On this day 19 years ago, the football team added another moment to its memorable season in a 22-18 comeback victory over Babylon. In a muddy battle, the Bears triumphed thanks to a great defense that shutout the Panthers in the second half and a balanced scoring attack comprised of Derek Kenney (117 passing yards), Barrett Nixon (67 all-purpose yards), Spencer Niebuhr (52 all-purpose yards), and Marc Vega (78 all-purpose yards). Here is Newsday‘s account of the game.
It didn’t come easy, but Stony Brook’s magical season continues.
The horrid weather conditions didn’t bode well for Stony Brook’s wide-open offensive game, but fit right into the hands of Babylon with the power-running of Maen Vassar. No matter. Stony Brook still improved to 4-1. Vassar (170 yards on 19 carries) scored his third touchdown on a 78-yard run with 26 seconds left in the first half to give Babylon an 18-6 lead. Vassar rushed for 155 yards in the first half and Stony Brook had only two first downs.
“Our guys got real upset about [Vassar’s third score],” Stony Brook coach Barry Giller said. “We thought they were going to down the ball and [Vassar] just took off. We were awful in the first half, but we came out fired up in the second half.”
And how.
Stony Brook took the second half kickoff and marched 62 yards on 11 plays, with Barrett Nixon capping it with a one-yard scoring run. Derek Kenney hit Spencer Niebuhr with the conversion pass and Stony Brook was within 18-14. In the fourth quarter, Babylon took a safety on fourth-and-5 on its 15 so it could kick off rather than punt. Marc Vega returned the kick-off to Babylon’s 45 and, eight plays later, Nixon scored on a one-yard run to give the Bears a 22-18 lead.
Still, Stony Brook wasn’t safe.
Babylon then drove to the Stony Brook 10 with less than a minute left on its next possession but a three-yard run and three incompletions sealed it for the Bears. Niebuhr also had 10 tackles, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery from his linebacker position.
Stony Brook’s secret to stopping Vassar in the second half?
“We kept the ball,” Giller said.
And the secret to this season?
“We upset Wyandanch in the first game and since then it’s been no looking back.”
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