Ardsley Relishes Homecoming in Emotional Win

Published 4 weeks ago4w ago • Bookmarks: 296

Ardsley defense swallowed up Valhalla ball carrier. (photo by Matthew Doherty)

October 11, 2025

By Tom Pedulla—

Ardsley capitalized on its only true home game this season by rattling off 28 unanswered points in a 28-14 win against Valhalla on Friday night.

The defending state Class B champions responded to the bright lights and the buzz created by the opening of their new home field by fashioning a strong all-around performance led by talented quarterback Lucas Kaplan and electrifying running back Ahmady Dolcine.

Support our Sponsors

“It’s been a long time coming,” coach Dan DiFalco said of the new facility. “I’m excited. It gets the community excited. The younger kids see this and it builds momentum and they want to play here in the future. Hopefully, it’s going to keep the program moving in the right direction.”

The highly anticipated Homecoming game, played before an overflow crowd that chanted “Ardsley Panthers!” throughout the brisk autumn evening, provided the seniors with memories they will cherish forever.

“It’s a great environment to play in, to play for your friends and family,” said Kaplan, in his final season.

Dolcine, also a senior, said, “It means everything. It’s Homecoming.”

The 3-2 team has endured the misfortune of having to play its first four games on the road while work continued on the new field. Two other games, designated as “home” games, will be played at Edgemont High School to allow for the installation of a track around the field.

The circumstances surrounding this season have dealt a difficult hand to a hard-working group that accomplished so much. DiFalco did not attempt to hide his disappointment.

“It’s frustrating. It’s frustrating for them and frustrating for me,” he said. “To have this here and play on it and get it shut down and pulled away from us is not ideal. But we still have football to play and we’ll go around the corner and use someone else’s facility and hopefully get some wins over there.”

While fan support will surely follow the team, these Panthers have been forced to become road warriors, not exactly a formula for success. “It’s always nice stepping out of your school and playing on a field like this,” DiFalco said.

With emotions running high, Ardsley did not initially respond well to the long-awaited home game. The Panthers went three-and-out after the opening kickoff while Valhalla (2-3) drove 50 yards on its first possession to take a quick 6-0 lead.

It was only a matter of time, though, before the Panthers found their groove. Kaplan’s 15-yard scoring run caused the new lights to flash early in the second quarter and the first of Cillian Reid’s four extra points followed.

A botched Valhalla punt gave the Panthers a huge break, allowing them to take over at the Vikings’ 6-yard line with 8.7 seconds left. That was enough time for Kaplan to roll left and make a nifty pass to his right that senior tight end Jonah Christie snagged in the end zone.

Ardsley controlled the second half as the offensive and defensive lines asserted themselves. The offense sometimes resorted to the Panthers’ version of the “Tush Push” made infamous by the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles. Evan Matt, Robert Sanchez, David Tselnik, Tristen Roberts, Christie and Jack Calkins were among those who crowded together to overpower the defense.

“We’ve been doing it for a couple of years and it’s been working well for us,” DiFalco said.

The importance of Dolcine’s hard running cannot be overstated. “We said, ‘We’re just going to run the ball and that’s how we’re going to win this game and we did it,” the coach noted.

There was no panic after the rough beginning. “Our guys always rally,” Kaplan said. “We never dip our heads and we have each other’s backs.”

With the only true home game behind the Panthers, where will the road ahead lead? Dolcine is optimistic.

“We know what we have here,” he said. “We’re going to keep grinding and keep pushing until we get our results.”

Read or leave a comment on this story...

Support our Sponsors