Mamaroneck’s football team celebrated wildly on the Mahopac turf on Saturday night, the exuberant smiles plastered across the faces of players and coaches alike shining brightly through the tears of joy and the pounding rain.
For all the heartbreak that led to this point, the Tigers wouldn’t have had it any other way.
On November 15, the Tigers made history, pitching a 9-0 shutout against top-seeded John Jay to secure the first Section 1 title in program history. But Saturday’s win was more than about the recent close-calls that Mamaroneck has been on the wrong side of over the last few years; it was also a celebration of all the hard work and community support that has led to the crowning of a Class AA champion that has been the bridesmaids more often than not as of late.
The Tigers were making their third Section 1 finals appearance in the last four years on Saturday night, taking on a John Jay team that topped them in overtime earlier in the year. But this time out, neither the Patriots or the inclement weather were enough to postpone a wild Mamaroneck celebration.
Amid the postgame chaos, Mamaroneck quarterback Henry Kelly struggled to describe the feeling of finally helping his team reach the mountaintop.
“How do you even describe this? It’s the most surreal feeling I’ve ever had in my life,” said Kelly. “To work hard with a group for so long, working with them through spring, summer up to this moment, it means so much.”
Kelly played as big a part as anyone—particularly on the offensive end. After both teams battled to a 0-0 stalemate in the first half, Kelly found the end zone for the Tigers’ lone touchdown early in the third quarter, the touchdown coming in between rain delays that lasted for roughly 90 minutes.
Leonard Mackensen would add a field goal for good measure as the Tiger defense answered the bell, shutting down the Patriots’ offense from the opening bell and ensuring that the effective John Jay passing game would never find a rhythm.
Kelly finished with 92 total yards, while running back Mark Lebowitz rushed for 73 on 19 carries. John Jay, on the other hand, managed just 118 yards of total offense.
“To be able to keep that offense down, it says a lot,” said Mamaroneck head coach Anthony Vitti. “They’ve got a quarterback with a big arm who makes big plays and we knew they were going to challenge us with deep routes. And I’m just so proud of our defense, especially those guys in the secondary, for holding tough.”
“Without the coaches, non of this is possible; they put in 1,000 times the work we do and we were doing this for them,” said Kelly. “So it was really great to be able to see them get this win.”
Now, with a Section 1 title in the books, the Tigers will head into uncharted territory this week, as they get ready for a state regional showdown with Section 9 Monroe Woodbury on Saturday.
But regardless of how the state tourney plays out, Vitti said he’s confident in the mental preparation of this group.
“I’m so proud of them, and it’s an honor to be their coach; this is so incredibly meaningful,” said Vitti. “I just see this as an opportunity to coach this group for another week, and we’re going to embrace very single moment of that.”
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