Babylon Shuts Down Shoreham In Playoff Opener 27-2

Babylon Head Football Coach Rick Punzone last week said running back Nahari Jenkins has gotten shortchanged on offensive chances this year due to the depth at that position. But against Shoreham-Wading River on Friday night, Jenkins certainly made the most of his opportunities.

Jenkins pounded the ball into the end zone on goal-line runs twice in the first half, helping the Panthers jump out to a 13 – 2 halftime lead, and they never looked back, winning their first-round playoff game 27 – 2.

Babylon will wait until all Saturday games are complete before knowing who they will next play. But if all favorites win, it’ll be a rematch against John Glenn, who earlier this season beat Babylon 21 – 7.

“Everyone wants to play them,” Jenkins said. “We want another chance.”

Against Shoreham, the Babylon offense was efficient, except for an early miscue that resulted in the Wildcats’ only points. Early in the second quarter, Frank Mankiewicz was stripped of the ball, which bounced backwards and into and out of the end zone for a safety, drawing Shoreham close at 6 – 2. But that’s as much as Babylon gave on this night.

Babylon grinded out yardage on the ground, with a second quarter Zach Fredericks-to-Greg Dieterich completion down to the Shoreham 5-yard line the lone pass play highlight for the Panthers. That set up the second Jenkins score.

“You know what’s coming with Babylon,” Wildcat coach Matthew Millheiser said, referring to the Panther’s ground game. “They do a great job executing.”

“I felt offensively we dominated tackle to tackle,” Punzone said. “And defensively, I thought we played well. I liked the physicality we showed.”