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Mamaroneck football makes it three straight noteworthy wins

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MAMARONECK – The emotions were mixed.

James Fitzgerald lofted three more touchdown passes Friday, leading Mamaroneck to a 30-18 win over previously undefeated New Rochelle.

That makes three wins in a row for the Tigers, each one against playoff-level competition.

Fitzgerald, though, exited the game late with an injured finger on his non-throwing hand and Owen Koby left with a knee injury. So while Mamaroneck is in position to close out the regular season on a roll, there may be some adversity to deal with.

“It’s always big to jump back from a loss like that one,” Tigers running back Mark Lebowitz said of last month’s 34-7 setback against Arlington. “Having three games at home, taking down a couple of undefeated teams, that’s always a good thing. It’s boosted morale and giving us momentum.”

The 2026 Super 11 Section 1 football players, photographed Aug. 17, 2026: seated from left: Cameron Violante of Somers; Luke Foisset of Valhalla; Jason Crupi of Harrison; Abel Perez Rosario of Sleepy Hollow; Henry Scholes of Bronxville; Standing from left: Tristan Iglesias of Somers; Owen Elaiho of Clarkstown South; Mark Lebowitz of Mamaroneck; Luke Denvir of Rye; Charlie Brady of Rye; Theo McMurray of Bronxville.

(Seth Harrison/The Journal News)

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See lohud’s Section 1 Super 11 football players for 2026

The 2026 Super 11 Section 1 football players, photographed Aug. 17, 2026: seated from left: Cameron Violante of Somers; Luke Foisset of Valhalla; Jason Crupi of Harrison; Abel Perez Rosario of Sleepy Hollow; Henry Scholes of Bronxville; Standing from left: Tristan Iglesias of Somers; Owen Elaiho of Clarkstown South; Mark Lebowitz of Mamaroneck; Luke Denvir of Rye; Charlie Brady of Rye; Theo McMurray of Bronxville.

(Seth Harrison/The Journal News)

Mamaroneck is the defending Section 1 Class AA champion, but only a select few players on this roster played significant roles last season.

Getting this kind of experience in pressure games has to help when the playoffs kick off.

Fitzgerald had time and space before dropping a pass into the hands of Sam Mehler for a 45-yard touchdown with 5:15 to go in the first half, giving the Tigers a 14-6 lead. The defense shut out the Huguenots for the next 22 minutes, allowing Fitzgerald to drop back and build a 28-6 cushion.

“In that loss to Arlington, so many things went wrong,” Mamaroneck linebacker Jack Jacobson said. “We really tried putting that one behind us and kept reminding each other nobody was coming to save us. We’re all we’ve got, so we put in the work and really focused on communication. We’re getting each other fired up and playing as hard as we can each snap.”

Mamaroneck's Sam Mehler catches a touchdown pass against New Rochelle in a football game at Mamaroneck on Oct. 9, 2026.
Mamaroneck’s Sam Mehler catches a touchdown pass against New Rochelle in a football game at Mamaroneck on Oct. 9, 2026.

Player of the game

Fitzgerald had success running the ball, too, but the chemistry he’s got with this group of receivers is really impressive.

Takeaways

Tigers coach Anthony Vitti was not entirely pleased with the execution in this game, but was quick to praise his team’s recent stubbornness.

“I’m proud of the kids,” he said. “We knew this part of the schedule was a gauntlet and knew week in and week out we were going to be in a battle. We had a really bad showing a couple of weeks ago, but we didn’t overthink it. We’re young and we had to figure things out. We looked at what we did wrong, essentially everything that night, and made the corrections. The kids worked really hard to get themselves into this spot.”

New Rochelle hasn’t been in a game with this level of importance for years, so it was a learning experience. Mamaroneck was in front early, but the Huguenots answered in a hurry and were difficult to get off the field in the first half. Twice failing to convert on fourth down just outside the red zone proved costly. The inability to pressure Fitzgerald was a problem, as well.

The Tigers were extremely reserved after the game, knowing the injury to Fitzgerald could quickly change the outlook late in the season.

“It lowers the happiness level,” Lebowitz said. “But you move forward, pray for your teammates, lift them up and get back at it next week.”

New Rochelle's Samuel Sesay tries to get past Mamaroneck's Charlie Zmuda in a football game at Mamaroneck on Oct. 9, 2026.
New Rochelle’s Samuel Sesay tries to get past Mamaroneck’s Charlie Zmuda in a football game at Mamaroneck on Oct. 9, 2026.

Next up

Mamaroneck (4-2) heads for Yonkers for a 1:30 p.m. game on Saturday, Oct. 17. New Rochelle (3-1) has to regroup on the fly and get ready to host North Rockland on Saturday, Oct. 17 at 1 p.m.

Scoring

First quarter

Mk: James Fitzgerald 9-yard pass to Nick Laboy (Sam Mehler kick).

NRo: Jason Salera 5-yard run (kick failed).

Second quarter

Mk: Fitzgerald 45-yard pass to Mehler (Mehler kick).

Third quarter

Mk: Fitzgerald 11-yard run (Mehler kick).

Mk: Fitzgerald 20-yard pass to Everett Shea (Mehler kick).

Fourth quarter

NRo: Malachi McFarlane 29-yard pass to Luke Zaccagnino (kick failed).

Mk: Safety. Charlie Zmuda records sack in the end zone.

NRo: McFarlane 27-yard pass to Ethan Parnell (pass failed).

Mike Dougherty covers high school football for The Journal News/lohud. Follow along on Instagram @hoopsmbdlohud.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Mamaroneck football makes it three straight noteworthy wins

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