Garden City football routs Mepham, extends its LI record with 59th straight win
Brayden Robertiello of Garden City, left, congratulates Anthony Asaro after his touchdown against Mepham on Saturday. Credit: Michael A. Rupolo Sr.
One minute. That’s all it took Garden City to set the tone Saturday against Mepham in its showdown of unbeaten football teams in Nassau Conference II.
On the first play from scrimmage, Trojans halfback Anthony Asaro went left behind a horde of blockers and turned the corner for a 24-yard gain against the least-scored upon defense on Long Island through four games.
On the next play, Asaro bolted up the middle for a 37-yard touchdown run and the route was on. The Garden City defense added two pick-6 touchdowns to open a 20-0 first quarter lead on the way to a 44-7 win over Mepham to take sole possession of first place in Conference II.
Garden City improved to 5-0 and extended Long Island’s longest winning streak to 59. The four-time defending Long Island Class II champions are also looking for their 10th consecutive Nassau title. The state record for consecutive wins is 62 by Maine-Endwell of Binghamton.
“We like to start on the defensive side of the ball, but they won the coin flip and deferred so we took the ball,” Garden City coach Dave Ettinger said. “And our guys came out and executed right away against a very good defense.”
Mepham (4-1) shut out three of its first four opponents and allowed only 21 points in that span. The Pirates were gashed for 20 points in the first 10 minutes against Garden City and trailed 37-0 at the half.
“Coming into the game we heard (Mepham) had the best defense on Long Island,” Asaro said. “We wanted to show them what the GC offense is like. We came in, set the tone, got the touchdown, and the motivation started from there.”
The Garden City defense also made its presence felt throughout the first half.
And it was Asaro again.
He jumped a pass in the flat and returned the interception 25 yards for a touchdown and a 14-0 lead with 4:52 left in the first quarter. On Mepham’s next possession, defensive back Will Mattice intercepted a pass over the middle and returned it 40 yards for a score and the Trojans led 20-0 with 1:15 left.
“I can’t remember seeing two straight interception returns for touchdowns,” Ettinger said. “It’s pretty incredible.”
Asaro pointed to the Trojans' preparation for the game.
“I was in the right place at the right time,” he said. “He threw it into my flat and it was the pick-6 from there.”
Senior Merit Ruckh, a special team’s standout as a junior, trucked up the middle for a 48-yard TD run and a 27-0 lead with 10:28 left in the half. Ruckh, who had a few hard hits on defense, broke a tackle at the point of attack for the long scoring run.
“When we get big hits, it gets our guys motivated, the sidelines get into it, and the fans get involved,” Ruckh said. “It deflated (Mepham’s) motivation and momentum, and it gave us a big boost.”
Mepham coach Tom Mazeika said it was typical Garden City football.
“There is a reason why they are the class of our conference,” Mazeika said. “They are very disciplined and athletic. When you’re playing them, you don’t want to play behind the sticks like we did. They did a great job in pass coverage.”
The Garden City defense was superb in the first half, holding the Pirates to 14 total yards in 19 plays.
They forced a turnover on downs when defensive end Mark Escher sacked quarterback Patrick Cloudman for a nine-yard loss at the Pirates 25. That set up Trojans kicker Chris Desiderio for a 42-yard field goal and a 30-0 lead.
The defense wasn’t done. D-back Justin Baiker intercepted a third Mepham pass at the Pirates' 43. A few plays later, quarterback Brayden Robertiello found Ruckh behind the secondary for a 33-yard TD pass and a 37-0 lead.
“I saw the ball in the air, and two guys coming in on me,” Ruckh said. “I had to jump and make a play in the end zone.”
Mepham avoided the shutout when quarterback Adam Erlichman found Lucas Eagleston for a 59-yard TD pass in the third quarter. The Trojans answered with a Gianluca Ingrassia 16-yard TD run but that was nullified by a holding penalty. Two plays later, teammate Jack Campolettano scored on a 9-yard run for the final margin.
The Trojans have not lost since Lindenhurst upended them, 14-13, in the 2019 Long Island Class II final. Ruckh loves being a contributor to Garden City’s historic run.
“I’m a part of Garden City’s culture and that’s an absolute blessing,” he said. “What the coaches do for us. The players who set the standard before us push the team to be better every day.”
Newsday's Jonathan Ruban contributed to this story.
Gregg Sarra is Newsday's high school sports editor and has been on the beat since the mid-1980s.
