It’s a long bus ride from Mamaroneck’s Hornidge Road to Schroon River Road in upstate New York: 213 miles to be exact.

By Mitch Silver

It’s a long bus ride from Mamaroneck’s Hornidge Road to Schroon River Road in upstate New York: 213 miles to be exact. But the drive back from Warrensburg High School must have seemed a lot longer after a 38-12 thumping at the hands of Section 2’s Burghers.

Still, the beauty of a non-league opening game, even one played four hours away, is that the Black Hats are still undefeated in Section 1’s Class C. Staying that way will be the tough part.

Dom Brescia graduated in June. That’s probably all you need to know about the impact graduation has had on this football team. Was it only 11 months ago that Brescia was carrying the ball 43 times for 391 yards in a 37-22 rout of Tuckahoe? Chris Richart, and Jake Sevean aren’t around to make those fingertip catches and interceptions, and “Big Daddy” Pedro Cueto is gone as well, and those holes in the line aren’t going to open themselves.

Are the coaches down? Not a bit. Head Coach Nick Ianello and his assistant Mark Poniros are looking on the bright side. “Even though we lost some key 4-year starters, we have a lot of kids who gained a ton of experience and knowledge playing with them,” Coach Poniros told me after the game. “They’ll carry that with them into this season, and help pass it down to the younger players as well.”

On the day, Senior Frankie Capparelli completed a couple of passes for 62 yards with one interception. He also punted twice for a hefty 45-yard average. The four underclassmen running the football, Gabriel Ajram, Jack Evans, Ben Galerne, and Gio Maffei, combined for a substantial 250 yards on 24 carries, with Ajram and Evans accounting for all the Black Hats’ points. Junior Logan Spencer hauled in a 47-yard toss from Capparelli to set up one of those tallies.

On defense, senior Emilio Ayala had nine solo tackles, sophomore Pedro Peter Cueto had eight, and Galerne chipped in with seven. Two freshmen, Felipe Danza and Max Juscen, got to the quarterback for Rye Neck’s only two sacks in the game.

Coach Poniros summed up the game. “We have a team full of hardworking, dedicated kids who are very excited to play football and continue the tradition that comes along with playing for the Black Hats.”

Next up is Dobbs Ferry, which walloped Haldane 40-0 last weekend. Rye Neck will play host Saturday at 1.