Colonials celebrate delayed homecoming

This year’s homecoming celebration looked a little bit different due to the weekend’s nor’easter, but it was nevertheless a fantastic show of William Floyd spirit that began with the pep rally and dance, culminating with the William Floyd varsity football team defeating Brentwood 42-21 in their first home game of the season!

The Colonials got off to a hot start at Monday’s rescheduled homecoming game, as senior quarterback Matt Taiani connected with senior Derek Glock for two long touchdowns in the first quarter to put the Colonials up 14-0. The second quarter belonged to senior Christian Hobson, who caught a 26-yard touchdown pass and recorded a 40-yard pick six to send the Colonials into halftime with a 28-0 lead. In the second half, it was sophomore Da’Vonte Medlock’s turn to shine, as he recorded a 73-yard touchdown and a 34-yard touchdown to help the Colonials put the finishing touches on an eventual 42-21 win that improved their season record to 2-1.

Matt Taiani finished the game with 183 passing yards and three passing touchdowns while Derek Glock finished the game with 155 receiving yards, two touchdowns and an interception on defense. Da’Vonte Medlock also had a dominant showing on the ground with 173 yards rushing and two touchdowns while the defense was bolstered by senior Brooklyn Cox, who recorded 11 tackles and a sack, and senior Gavin Blankenship, who recorded 8 tackles and one tackle for loss.

Prior to the game, the homecoming celebration officially got underway with Friday’s annual pep rally and homecoming dance. At the pep rally, an electric crowd of William Floyd High School students cheered on their favorite student-athletes, witnessed incredible performances from the WFHS Pep Band, drumline, cheerleaders and Rockettes, got free t-shirts from the WFHS Robotics Team’s t-shirt cannon and were introduced to this year’s Homecoming Court. The crowd also had the unique opportunity to find out who was voted the 2026 Homecoming royalty at the conclusion of the event.

Congratulations to Matthew Danielsen (king) and Jayla Thomas (queen), as well as Christian Jones (prince) and Ashlee Bautista (princess).

Other Homecoming Court nominees included: Jaden Miller, Greg Ross, Derek Glock, Wendell Thelot, Jake Rivera, Matt Taiani, Kenny Ochoa, Ryan Murtha, London Barnes, Tessa Pedersen, Amani Handa, Angelina Diaz, Gianna Mertens, Anabel Van Cott, Lydia Van Cott and Mia Ashton.

In addition to their recognition at the pep rally, the 2026 Homecoming Court will also partake in a traditional halftime ceremony alongside their families during the varsity football team’s next scheduled home game on Saturday, October 17 against Walt Whitman.

Thank you to everyone who helped make homecoming special despite the challenging weather conditions and congratulations to the Colonials on a dominant homecoming victory!