Football: Babylon beats Monarchs, who have playoffs to play for
With only a few seniors on its roster and not as much depth as it has enjoyed in the past, the Babylon High School football team is not the force it usually is. At the same time, it is still Babylon.
Bishop McGann-Mercy found that out sure enough on Saturday when Babylon romped over the Monarchs, 30-0, in Riverhead. The score was relatively close by halftime at 16-0, but the Monarchs (3-4 in Suffolk County Division IV) had trouble moving the ball.
“They came out and they kind of put us on our heels a little bit early,” Monarchs coach Jeff Doroski said. “We really couldn’t get too much going offensively. We had mistakes. We had some penalties that cost us a little bit. We didn’t play our best today.”
What was Doroski’s take on Babylon (3-4)?
“They’re always a good program,” he said. Babylon coach Rick Punzone “does a good job. Were they as physical as we’ve seen in the past? No. Do they have as many weapons as they’ve had in the past? No. But they play physical football.”
Unlike Babylon, McGann-Mercy’s roster is packed with seniors, 18 in all. With the exception of two juniors on offense and two juniors on defense, the Monarchs start all seniors.
“It’s kind of unprecedented at Mercy to have the number of seniors that we have,” said Doroski.
It was senior day at Bishop McGann-Mercy Diocesan High School, and the seniors and their parents were recognized in a pregame ceremony for their contributions to the program.
Despite the loss, the Monarchs still have a lot to play for. Their final regular-season game on Friday will be against rival Greenport/Southold/Mattituck (3-4) in Greenport, and it could hold a ticket to the playoffs for them. McGann-Mercy’s preseason seeding of No. 8 could help give the Monarchs the boost they need to finish among the top eight teams in the division that will reach the postseason.
“Sometimes in life things don’t work out the way you want them to all the time,” Doroski said after Saturday’s loss. “My statement to these guys today was, ‘How are you going to respond?’ ”
