By Skip Pearlman
In the first night game played at Hammond Field, the third-quarter elation of the Beacon High team turned to disappointment in overtime.
The Bulldogs held a late 21-7 lead on Pearl River on Oct. 5 but fell to the Pirates, 28-27.
Beacon (1-5) tied the game at 7 in the second quarter when Manny Garner broke loose for a 69-yard touchdown run, after which freshman quarterback Jason Komisar led a textbook two-minute drill capped by a 30-yard scoring pass to Dakota Salter to put Beacon up 14-7 at half.
After recovering an onside kick to open the third, Beacon drove again and went up 21–7 on another Garner run.
But Pearl River (5-1) responded by scoring twice in the fourth.
In its first overtime possession, Pearl River scored a touchdown and added the point-after kick for a 28-21 lead. The Bulldogs scored on an 8-yard run from Garner, but the extra point was blocked.
“This loss is probably one of the toughest of the season,” Coach Jim Phelan said. “The kids came out on fire, the crowd was great, everyone was fired up. It was a heartbreaker. I felt for the seniors.
“At the end of the game, they were just a little stronger than us,” he said. “They executed at the end, and we didn’t. That’s the first extra point we’ve had blocked all year. I wanted to go for two, but there was a little confusion, and I never should’ve put us in that position.
“Ultimately that was on me. But they played great, probably the best we’ve played all year.”
Komisar had 87 yards and a touchdown on 15 attempts, Garner had 145 yards and three touchdowns on 19 carries, and Salter had two catches for 43 yards and a touchdown.
Quazir Hayes had 35 yards receiving and also had an interception, and Joe DeCandia, Santino Negron, Trey Dinio, George Pinckhardt, Jaskar Castillo and Sean Austin all played solidly on defense, according to Phelan.
The Bulldogs have no game this week, but will play two more, with the opponents to be determined.
