The Garden City Thunder The Garden City Thunder O’Connor 8s took a trip down to the friendly confines of Allen Park last Saturday night for a key match up with the Farmingdale Hawks. The threat of a big Nor’easter did not dampen the spirits of our Thunder players.

Garden City was on defense to start the game. Strong play from the Thunder defense kept the Farmingdale Hawks in their nests. Ultimately, the Farmingdale offense was able to punch the ball in to take an early 6-0 lead. It marked the first time the Thunder 8s had been behind in a game all year. It was time for the Thunder offense to try and even the score. The offensive line led by Matthew McGovern, Jack Ryan, Brian Boland, Aidan McDonagh, Bobby Lehan, Patrick Ilardi, and Angelo Demiris began to open gaping holes. Strong runs by Trevor Yeboah-Kodie, Colin Hart, Sean Tariche, and Justin Coppola put the Thunder in a position to tie the score. A QB sneak by Jack Muldoon evened the score and the extra point made the halftime score 7-6.

The second half began with the Thunder Defense making a statement. Hard smacks by an active secondary including Jack Cobb, Harry Murphy, Justin Hessler, and Brendan McEvoy insured Farmingdale did not get a first down in their first series. The Garden City offense was able to sustain a drive that resulted in a Justin Coppola score to make the score 14-6. With 15 minutes left in the game it was up to the Thunder Defense to clip the wings of the Hawks. Defensive line penetration by Dylan McDonald, Christian Genussa, Nate Fridrich, James Affronti, Donald Byrne, and Lucas Feingold let Farmingdale know that first downs were a privilege and not a right. The crashing ends of Liam Griffith and Aidan O’Connor made it know that nobody gets outside against the Thunder Defense.

When the final gun sounded the Thunder 8s prevailed is a tough, physical game by a score of 14-6. This stretched the Thunder record to 6-0 and 13 straight dating back to September of 2008. Next up is Mineola in the battle of the unbeatens. A special Friday Night Lights game will be held at the GC Pool at 7:30pm. Come out and hear the Thunder!