SOMERS, N.Y. - Somers traveled to Harrison on Friday, Oct. 3, and wasted no time getting down to business. Nine plays into the game, quarterback Tristan Iglesias was in the end zone less than six minutes after kickoff. But Harrison answered quickly—quarterback Jack Badner connected with Cole Presto to give the Huskies a brief 7-6 lead two minutes later. From there, Somers took control and never looked back, scoring 34 unanswered points to secure a commanding 40-7 victory.
Barely off the bus, Jackson Whipple set the tone with a kickoff return to the 45-yard line. After a couple of short gains, Dylan Jimenez broke free for 19 yards to the 34. Two third-down conversions later, Iglesias kept it himself from the 27 and eluded the rush all the way into the end zone.
The Somers defense immediately joined the effort, stuffing Jason Crupi’s run attempt up the middle. But Harrison briefly broke through when Badner hit Matt McCoy over the middle for a 64-yard completion to the 11-yard line. Two plays later, Badner scrambled right and found Presto in the end zone to put Harrison ahead 7-6.
Somers quickly answered. On second down, Iglesias found a wide-open Dean Palazzolo to move the ball deep into Harrison territory. One play later, Luke Balancia broke through for the first of his two touchdowns.
“There were a lot of holes there, and once I got into the secondary, the receivers set some good blocks too,” said the sophomore.
With Gavin Kelly’s extra point, Somers went up 13-7 and made sure there would be no repeat of last year’s tense Section 1 semifinal against the same opponent. The defense forced a quick three-and-out, and Harrison made a costly mistake—punting directly to Palazzolo. His return to the 8-yard line set up another quick score.
“I don’t know what they were thinking,” joked running back Jayden Abruzese.
From there, Abruzese ran to the three, and Iglesias scrambled in for the touchdown, extending the lead to 20-7 with 1:26 left in the first quarter. Harrison punted again just three plays later, and this time Palazzolo went the distance for a touchdown. “He returns it every single time,” said Balancia with a grin.
Somers led 27-7 at halftime and didn’t let up. In the third quarter, Abruzese—who had transferred from a private school and sat out the first two games due to eligibility rules—made his presence felt with runs of 24, eight, and 27 yards before punching in a one-yard score.
“My line works hard every day in practice,” he said. “They make sure we’re doing the little things right.”
Balancia added the final touchdown, sealing Somers’ fourth straight win and keeping the Tuskers firmly in control of their Class A campaign.
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