Carle Place/Wheatley advances

The second seeded Carle Place/Wheatley Wild-Frogs defeated seventh seed East Rockaway Rocks 42-12 in the Nassau Conference IV quarterfinals on Friday evening, led by quarterback Chris Kelly’s two touchdown runs. 
Kelly rushed for 128 yards on five carries while running back Dom Pascarella ran for 39 yards on five attempts and scored a touchdown for Carle Place. 
Carle/Place Wheatley fullback Dayce Niosi also added a touchdown and rushed for 55 yards on nine carries.
Head coach Tim Moran said it was another big team win, as their running game and play on the line of scrimmage was the difference in the matchup against East Rockaway.
“We spread the ball around and the offensive line did their job,” Moran said. “Once we controlled both lines of scrimmage, we knew we were gonna be in good shape. We played physical and we set out to do what we came to do since August.” 
Carle Place/Wheatley got on the board first with 7:12 remaining in the first quarter. 
After they stopped East Rockaway on the game’s opening drive, Carle Place took over. Their 64-yard opening drive was capped by a 14-yard rushing touchdown from running back Luke Caliendo. Caliendo then kicked the extra point and gave Carle Place/Wheatley a 7-0 lead. 
With 1:34 left in the first quarter, Kelly gave Carle Place another touchdown with a 58-yard dash and Caliendo added the extra point to make it 14-0. 
Pascarella ran for a five-yard touchdown with 2:08 left in the second quarter. Caliendo tacked on the extra point and Carle Place/Wheatley took a 21-0 lead into halftime.
In the third quarter, after stopping Carle Place on their opening drive, East Rockaway took over from their own 11-yard line to begin an 89-yard drive. 
James Tierney got East Rockaway on the board with a six-yard run but they failed to convert on the extra point attempt. Carle Place/Wheatley led 21-6 with 6:36 left in the third quarter.
Carle Place answered back as Niosi capped off a 66-yard drive on a one-yard rushing touchdown with 2:17 remaining in the third quarter. Caliendo’s kick extended Carle Place’s lead 28-6.
In the fourth quarter, with 11:03 left to go, Kelly’s 31-yard touchdown run completed a 54-yard drive and Caliendo’s extra point attempt gave Carle Place/Wheatley a 35-6 lead.
East Rockaway responded with a 72-yard drive, resulting in Colin Barnes’ 14-yard rush with nine minutes left. However, they failed to complete the two point conversion and Carle Place led 35-12.
With 4:22 left to play, quarterback Matt Baltzer faked a handoff and ran for a 27-yard touchdown while Caliendo’s kick finished off the scoring as Carle Place/Wheatley won 42-12. 
Moran said this win was their first playoff victory since Carle Place and Wheatley merged their football programs 10 years ago. 
“It feel’s good but it’s definitely not over yet” Moran said. “We won’t be happy until the season is over.”
Kelly said the feeling of earning their first postseason win was just unbelievable, as they gear up for the semifinals at Hofstra University.
“We knew there was a lot of excitement around this game and we knew that we wanted it,” Kelly said. “It means so much not just for the team, but for the whole community. We always get a good crowd that comes out to support us and now they get to watch us at Hofstra.” 
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Scores 
Saturday Nov. 5
Wantagh defeated Floral Park 48-0. Sean Colbert led top seeded Wantagh with two touchdowns in the Nassau III quarterfinals.