Harborfields - The East Hampton football team wasn't about to put up with another lost season. It was too good, too experienced, and too tired of ending up on the short end in Division III. On Thursday, the Bonackers took another step in the right direction by knocking off Harborfields 19-7, keeping their record spotless at 2-0.

Unbeaten Bonac takes the road once again next weekend, squaring off against 0-2 Miller Place on Saturday (1:30 p.m.). The teams last locked horns in 2006 with the Panthers prevailing 31-7. East Hampton has certainly been on a roll, particularly dating back to last year when a young squad matured in the first half of the season and came into its own late. Bonac has won five of its last six, including wins over Eastport-South Manor, Harborfields and Wyandanch last fall.

"We're just trying to come out and get better and better every week," Head Coach Bill Barbour, Jr. said. "We want to walk off the field a better team than when we came on. We're doing that."

Senior Nick Jarboe and the Bonackers rumbled to 2-0 on the season with a 19-7 win at Harborfields.

The scoreless tie was broke in a flash during the first quarter on a 74-yard touchdown run by senior quarterback Austin Heneveld. He started up the middle of the field and then kicked it out to the left, storming down the sideline for the game's first score. In last year's 7-0 win at the same site, Heneveld's 5-yard TD pass to Andrew Foglia represented the only score of the game. The loss knocked the Tornadoes from the unbeaten ranks.

"He's tremendous," Barbour said of his senior QB, who is bound for the U.S. Naval Academy. "He knows our offense – he's been running it for three years. He's a true leader, he's very elusive and he makes good decisions."

Bonac's special teams unit blocked a Harborfields punt for the second straight year, and this time it results in a touchdown. Joe Dowling of Pierson darted around the right side of the Tornado line and batted down a kick inside the Harborfields 10. Chris Gamble fell on the loose ball in the end zone for the day's second score at the 7:22 mark of the second quarter. East Hampton's defense stuffed the Tornadoes on a 4th-and-2 at the Harborfields 40, six plays later, Heneveld faked a hand-off and rushed 9 yards to build a 19-point halftime lead.

The Bonackers would have benefited from building on their three-possession lead, but Harborfields' defense stood strong. The Tornadoes didn't find the end zone until Nick Fessenden hauled in a 31-yard touchdown pass from Ed Hagenmiller with less than two minutes gone in the fourth quarter. Heneveld recovered the ensuing onside kick, but East Hampton fumbled away the ball. Harborfields' last-ditch effort stalled when Hagenmiller's fourth-down pass fell incomplete with 2:27 remaining.

In contrast with their come-from-behind win over Eastport-South Manor last week in which the Bonackers scored 21 unanswered points in the second half to win 28-21. The final points came on a 79-yard touchdown pass from Heneveld to Brendan Mott with less than two minutes left.

"One of the things that we tell them is that they always have to learn from the situation," Barbour said. "We tell the guys to try to learn something new every day. Last week, we learned the lesson about starting slow. This week, we learned the lesson about not smelling blood in the water and finishing. Hopefully that's something we take away from this game that we learn from so the next time we're in a situation where we have the opportunity to seal the deal we'll do it."

Pierson's Joe Dowling rose to the occasion by blocking a punt in the second quarter that led to a score and making play after play from the left side of the defensive line.

Baymen Put Up 40-Plus For Second Straight Week
Stony Brook - If the Hampton Bays football team hadn't put in all the practice time, all the time in the weight room and all the hours studying film, the story would almost seem too good to be true. The way they've played the in back-to-back 40-point drubbings the past two weeks, the Baymen are turning everyone into believers.

Their latest triumph came at Stony Brook on Thursday night as they racked up 28 first-half points en route to a 47-7 thrashing of the host Bears. It took Hampton Bays until mid-October to pick up its first victory last season; through two weeks, the Baymen have already doubled that total.

Oskar Ramirez and Hampton Bays tallied 40-plus points for the second straight week, this time posting 47 against Stony Brook.

"We spent a lot of time in the off-season talking about where we needed to be, as a program and as individuals," Head Coach Mike Oestreicher said. "I think what's transpired with us, as ridiculous as it sounds, is we just got tired of losing. I see that in my kids. They're just not willing to come out and let people push the around. They've got fight, they don't back down. It's been a long time since we've been a viable candidate like this. It's a growing experience. I think we're moving in the right direction."

Aaron Besch scored three of his four touchdowns in the first half, all of them coming through the air courtesy of quarterback Robbie King. Besch hauled in a 24-yarder to put Hampton Bays up 6-0 on the second play from scrimmage. After an interception, John Havens scurried in from 9 yards out to put the Baymen up two scores following the King to Dylan Flynn two-point conversion.

Lightning struck twice in the final minute of the first half. First, Robbie King rolled to his right and found Besch deep for a 64-yard score; King did pay the price, getting the wind knocked out of him by two defenders as he threw, but the Baymen QB returned to the field moments later after Flynn recovered a Stony Brook fumble deep in the Bear zone and calmly tossed a beautiful fade to Besch in the back right corner of the end zone with no time remaining.

Both the offense and defense had made their impact on the game; midway through the third quarter, the special teams chimed in. Punting from its own end zone, Stony Brook's kick was blocked, and the man of the hour – Besch – fell on it just inside the end line for a 35-0 lead. The Bears answered with a long pass play to break Hampton Bays' season-opening shutout streak at 77 minutes, 14 seconds, but the Baymen closed out the scoring column with two fourth-quarter tallies – a King keeper from 1-yard out and then a Flynn 4-yard plunge in the waning moments.

John Havens takes a pitch around the left side and leaves the defense in the dust.

Not to be outdone, the Baymen defense forced seven Stony Brook turnovers, three of which led to touchdowns. That figure doesn't include a pair of fourth-down stops in the first half, both coming inside the Hampton Bays 20-yard line.

"One of the things about being a football coach is you're never happy," Oestreicher said. "They know that. They love it, they relish it right now. They know we'll have a checklist of what we need to get better at and what they did right. They know what they did right."

It marked the third consecutive game that Hampton Bays scored 40 points – it also wrapped up the 2008 campaign with a 40-6 win over crossover foe Eastport-South Manor. The loss ended a two-game skid against the Bears, including a 42-30 defeat at their hands last Oct. 3. Oestreicher said the biggest change on the Hampton Bays sideline isn't in strategy or personnel but in the team's growth mentally. The Baymen take their brimming confidence back for their home opener on Friday, Sept. 25, under the lights against McGann-Mercy.

Southampton, Westhampton Eke Out Victories
A winless September put Southampton in a rut a year ago; this time, the Mariners wanted to make sure they nipped the ill feelings from a season-opening loss to Babylon right in the bud.

Southampton evened its record at 1-1 on Thursday with a 10-6 victory over host Wyandanch. A year ago, another dramatic battle ended up in the Mariners' favor as they prevailed 22-20 on Senior Day in Southampton.

Patrick Tuths carried the ball 17 times for 72 yards and a 2-yard score that provided the winning margin for the Mariners. They had taken a 2-0 lead when Todd McElrath blocked a Wyandanch punt and Southampton capitalized with a safety. The score remained that way until the second half when Tuths broke through for the Mariners' first offensive touchdown of the season; in their 47-6 loss at Babylon last week, Onajja Browning returned a kick 88 yards for a touchdown for the team's only tally. A two-point run by Duke Pettaway put Southampton ahead by 10.

Although the defense gave up a long pass play that broke the shutout in the fourth quarter, it nevertheless wreaked havoc on the Wyandanch attack. Tuths and Malcolm Williams each recorded a pair of sacks while Isaiah Thomas registered a team-high nine tackles as well as an interception.

After two long road trips, Southampton finally returns home for its opener against Mount Sinai. The Mariners have dropped three straight against the Mustangs dating back to their 14-13 win on the road during the magical 2005 campaign. Southampton has won five of its last seven games, including the final two in '08 against Wyandanch and crossover opponent Deer Park.

Westhampton was locked in a scoreless tie with Rocky Point for four quarters before finally breaking through in extra time. On the first play from scrimmage in overtime, quarterback Cory Schulz escaped pressure in the pocket and roared 20 yards into the end zone, giving the Hurricanes a 7-0 win over the Falcons.

The Hurricanes, who bowed to Deer Park in their opener, evened their record at 1-1 behind a stout defensive effort. Offensively, Antonio Garcia rumbled for 78 yards on 15 carries to lead the team; Vance Schindler ran for 42 yards and registered 28 yards receiving. Schulz rushed for 34 himself. He was also 6-for-14 for 66 yards through the air.

Westhampton returns to the field on Friday when it pays a visit to Islip, which is coming off a 35-7 loss to Hills West. It plays at Miller Place the following week before a clash with East Hampton at home on Oct. 9.