2002

Class AA: Webster Schroeder 28, Shenendehowa 7

   Senior running back Carl Garritano rushed for 179 yards and a touchdown to pace the victory, and quarterback Mike Kaplun added two 1-yard touchdown runs as Schroeder completed a 13-0 season.
   The Plainsmen avoided the shutout on a 28-yard TD pass from Frank Brogna to Brian Zipkin with just over a minute to play.
   Competing as a consolidated district team, Webster won large-school championships in 1999 and 2001. When the district split into two high schools in 2002, most of the returning varsity players stayed together at Schroeder.

Class A: Aquinas 19, Nyack 15

   Calvin Hall scored two touchdowns to help the Little Irish win their second straight championship and third in five seasons.
   Arel Gordon had 96 yards rushing and a 4-yard touchdown run.    Aquinas' Ian Goodberlet ran 17 seconds off the clock while taking an intentional safety, giving the ball back to Nyack via a free kick with :31 to go. A pass from Nyack quarterback Eric Clegg was knocked down at the Aquinas 10-yard line as time expired.

Class B: Harrison 22, Chenango Forks 21

   Coming back from a knee injury suffered earlier in the drive, quarterback Peter Kohlasch waited out a pair of timeouts to kick a 30-yard field goal as time expired to pull out the victory.
   Harrison drove 55 yards in 3:30 to post the deciding score. Steve Burton, who had no carries or receptions up to that point, ran 11 yards for a first down and then made a leaping catch of a Kohlasch throw for a 16-yard gain to the 13.
   Chenango Forks held the ball for 32:43, led Harrison in first downs 19-9 and accumulated 128 more yards. Chenango led 21-12 at the half after having run off 39 plays to just 10 for Harrison.
   Burton returned an interception 53 yards fora score midway through the second quarter, and Kolasch scored on a 46-yard run midway through the third period to pull within 21-19.

Class C: Onondaga 35, Briarcliff 6

   Junior tailback Mike Hart ran 29 times for 199 yards and three touchdowns to help Onondaga roll to another title after capturing the Class D crown in 2001.
   The Tigers extended their winning streak to 26 games with the help of five interceptions.
   Hart scored in the first, second and third quarters on runs of 14, 39 and 26 yards, respectively, to finish the season with 60 touchdowns. Chad Amidon wrapped up Onondaga's scoring with a 78-yard interception return.
   After Hart capped Onondaga's opening possession with a score, Briarcliff drove to the Tigers' 1-yard line. Following a third-down sack, Hart blocked a 23-yard field goal attempt.
   Briarcliff avoided the shutout by scoring with :08 to play.

Class D: Dobbs Ferry 38, Dolgeville 35

   Nathaniel Greenstein booted a 37-yard field goal with :17 to play to win after Dolgeville mounted a 21-point comeback in a 6:35 span in the fourth quarter. The field goal was Greenstein's fourth of the season and the longest of his career.
   Dolgeville outgained Dobbs Ferry 332-264 but was done in by four turnovers.
   Each team returned a punt for a score. After Dolgeville's Adam Barnes scored on a 53-yard return, teammate Ryan Randall (28 carries, 158 yards) tied the game on an 8-yard run with 2:50 to play. Dobbs Ferry then drove 43 yards to the winning kick.

2001

Class AA: Webster 32, North Rockland 14

   Junior tailback Carl Garritano scored three second-half touchdowns as Webster rallied from a 14-12 halftime deficit for its second championship in three years.

   Garritano finished with 19 carries for 101 yards and scored on carries of 3, 5 and 17 yards. Warriors quarterback Jeff Krieger went 7-for-14 for 174 yards and a TD.

   North Rockland senior tailback Phil DeCosta rushed 34 times for 189 yards and a pair of first-half scores.

   The Warriors improved their record to 35-2 over three seasons.

Class A: Aquinas 22, Horace Greeley 15

   Senior Mark Magliocco Jr. completed 12 of 16 attempts for 208 yards and three touchdowns as the Little Irish won their second NYSPHSAA championship. Calvin Hall added 120 rushing yards and 16 tackles from his linebacker position.

   Kevin McMahan made eight catches for 129 yards and two scores covering 7 and 61 yards.

   Greeley pulled into a tie in the fourth quarter before Magliocco hit Shawn Jemison on a 49-yard scoring play with 5:13 to go.

   Greeley's Mark Murray rushed 24 times for 148 yards.

Class B: Peru 14, Chenango Forks 7

   Junior quarterback Matt Bezio went 13-for-20 for 193 yards and a TD as Peru completed a 13-0 season. Junioer Matt St. Clair accounted for 181 receiving yards, catching TDs covering 77 yards from Bezio and 55 from halfback Brandon Keleher to build a 14-0 lead.

Class C: Delhi 39, Cambridge 21

   Senior fullback Brian Neale ran 30 times for 179 yards and scored three TDs to lead the Bulldogs to the title.

   Neale scored on a 24-yard carry in the fourth quarter after Cambridge had pulled within 32-21.

   The loss dropped Cambridge to 32-2 over a three-season span.

Class D: Onondaga 35, Dobbs Ferry 7

   Sophomore Mike Hart rolled to state single-season records for TDs and rushing yards by carrying 36 times for 337 yards and four scores.

   Hart raced to the end zone from 13, 66, 56 and 3 yards as Onondaga took a 28-0 lead entering the fourth quarter. He finished his season with 51 TDs and 3,341 rushing yards.

   Matt Scriber picked off a pair of passes for the winners.

2000

Class AA: Jamestown 33, New Rochelle 7

   Tailback Aaron Leeper scored on carries of 1, 34, 14 and 3 yards to lead the way for the Red Raiders. Leeper finished the season with 282 points to set a state record.

   New Rochelle had broken to a 7-0 lead on Gary Bruzzese's 23-yard return of a recovered fumble.

Class A: Nyack 34, Fulton 20

   Nyack wore down Fulton with 20 second-half points to to complete a 12-0 season.

   Senior fullback Jason Alcin carried 32 times for 150 yards and scored three touchdowns to pace the team's 258-yard rushing day.

   Fulton entered the game on a nine-game winning streak after an 0-3 start to the season.

Class B: Rondout Valley 21, Lackawanna 0

   Pat Rham rushed 16 times for 118 yards and a touchdown as Rondout Valley became the first squad from Section 9 to earn a NYSPHSAA football championship.

   The Ganders defense held Lackawanna to just 67 yards on the ground and 55 through the air.

Class C: Edgemont 37, Walton 20

   Fullback Matt Bernstein rushed 23 times for 179 yards and a pair of TDs for Edgemont to complete a 12-0 season and extend its winning streak to 21 games.

   Bernstein scored on carries of 32 and 54 yards to stake Edgemont to a 16-8 lead and start the Panthers on the way to their third straight state championship.

Class D: Dolgeville 55, Fort Edward 3

   Dolgeville rolled up 405 rushing yards en route to setting a record for points in a NYSPHSAA final.

   Senior tailback Jason Barnes carried the ball 22 times for 121 yards. Quarterback Jamie Miller rushed six times for 93 yards and completed two of his three passing attempts for another 71 yards.

   Dolgeville drove 64, 65, 73 and 48 yards in the first half for four TDs and a 28-3 lead.

1999

Class AA: Webster 35, Troy 18

   Playing in its fourth straight title game, Troy broke to a 12-7 lead before the Warriors rattled off 28 consecutive points to secure the victory.

   Brandon Thurman's second TD of the game, a 2-yard run with 3:45 to go in the first half, put Webster ahead for good.

Class A: Canandaigua 17, Brewster 14

   The Braves rolled to a 17-0 lead and then held on for dear life, finally securing the victory when a Brewster pass on fourth-and-goal from the Canandaigua 9-yard line fell incomplete with 2:02 to go.

   Canandaigua QB Jon Davern was 9-for 13 for 94 yards and a touchdown.

Class B: Harrison 28, Lackawanna 26

   Sam Maldonado rushed for 284 yards and three touchdowns to end the Steelers' 37-game winning streak. Lackawanna overcame a 14-0 deficit to take a 20-14 lead in the third quarter only to see Maldonado score twice in fourth.

   The game was the rematch of the 1998 final won by Lackawanna by a 22-18 margin.

   Rodney Randolph threw 19 yards to Mike Sweeney with 3:13 remaining, but the 2-point conversion attempt failed as Harrison swarmed Lackawanna running back Joe West (19 carries, 166 yards) at the 2-yard line.

Class C: Edgemont 32, Salamanca 20

   Matt Bernstein ran 20 times for 140 yards and three touchdowns as Elmont successfully defended its championship.

Class D: Cambridge 28, Clymer 0

   Senior Ben Watrous carried 10 times for 74 yards and the game's first TD as Cambridge captured its first state championship. John Holcomb ran 13 times for 102 yards and another two touchdowns.

1998

Class AA: Troy 26, Fairport 9

   The Flying Horses avenged their loss to the Red Raiders in the 1997 final and put an end to Fairport's 19-game winning streak as QB Bob Bocketti scored on runs of 1 and 34 yards in the second half.

   A Fairport TD closed the gap to 20-9 with 2:16 to play, but Troy's Joe Halse then ripped off an 81-yard scoring run to put the game out of reach.

   Troy finished with 341 ruhing yards and 422 overall. The defense limited Fairport to 185 yards of offense.

Class A: Aquinas 33, Queensbury 16

   The Little Irish took advantage of four second-half turnovers and pulled away from Queensbury.

   Queensbury scored on its opening possession, but Aquinas responded with first-half scores by Kwynn Walton on a 63-yard run and Colby Kuhns on a 13-yard reception to take the lead for good. QB Kassim Howell ran in from the 6-yard line in the third quarter and Walton scored in the fourth on a 14-yard run to give Aquinas a cushion.

Class B: Lackawanna 22, Harrison 18

   Harrison running back Sam Maldonado scored with 7:50 remaining, but the Huskies never got the ball back again.

   Facing a fourth-and-seven play with under 5:00 to go, Lackawanna snapped to QB Charles Kowalski in the blocker position out of punt formation. He carried eight yards for a first dow that would lead to the Huskies runnng out the clock.

   Joe West ran for 135 yards and two touchdowns in the victory.

Class C: Edgemont 28, Elmira Notre Dame 27 (ot)

   Edgemont overcame a turnover at the Notre Dame 5 with less than a minute to play and won on Dylan Kushel's extra-point kick in overtime.

   It was just the second overtime contest in NYSPHSAA championship game history.

   Notre Dame took the lead in OT on Mike Meck's 12-yard pass to Dave Zeller, but the extra-point kick was blocked. Edgemont responded on its possession with a 10-yard scoring run by QB Drew Nadler.

Class D: Maple Grove 39, Lake George 6

   Senior quarterback Randall Secky threw first-half touchdown passes of 33, 7, 45 and 23 yards as the Red Dragons completed a 13-0 season.

   Josh Liddell and Mike Wilson made two TD catches apiece in the win, and J.J. Welling scored on a pair of short runs in the second half.