Porters suffer second blowout loss to start football season

No one claimed that Greenport/Southold/Mattituck’s return to varsity football would be an easy transition.

The Porters have dropped their first two games of the Suffolk County League IV season, including a 34-8 home-opening loss to Elwood John Glenn on Thursday night, Sept. 10.

There was little doubt that the Knights, who scored all their points in the first half, dominated the game.

Greenport (0-2), however, felt progress has been made, small things that fans might not necessarily notice, since losing its season opener at Hampton Bays, 39-6, on Sept. 4.

“Another physically tough game,” head coach Bo Olshefsky said. “John Glenn’s a very good opponent, a storied program. They were very fast and physical. We turned it again as we caught on to the speed of that team. Come the second quarter we were driving the ball good on offense. A lot of guys had some really good carries. On defense we were flying around as much as possible swarming the ball, making good clean tackles.”

Senior quarterback Brayden Kruk, who scored the Porters’ lone TD, agreed.

“We played a good game, no matter what the scoreboard said,” he said.

“We played a lot better than we did last week, especially the second half,” Kruk said. “We had a great second half. We were tackling, we were playing great on defense. Our offense came together later in the first half.”

The Knights (1-1) grabbed a 21-0 first quarter lead. Four plays after the opening kickoff, junior running back GJ Cook ran for a nine-yard touchdown. Freshman Will Locke converted the first of four extra points. Senior quarterback Grayden Abeshire passed to Cook for a 27-yard TD and junior running back Keith King added a nine-yard TD run. Wide receiver Ethan Tar scored on a 50-yard pass play before Jayce Boyle-Summers scampered 58 yards on a punt return for a 34-0 advantage.

Kruk culminated a 16-play, 75-yard drive with a nine-yard TD run as time expired in the first half. He also ran for the two-point conversion.

“I dropped back,” Kruk said. “No one was really open. They had good coverage. I just took it up the middle of the field where they were spread out.”

As the game went on, the Porters appeared more comfortable and improved.

“We try our best,” senior offensive and defensive lineman Alex Felakos said. “We’re a small team, a new team. There’s only a few of us seniors. We try to help as much as we can with the younger guys. We always feel like underdogs. That always gives us some fire to play.”

Felakos lauded the team’s chemistry to get through difficult times.

“As soon as something bad happens, as soon as we see something wrong, we talk to each other, fix it,” he said. “Who messed up? Who didn’t do their job? And if they need help, we’ve got their back.”

Due to a running clock in the second half, 31 plays were run from scrimmage.

Olshefsky praised several players.

“Alex Felakos played a great game at defensive end,” he said. “He has great tenacity for the ball. He did a great job getting those shifty running backs, forcing them back inside. Markus Kruszeski was again, a very good cover man on the defense. His kick return game was tremendous. Namiah Santacroce running the ball. I applaud the special teams. That’s aspect of football that often gets often overlooked but it is the third side of the ball.”

Two sophomores were sidelined: Running back Owen Edgett watched most of the game with his left arm in a sling after suffering an undetermined injury and lineman Kevin Gonzalez was unable get back up after a Glenn onside kick in the first quarter. He was taken by ambulance to Stony Brook Eastern Long Island Hospital.

“We haven’t had the exact word of the diagnosis at the hospital,” Olshefky said. “We just know that he is in health care right now and he’s doing fine.”

The Porters will get a two-week break from the schedule, giving them an opportunity to improve on both sides of the ball. They were scheduled to play at Port Jefferson on Sept. 19, but the Royals cancelled their season. Their next game is at Center Moriches on Sept. 26.

“We use that time wisely… we don’t dilly dally in practice,” Felakos said. “We work hard, and I hope that reflects in the coming weeks.”