Josh Barter put the Comsewogue football team on the doorstep to victory. His 29-yard diving catch just in bounds on a fourth-and-10 pass left the Warriors at the Hauppauge 1-yard line early in the fourth quarter. Trailing by four points, Comsewogue had four shots to take the lead.

>>Photos: High school sports -- November

Forget it. No. 3 Hauppauge stopped four straight running plays to preserve the lead in a 20-9 win over No. 6 Comsewogue Friday night in a Suffolk Division III quarterfinal playoff game before 1,300 in Hauppauge. Alex Zomerfeld was stymied on a quarterback draw on fourth and inches.

"We were pumped after we stuffed the first run and the confidence just kept building," linebacker Chris Dutton said. "Our defensive line was getting a great push and penetrating and the backers were coming up hard."

Hauppauge's defensive effort was led by junior tackle Anthony Martello and senior linebacker Jesse Marro, playing his first year of varsity football. Marro punctuated the performance with a 35-yard interception return for a touchdown with 33 seconds left.

"[Zomerfeld] looked over at the receiver and I read the pass," Marro said. "It was just a reaction."

His instinct helped seal the win.