By Laura Amato
For the Bayside football team, it was just a case of missed opportunities.
The Commodores couldn’t capitalize on a handful of prime chances and that cost them a chance at a championship, as the squad fell 16-6 to top-seeded Truman in the PSAL bowl semifinals Sunday.
“We played really well. We came in and I liked our game plan and our effort,” said Bayside coach Jason Levitt. “We had a big drop at the beginning and a couple of drops throughout the game. Missed opportunities.”
The squads exchanged possession throughout much of the first half, but Bayside felt as if it left points on the field throughout the opening 24 minutes of play.
The Commodores (9-3) converted on a fourth-and-one late in the first quarter, but fumbled the ball on the play, losing yardage and turning it over on downs. Sadeeq Nathanel picked off Tequan Evans in the end zone on Bayside’s ensuing possession and the Commodores turned the ball over on downs at their own 39 with just over a minute left in the half.
That miscue set up the first Truman touchdown of the day—a one-yard touchdown by Trevor Carson with 20.8 seconds on the clock.
“I knew we needed that touchdown so we could get some momentum back,” Carson said. “So that run was a little scary for me, but I knew we needed it. It was just tunnel vision of me getting into the end zone.”
Bayside came out of the break with some brand-new life, however, marching down the field on the arm of Evans and feet of Jonathan Cato. Evans capped off the nine-play, 77-yard drive with a 15-yard touchdown dash, getting the Commodores within two.
That momentum didn’t last long.
Jabari Anderson padded Truman’s lead on the very next snap, returning the ensuing kickoff 78 yards for a touchdown and the game’s final score. It was the first time the junior had ever lined up on the Mustangs’ kick return.
“Without that we’re looking at a completely different ball game,” Truman coach John-James Shepherd said. “[Anderson’s] a junior that has not been a deep man in the return yet and we knew he had the jets, we just wanted to see what would happen.”
Bayside was never able to quite recover after the return, but it wasn’t for lack of trying. Nathaneal Faison recovered a Truman fumble midway through the fourth quarter and Cato picked off Mustangs’ quarterback Justin Harris with 1:58 left in regulation.
It was too little, too late, though, and the Commodores weren’t able to find the end zone before the final whistle.
“I think we held our own, for sure, they just made more plays than us,” Levitt said.
It was a difficult end to an otherwise solid season for Bayside and, despite the final score, the Commodores felt like they limited Truman on offense. In the end, it was simply about missed chances and could-have-beens.
“It’s going to be very tough when we watch [the film,” Levitt said. “You see the drops and things in the game. It’ll be tough to watch.”
