Rye Neck Football Victorious in Opener

The Rye Neck Panthers football team beat Lincoln Hall for a season opening victory 48-28 Saturday.

Panther Head Coach Nick Ianello was happy with the win, even if it wasn't as perfectly executed as he would have liked.

"It's better to win ugly then to lose pretty," he said.

Ianello thought his players were great on offense but needed to play better defense, especially with their tackling.

"We have to play better defense going forward," he told them.

The Panthers are a young team with a lot to look forward to, especially with three freshmen, two juniors, two sophomores and four seniors as starters.

"They worked hard for three weeks and we came up with a victory," he said.

Rye Neck jumped out to a 6-0 lead with less than a minute to go in the first quarter. Lincoln Hall immediately responded with a touchdown and two-point conversion to go up 8-6.

But Rye Neck never trailed again as Steve Falco scored on a 16-yard touchdown with 2:43 to go in the quarter to give the Panthers the lead again.

Shatise Chappel's touchdown at 11:19 put the Panthers up 21-8.

Leading 34-8 in the third quarter, Rye Neck backups continued what the starters began, holding their ground in the fourth despite a comeback attempt from Lincoln Hall for the 48-28 season opening victory.

Rye Neck continued its strong play over Lincoln Hall. Rye Neck beat Lincoln Hall in the 2008 playoffs and again last season in the regular season.

Chappel led the way with three touchdowns. Vinny Salinitro had two on the day, including a 40-yard touchdown pass reception from Ryan Aquino in the third. Falco also scored one touchdown, as did Conner O'Shea who scored off a kickoff return.

Rye Neck will next face formidable foe Tuckahoe at home on Thursday at 4:30 p.m.