Eleven points - one more Hock touchdown, another Maloney to Dadich conversion and a stirring Roo field goal - is what the Mineola Varsity Football team needed to qualify for the playoffs in 2006. Not feeling greedy, the Mustangs would have taken a few points a week over the lump sum. Erasing an insurmountable two game deficit at mid-season, Mineola rallied over the last few weeks to level their record (4-4) before falling short of a confusing and competitive playoff rankings system. Three of the four losses were decided by a grand total of 10 points with only the highly ranked Roosevelt Roughriders getting the best of the Mustangs this year. Despite the disappointment, the offense provided one of the more exciting scoring displays in recent memory behind a balanced attack averaging a solid 29 points per game.

No one player had a bigger impact than senior quarterback Jon Hock. Hock completed a rare triple touchdown feat scoring as rusher, passer and receiver this season. He culminated his career against Roslyn with 23 and 56-yard scampers that were emblematic of his 14 rushing touchdowns for the year. In addition, Jon had 3 scores from the pocket and one as an option receiver. Hock left the blue collar effort to other backs while his performances will go down among some of the most thrilling in recent Mustang history.

The surprise of the season was the power and efficiency of the kicking game. Senior Tri-Captain Mike Roo, a staple of the defense, made his presence equally felt in the scoring column. Roo converted 23 of 30 points after touchdown (a 77 percent success rate) along with a highlight reel time expiring 43-yard game winning field goal against Carle Place. As a tribute, LIPA replaced all electrical wires behind the east goalpost for presentation to the football trophy case. Roo, although much prouder of his skill in the trenches, was critical to special teams play with touchbacks saddling opponents deep in their own territory. At each home game, Union Street more closely resembled Waveland Avenue after a Wrigley Field home run.

The rushing attack was the linchpin to Mineola's success. Backfield depth gave the Mustangs a ground game that few competitors could match (East Rockaway being the exception whose two point conversion negated a septet of rushing touchdowns). Senior Tri-Captain Ian Stanisic, returning from an injury lost junior campaign, hit paydirt five times. Seniors Chris Orlando and Tri-Captain Kurt Hetzer added a trio of goal line penetrations each along with a pair of defensive returns for good measure. Mike Vasconcelos added the 26th touchdown of the year's ground game.

Unpredictability was a Mustang strategy and senior Rob Maloney was the primary decoy. Despite not scoring as a wide receiver, his downfield touch kept many Mineola drives alive. Maloney threw two passing touchdowns and another couple of two point conversions as the team's designated Tom Matte. Senior Marc Dadich was the hands of the Mustangs aerial operation with two scores and two conversions. Junior Dan Benbow tallied the last of the quintet of receiving TDs as next year's feature end.

The season ending rout of Roslyn provided an opportunity to showcase the future of the Mustangs. Junior Louis Corrao will most likely take the reins behind center and classmates George Jimenez and Dave Lopez will share the backfield in 2007. Larger roles will be taken on by Junior receivers TJ Gessner, John Englis, Chris D'Meza and Zane Kerney. The line returns starters Zack Chichi and Mark Schiller with expected contributions from Pat McMahon, Ryan Chiu and Carlos Gulinao. A strong core from a successful Junior Varsity will pay dividends across the roster.

Each year closes the careers of many unsung heroes who toil in black and red in relative obscurity. Seniors Kevin Brostek and Dan Campos have anchored the line alongside Marlon Cardona, Bryan O'Malley and Andrew Gross. These players take with them a legacy of playing for a Mustang icon (and alum) in 20-year veteran Head Coach Dan Guido and his stalwart assistants Helms Bohringer, John Tortora and Mark Miller. The 2006 season may have fallen just short of expectations but the excitement will not soon be forgotten particularly within the Mustang record book.

Extra Points: Roosevelt steamrolled through the playoffs en route to a Conference IV finals appearance - something all too common in Nassau football...Hock should be a unanimous All-Conference selection...Any number of Mustangs could be saluted as well...This could have been the deepest offensive pool of talent for Guido in ten years with the exception of the last Conference Finalist squad...Kudos to Offensive Coordinator Bohringer as well...Athletic Booster Club wishes to thank all spectators for a banner year at the Concession Stand...Nice to see Mustang fan veteran Joe Grilo in the stands at the final home game - spirited cheers definitely had an impact in the game's final outcome...Season ending crossover game needs to be better advertised for fan support - a great comeback was missed by many...What a pleasure it is to see Mineola Principal Ed Escobar strolling the sidelines every Saturday (and for every other Mustang athletic event) - no one has more school spirit! Keep up the Good Work, Mr. Escobar.

Building a franchise from scratch is never easy but Mineola Cross Country Coaches Kristen Frazer and Mike Santa Maria laid a solid foundation that is finally producing results. Seasoned athletes on the Girls team are making their mark in divisional and county meets while the youth and determination of the boys team sends signals that good things are on the horizon. The Mustang track program is steadily gaining recognition in a number of ways - from opponents who have to begun to fear them and from an expanded roster of interested runners.

Senior Captain Lauren Mobyed led the Girls team to a record of 7-4. More importantly, Mobyed was the dominant number one runner every team covets. Lauren was the outright winner in two of five quad meets and never finished lower than second in a league meet. She became the first Mercury-like Mustang female to break the 20 minute mark in a 5 kilometer (3.1 mile) race including a time of 19:49 in her second consecutive New York State Championship appearance. A unanimous All-Division selection, Lauren qualified for All-Conference honors with her fifth place time in the Nassau County Championships.

Junior Nicole Wissler established her place as the heir apparent. Nicole was another unanimous All-Division selection establishing a personal best time at the County Championships resulting in her second set of All-Conference honors. Wissmer was joined by Seniors Jenn Pawlowski and Alia Fater as the trio finished in the top ten in every league race. Two newcomers, Senior Laura Restrepo and Junior Vicky DosSantos, consistently provided team points and improved on their season opening times by 8 and 2 minutes, respectively. As a team, the Girls finished third in the Conference (from fifth the year before) and 16th overall in the Nassau Finals (an increase of 5 places from 2005).

The boys program has a rising star in sophomore Joe Wellbrock. Joe won two quad meets and was no worse than tenth in the other three. This season, Wellbrock broke the Boys school 5K record of 18:36 by an astounding 25 seconds previously held by current West Point Cadet Alex Jansen. The performance achieved the goal of making the County Championships. Nosed out by two seniors, Joe missed qualifying for the States by a mere three places. Joe's efforts earned another unanimous team slot on the All-Division squad.

The remainder of the boys team (all underclassmen who return next season) made great strides. Fellow sophomore Bryan Vesely sat in the two spot and shaved 4 minutes off last year's times. Classmate Jiovani Rivera, in his debut at track, held down the middle rung in the lineup and saw steady progress over the course of the campaign. Sprinters Kevin McCann and Greg Lapin rounded out the quintet while adapting to a different style than they may have been more accustomed. With no graduations on the Boys side of the ledger, Frazer is confident the team will continue their rapid ascent up the rankings.

Split Times: Juniors Kevin Sung and Matt Wojis continued to show significant development in their Cross Country exploits with quicker times recorded this year...Matt's Mom, the dedicated Mrs. Wojis, is the Mineola PTA liaison (and regular meeting attendee) to the Athletic Booster Club...sophomore David Dursunian and Freshman Sal Massa impacted team scores during league meets and advanced their times by a minimum of two minutes...Illness and Injury bug hit runners and coaches - Conor McCann had his season cut short after slicing three minutes off his time while Coach Frazer was a mid-season casualty...Coach Santa Maria was ready, willing and able to cover the fort in her absence...Mobyed ran in the Class B New York State Section and finished 35th overall and fifth best from Long Island...All-Division honors voted by the Coaches...All-Conference honors based upon performance in County Championships...Team should have been well represented at last weekend's Mineola Mustang Run - an annual community custom...Kerry Cordova, formerly an Assistant Track Coach at Adelphi, has been hired as the Winter Track coach.