The William Floyd Colonials varsity football team advanced to the semifinals of the Section XI playoffs after defeating Sachem East 34-14. The victory keeps their undefeated season intact and sets up a home game against No. 4 Longwood on Saturday, November 15 at noon.
William Floyd previously beat Longwood earlier in the season with a score of 21-1 in the Parkway Power Bowl. If they win on Saturday, the Colonials will reach their third consecutive Suffolk County Championship game and aim for their third straight title and sixteenth overall.
In the first-round playoff game, senior running back Ja’Quan Thomas scored a touchdown on the opening drive. Sachem East tied it late in the first quarter, but William Floyd regained momentum when junior Derek Glock returned a punt for a touchdown in the second quarter. Junior quarterback Matthew Taiani then connected with senior receiver Evan Commodore for a 30-yard touchdown pass, followed by another punt return touchdown from Glock before halftime. The Colonials led 27-7 entering the third quarter.
Thomas added his second touchdown with a 65-yard run in the third quarter, finishing with 147 rushing yards. On defense, senior David Gonzalez had 15 tackles; junior Jake Rivera recorded six tackles, four tackles for loss and three sacks; senior Jayden Johnson contributed eight tackles and one sack; and junior Zackary Baxter also had a sack as part of five total sacks by William Floyd’s defense.
The roster includes seniors Fraz Ahmed, Matthew Benjamin, Divine Bennett, Evan Commodore, JP Galasso, PJ Gilhauley, David Gonzalez, Jordan Goodwin, Jeru Hall, Coby Huggins, Cedric Jacques, Jayden Johnson, Spencer Link, Josiah Lors, Daveigh McKenzie, Joseph Melecio, Jack Meyer, Patrick Mitchell, Angyl Palin, Tacari Reece, Alex Rodriguez, Ja’Quan Thomas, Darnell Toussaint, Aidan Williams and Aisays Wallace; juniors Derek Glock, Christian Hobson, Jake Rivera among others; and several sophomores.
Head coach Paul Longo leads the team along with assistant coaches Bill Ashton , Craig Blatter , Bill Krumm , Kyle Connor , Greg Amato , Gary Marangi , Chris Mocera , Ryan Amato and Bobby DeSilva .
Section XI requires an $8.35 admission fee per ticket for playoff games at Lincoln Avenue Sports Complex (children under 12 are free), which can be purchased online or via QR code at the gate; cash or checks are not accepted.
A halftime show featured collaboration between William Floyd’s varsity cheerleading team and varsity Rockettes.