers, John Jay hoped they would get an easier go versus Lakeland on Thursday October 10. No doubt the Hornets and Wolves were on a much more even keel, but in the end John Jay was still looking for a change in fortunes.

A 17-7 game in the third, Lakeland scored twice before John Jay scored once, and the night came down in a 29-13 loss.

Winning the toss didn’t work out either. Lakeland kicked short to the sideline, and the Hornets got there first.

The recovery put the visitors 30 yards away, and Robbie Policastro didn’t wait to rev his engine. Three runs and the back had his team second and goal from the five.

Good news, he was also in a giving mood. The senior fumbled, and John Jay took over at the two.

Unfortunately, there was way too much field in front of the Wolves, and the Wolves soon settled for being on the wrong end of the field position game. Not quite, the snap sailed long, and Lakeland led 2-0.

Nine minutes left in the first, and the defense was up to the task. Policastro was dropped for a two yard loss, and Austin Omin forced Lakeland into a punt after his sack at the 39.

More space this time at the 30, the result was the same. Three plays and the ensuing punt landed the Hornets at the John Jay 37.

On rewind, Lakeland was feeling charitable again. After Anthony Frobose completed a fourth and six to Nick Alleva at the nine, another fumble gave John Jay the ball on the next play.

Starting at the one, John Jay would finally get the offense going. Nicholas Rinaldi ran three times for two first downs, and then Tommy Machado got his turn at quarterback. He completed a five yard pass to Patrick Ryan and kept it twice to put his team at midfield.

There the ground game stalled. Two runs by Rinaldi and one keeper gave the ball back on downs to Lakeland.

At their own 45, the bees didn’t stay there long. On second down, Frobose faked the handoff and reversed field all the way into the end zone.

The extra point good, Lakeland led 9-0 at 8:58, and the Wolves needed a response. Three Rinaldi runs for 18 yards had his team across midfield, but an illegal procedure call unraveled the drive.

Six minutes to go, the teams continued to fill out their 401c’s for each other. After stopping Lakeland on the subsequent possession, John Jay fumbled at the 50, and Lakeland got hit with a procession of penalties to end a promising drive before the half.

So Lakeland came out of the locker room and got themselves back in the red. Holding the magic marker, Frobose completed two passes to Mike DiCioccio, one to Mike Zumatto and ended the drive with a 19 yard touchdown pass.

He also ran in the two point conversation, and John Jay had to get something going. Tommy Machado to the rescue, he kept the ball for a ten yard run to the Lakeland 43, hit Patrick Ryan for five more and then glided down the sideline for a 38 yard touchdown run.

17-7 on the Mathias Baez extra point, the giving game was back, and Lakeland was the beneficiary. John Jay was hit with two straight personal fouls, and even though they forced Lakeland into a fourth down, the ball was not forthcoming on a roughing the kicker call. Three Policastro runs later and Lakeland led 23-7.

Frobose would add another TD to his stat sheet in the fourth. But at least the Wolves did finish strong and their Tommy gun did most of the firing. He kept the ball across midfield for a first down at the 45, hit Theo Dorta on the sideline to the 28, and after getting sacked, he scrambled twice for a first down at the 17.

Then came the play of the night. Under pressure, Machado hit Ryan cutting across the middle, and the receiver ran wide into the end zone to finish with a respectable 29-13 loss.