History of the Class II Long Island Championship

Updated Nov 28, 2012 04:04 PM

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  Photo credit: Newsday/MSG Varsity | Monday, November 21

  1992 – BELLPORT 8, GARDEN CITY 6 Dec. 5, 1992 Bellport turned a first-quarter interception by Alex Rosario into a 56-yard drive, capped by a 25-yard touchdown run on a play-action fake by quarterback Jim McGowan. The win ended Garden City's 30-game winning streak, which was the longest in New York State at the time. Photo Credit: Handout

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  Photo credit: Newsday/MSG Varsity | Monday, November 21

  1993 – GARDEN CITY 14, WEST ISLIP 9 Dec. 3, 1993 Tim Glisker scored both touchdowns for the Nassau champion Trojans -- one on a 25-yard pass six seconds into the second quarter and one on a 55-yard interception return 1:53 before halftime. Trailing 14-0, West Islip fought back gamely, but could not get into the end zone in the second half. Photo Credit: Newsday/Jim Peppler

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  Photo credit: Newsday/MSG Varsity | Monday, November 21

  1994 – WEST ISLIP 7, GARDEN CIY 0, 2 OT Dec. 3, 1994 In a rematch of the '93 Class II final, Garden City held scoreless the heavily favored "Blue Thunder" during regulation. West Islip's Scott Coppo missed a chip-shot 21-yard field goal that would have won the game in the first overtime. But he redeemed himself, catching a 5-yard touchdown pass in the second overtime that held up as the winner when Garden City failed to score from the 10-yard line. Photo Credit: Newsday / Paul Bereswill

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  Photo credit: Newsday/MSG Varsity | Monday, November 21

  1995 – BELLPORT 26, GARDEN CITY 19 Dec. 2, 1995 Running backs Reggie Berrios and Jamie Thomas and quarterback Rich Palmese used a straightforward rushing attack behind the blocking of Mike Jorgensen, Gary Gallo, Jack Schwartz, Karl Knoth and Greg Ozzimo to become the first team with two Long Island Class II titles. Photo Credit: Newsday / J. Conrad Williams

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  Photo credit: Newsday/MSG Varsity | Monday, November 21

  1996 – DIVISION 31, BELLPORT 28 Nov. 30, 1996 In a game of comebacks, Pat Hegarty booted the game-winning 30-yard field goal with seven seconds left to give Division the title. Defending Class II champion Bellport had rallied from a 21-8 halftime deficit to take a 28-21 lead with 5:24 to go, but Division quarterback Patrick Rock drove his team 83 yards to the tying touchdown. Then, Hegarty intercepted a Damon Weston pass to set his team up for the winning drive. Photo Credit: Newsday / Michael Ach

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  Photo credit: Newsday/MSG Varsity | Monday, November 21

  1997 – BELLPORT 44, LAWRENCE 12 Nov. 28, 1997 Playing in their fourth Long Island Championship game, the Clippers won their third title in convincing fashion after a close first half. Traditionally a run-heavy offense, Bellport got some unexpected help from junior quarterback Craig Bazarewski, who went 5-for-5 for 171 yards with two touchdown throws to Melvin Cullum. Micah Barnes rushed for 136 yards and William Griffin picked up 123; both scored a pair of TDs. Photo Credit: Vincent Pugliese

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  Photo credit: Newsday/MSG Varsity | Monday, November 21

  1998 – NORTH BABYLON 34, GARDEN CITY 0 Nov. 27, 1998 The Bulldogs completed a successful transition from Class III into Class II by winning their second straight Long Island Championship in front of 5,781 fans at Hofstra. North Babylon ground out 319 yards rushing and shut down the Trojans' vaunted passing game, limiting Trojans quarterback Matt Casey to 86 yards. Omar Palmer piled up 166 yards and a touchdown to complement Barry Baker's 94 yards and two scores. Photo Credit: Joseph D. Sullivan

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  Photo credit: Newsday/MSG Varsity | Monday, November 21

  1999 – NORTH BABYLON 38, HEWLETT 19 Nov. 27, 1999 North Babylon became the first team with four Long Island titles by winning its third in a row and fourth in five years. Bulldogs running back Omar Palmer led the way, gaining 303 yards (a Long Island record at the time) and five touchdowns on 40 carries before 5,453 at Hofstra Stadium. Photo Credit: Bob Mitchell

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  Photo credit: Newsday/MSG Varsity | Monday, November 21

  2000 – GARDEN CITY 20, NORTH BABYLON 14 Nov. 25, 2000 Dave Kang accounted for 223 yards and passed for two touchdowns to lead Garden City to its second title in seven Long Island Championships appearances, ending North Babylon's three-year reign before 6,000 at Hofstra. Bill Hannan contributed a 13-yard touchdown reception from Kang and added 54 yards rushing, including a scoring run. Photo Credit: Joseph D. Sullivan

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  Photo credit: Newsday/MSG Varsity | Monday, November 21

  2001 – BELLPORT 42, SOUTH SIDE 19 Nov. 29, 2001 Bellport pounded the South Side front for six touchdowns on the ground and scored 36 second-half points to come away with a 42-19 victory before some 6,300 fans at Hofstra Stadium. Halfbacks Larry Zeiss and Dan Varney both scored a pair of touchdowns for the Clippers, while South Side's Bryant Daniels established a Long Island record (since broken) for single-season yards with 2,241. Photo Credit: Newsday / Jiro Ose

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  Photo credit: Newsday/MSG Varsity | Monday, November 21

  2002 – NORTH BABYLON 36, MacARTHUR 15 Nov. 30, 2002 Even without star sophomore halfback Jason Gwaltney, who sat out with a fracture in his right knee, North Babylon rolled to its fifth Long Island championship. Senior guard/middle linebacker Larkin Mayberry put the bite in the Bulldogs' ground attack and starred on defense with 17 tackles, one sack and a fumble recovery before a crowd of 2,700 at Stony Brook University's LaValle Stadium. Photo Credit: Joseph D. Sullivan

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  Photo credit: Newsday/MSG Varsity | Monday, November 21

  2003 – GARDEN CITY 20, RIVERHEAD 0 Nov. 28, 2003 A swarming Garden City defense short-circuited the multifaceted game of Riverhead quarterback Ed Wansor and dominated the Blue Waves before a crowd of about 4,500 at Hofstra's Shuart Stadium. The Trojans' "Pain Train" defense recorded seven sacks, including five that could be considered coverage sacks, and an interception. It was Garden City's third Long Island title in a record eight appearances. Photo Credit: Richard Slattery

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  Photo credit: Newsday/MSG Varsity | Monday, November 21

  2004 – NORTH BABYLON 43, GARDEN CITY 14 Nov. 27, 2004 Despite Garden City's best efforts to neutralize Jason Gwaltney, the 6-2, 230 pound senior running back still ran for 237 yards on 40 carries and scored five touchdowns as the Bulldogs won their sixth LI title. The win capped Gwaltney's incomparable career as he established single-season Long Island records with 2,882 yards and 45 touchdowns. His five touchdowns in the game tied Omar Palmer's LIC record. Photo Credit: Newsday / Paul J. Bereswill

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  Photo credit: Newsday/MSG Varsity | Monday, November 21

  2005 – BELLPORT 8, GARDEN CITY 0 Nov. 25, 2005 Junior halfback Ed Gowins sprinted 74 yards for a second-quarter touchdown and a stifling Bellport defense made the score stand up as the Clippers shut out Garden City before 7,500 at Hofstra's Shuart Stadium. It was Bellport's fifth Long Island crown in six appearances and the third in as many tries against Garden City. The Clippers punctuated the perfect season with three straight playoff shutouts, an unprecedented feat since the inception of the Long Island Championships in 1992. Photo Credit: Joseph D. Sullivan

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  Photo credit: Newsday/MSG Varsity | Monday, November 21

  2006 – LAWRENCE 28, BELLPORT 27 Nov. 25, 2006 Quarterback P.J. Preziosa completed 14 of 20 passes for 207 yards and three touchdowns as Lawrence opened a 15-point second-half lead and held on to shock heavily favored Bellport before a crowd of 6,000 at LaValle Stadium. Bellport senior Ed Gowins gained 212 yards on 32 carries and scored three touchdowns in the losing effort. The defeat ended Bellport's winning streak at 21 games. Photo Credit: Joseph D. Sullivan

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  Photo credit: Newsday/MSG Varsity | Monday, November 21

  2007 – EAST ISLIP 35, LAWRENCE 7 Nov. 23, 2007 After East Islip played a picturesque first half, it was never close in the second half as the Redmen beat defending champion Lawrence at Hofstra. Rob Calabrese rushed for 104 yards and went 6-for-10 passing for 82 yards. Tim Moller caught both of Calabrese's touchdown throws and broke loose for a Long Island Championship-record 97-yard touchdown run. Lawrence had a 19-game winning streak snapped. Photo Credit: Patrick McCarthy

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  Photo credit: Newsday/MSG Varsity | Monday, November 21

  2008 – RIVERHEAD 42, ELMONT 6 Nov. 29, 2008 It was a day that showcased the myriad skills of Riverhead halfback Miguel Maysonet, who rushed for 202 of his 251 yards and three of his four touchdowns in the first half as Riverhead built a 35-0 lead. The Blue Waves captured their first Long Island crown in their LI Championship second appearance. Photo Credit: Joseph D. Sullivan

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  Photo credit: Newsday/MSG Varsity | Monday, November 21

  2009 – GARDEN CITY 9, NORTH BABYLON 6 Nov. 27, 2009 In a game that lived up to its billing as a defensive showdown, a trick play set up the winning score in the final quarter. On a third down from his own 8, Garden City's Brian Fischer executed a quick kick that rolled to the North Babylon 24, where it was mistakenly touched by a Bulldogs player and recovered by Garden City's Billy Allen. Four plays later, sophomore Ryan Norton kicked a 38-yard field goal on his first attempt of the season to provide the margin of victory. Photo Credit: Patrick E. McCarthy

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  Photo credit: Newsday/MSG Varsity | Monday, November 21

  2010 -- BELLPORT 26, GARDEN CITY 21 With less than two minutes left, the Clippers marched down the field, and Travis Houpe capped off the rally with a 3-yard touchdown run with 1:23 left to give Bellport its sixth Long Island Championship. Photo Credit: Kevin P. Coughlin

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  Photo credit: Kevin P. Coughlin | Monday, November 21

  2011 - NEWFIELD 14, GARDEN CITY 7