Middletown High School has dropped its legal fight to save a perfect football season undone by less than a minute of playing time.
The undefeated Middies were disqualified from the Section IX Class AA championship after school officials withdrew an emergency court petition Friday, ending their bid to reverse a playoff ban triggered by a 53-second eligibility violation. The Orange County, New York, squad had finished the regular season 10-0 before the technicality surfaced.
The player at issue, a kickoff specialist who had previously competed for Middletown’s soccer team, took the field for eight kickoffs during the team’s 48-15 semifinal rout of Valley Central on November 6. He never scored, yet his brief appearance — totaling 53 seconds — violated a postseason eligibility requirement because he had not met the standard for football participation.
State Supreme Court Justice Verris Shako presided over a nearly two-hour hearing at the Orange County Courthouse in Goshen before the district backed down. The courtroom drew a crowd of players, students, parents, school officials and community members, according to local reports.
“There are tough decisions that have to be made at times,” Shako said.
Middletown acknowledged its error but had argued that students should not suffer for an adult mistake, particularly given the player’s negligible impact on the outcome. The district filed the emergency petition seeking to keep its championship hopes alive.
Amy Creeden, the Middletown superintendent, spoke after the ruling against continued legal action.
“While we are deeply, deeply disappointed that we are unable to find a remedy for our young people, our hearts are with our football team and cheerleading scholars who have given so much to this remarkable football season and cheerleading season,” Creeden said.
“We pursued this matter vigorously because we believe our young people deserved our full advocacy,” she added. “We have work to do. Our focus now is on supporting them and their families.”
Creeden refused to let the disqualification erase what the team had built.
“In our hearts, our record is still 10 and 0. We are so proud of our championship team,” she said. “We are Middletown. When we get knocked down, we get back up again, and we are stronger. We cannot wait to come back next season.”
The disqualification erased a dominant semifinal performance and left the Middies on the sidelines as the playoffs continued without them.