Sports

Football: Playoffs begin today for Riverhead, SWR

ROBERT O'ROURK PHOTO  |  Riverhead senior Jeremiah Cheatom powered the Blue Waves' offense on the ground Saturday against Newfield.
ROBERT O’ROURK PHOTO | Riverhead senior Jeremiah Cheatom leads the Blue Waves against Half Hollow Hills West today

No team in Division II has won back-to-back county championships since Bellport in 2005 and ’06. This afternoon, the Riverhead Blue Waves will take the first step toward becoming the first team to accomplish that feat since the Clippers.

The Blue Waves enter the playoffs today as the No. 1 seed in a deep division that features eight quality teams in the postseason. Look no further than today’s opponent, eighth-seeded Half Hollow Hills West. The Colts finished 5-3, have won their previous four games and have averaged 36.5 points per game over that span. The Colts ended the season with a 28-21 victory over West Islip, the No. 4 seed in the playoffs and a possible second-round matchup for Riverhead.

Today’s game kicks off at 1 p.m. at Coach Mike McKillop Memorial Field.

The Blue Waves will once again turn to junior Ken Simco at quarterback. Senior Cody Smith will miss another game with an eye injury, coach Leif Shay said. Other than that, the Blue Waves should be back to full strength. Jaron Greenidge is expected to play today and Shay said there are no off the field issues preventing any players from starting today.

Follow the News-Review on Twitter for updates throughout the game.

Meanwhile in Division IV, the Shoreham-Wading River Wildcats will open the playoffs today at home against No. 5 Center Moriches. The Wildcats closed out the regular season 6-2 and will host a playoff game for the second straight year.

The Wildcats did not face Center Moriches in the regular season.

The top two seeds in Division IV both won Friday night. Undefeated Babylon rolled over East Hampton, 53-8, and No. 2 Mount Sinai hung on for a 20-14 victory over Greenport.

A win today would send the Wildcats to Babylon for the second round, unless No. 6 Bayport-Blue Point can defeated No. 3 John Glenn. That would send the Wildcats to Mount Sinai to face a team they already beat this year.

Check back tonight for full coverage of both games.

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