New Hyde Park Football Beats Westbury, 30-7

The continued its by beating the Westbury Green Dragons on Saturday, 30-7. It was a great overall win as the defense and offense were firing on all cylinders throughout the game. With this win, the Gladiators improve to 2-0 overall and remain 1-0 in Conference II. Westbury drops to 0-2 overall.

Heroes: Nick Dziomba was the rushing leader and pounding force for New Hyde Park’s offense, busting his way to 141 yards on just 16 carries. He continuously pounded away at the Westbury defensive line, pulling his team down field with him. He proved to literally be a headache for the Green Dragons all game with his hard running style.

Brian Baracaldo also had a great day on the ground, running for 70 yards and a touchdown.

The hero from last week, Fran Terrero, proved to be explosive on the ground yet again. He exploded for a 36-yard touchdown early in the game to put his team ahead and later scored again. He finished the day with 57 yards and two touchdowns. He also proved to be a pivotal defensive player at defensive back, locking down the slot receiver, while also providing great cover defense.

Turning Point: The first quarter of Saturday’s game got off to a bit of a slow start. The Gladiators turned the ball over at the goal line and had some difficulty putting a solid drive together. The Green Dragons shared New Hyde Park’s frustrations, as they couldn't’t move the ball either on this crisp afternoon. However, in the second quarter, New Hyde Park got a spark from Fran Terrero. On a shotgun draw up the right sideline, Terrero used his breakaway speed and shifty feet to duck the Westbury defender’s on his way to a 36-yard touchdown. Dziomba and Baracaldo put the clamps down after that, providing a steady running game for the Gladiators.

Quoteable: Head coach Kevin Dolan said after the victory, “We prepared for this game very hard. Some of the cramps and pain out there were from practice on Tuesday. That’s how enthusiastic and hard these kids play. We might have to teach them a little about hydrating, but they love this game and have great hearts. We have to fix a couple things, such as fumbling, but it was a great game.”

Bottom Line: New Hyde Park couldn’t have started out their season any better. They have scored 72 points overall in the last two games, a number the players and coaches are most certainly ecstatic about. More importantly, the running game is providing most of the scoring, a key factor to any championship caliber team.

Although some teams have adapted to the “spread offense” and “stacking receivers” method, New Hyde Park has stuck to the old school, pound-it-out method of football. The three running backs on the day combined for 268 yards on the ground, a number that will turn the heads of many defenses.

One of those teams will be Garden City, perhaps one of the best football programs on the Island, who the Gladiators will face next. It will be a tough game, especially on the home turf of Garden City, but New Hyde Park doesn’t put on the pads for no reason; they come out to win every week.

Key Statistics:
Dziomba- 141 yards
Baracaldo- 70 yards 1 TD
Terrero- 57 yards 2 TD

Who’s Next? The New Hyde Park Gladiators will take on the Garden City Trojans in an early season Conference II match up Saturday at Garden City at 1:30 p.m.

                                 1          2           3            4             Final
Westbury                 0           0           0            7               7
New Hyde Park        0          14         8             8              30

NHP Terrero- 36 yd rush (XP failed)

NHP Perrone- 1 yd rush (2 pt good)

NHP Baracaldo- 5 yd rush (2 pt good)

Westbury Jackson 77 yard reception (XP good)

NHP Terrero 2 yd rush (2 pt good)