Season Preview: Bonac Football Is Back In Division III, Boys Golf Looks To Keep Recent Success Going Despite Losing Key Player

Ready or not, here come the Bonackers.

The East Hampton/Pierson football team is set to partake in its first Division III season since 2011, and while head coach Joe McKee would have liked numbers to be a little bit better going into the fall — he should have 24 players at his disposal this weekend when the season opens — he likes the talent his team is returning.

That returning group is led by All-County quarterback Charlie Corwin, a junior who will also play safety on defense this season. Finn Byrnes, a running back/linebacker, is also returning, along with tight end/linebacker Will Darrell, lineman Richie Maio and wide receiver/linebacker Danny Lester — all seniors now who were All-Division a year ago. Aryan Chugh is another key returning senior and will help out on the outside on both offense and defense.

The Bonackers went 2-6 in Division IV last season and at times, largely in their two victories, looked like a program that had finally seen the fruits of its labor paying off, fighting back from a two-year absence among the varsity ranks to finally being a competitive program once again. East Hampton petitioned multiple times to remain in Division IV and was denied each time, but McKee said it’s time to move forward regardless.

“So far, so good,” he said last week. “We definitely have some talent coming back. Our offensive line is pretty decent. Our problem is our depth. Numbers aren’t great. We’ve got 24 kids right now. One or two injuries and we could be in a little bit of trouble. But the senior leadership that those guys have been providing at camp has really made our team that much better.”

East Hampton is being eased into Division III with an opening matchup against a familiar opponent in Wyandanch — another team that moved up from Division IV — which it will face this Saturday, September 10, in Wyandanch at 1:30 p.m. The Warriors are no pushover by any means and have typically fielded athletic and competitive teams recently. But the Bonackers did defeat them last season, 35-12, on their home field in a game that was close until the second half. The victory in Wyandanch last season also marked the first time since 2015 the Bonackers posted a multi-win season.

A week later on September 17, East Hampton will have its homecoming game and host Rocky Point at 6:30 p.m. McKee thinks his team can be competitive with the Eagles, but it’s after week two where things start to get considerably more difficult. The Bonackers play at Westhampton Beach, their highest ranked opponent, on September 23, and will face another tough team in Half Hollow Hills West on October 22.

The East Hampton boys golf team is a year removed from a significantly successful season, winning the League VIII and Conference IV titles before placing second in Suffolk County behind perennial powerhouse Ward Melville. A pair of Bonackers — James Bradley and Nico Horan-Puglia — qualified for the New York State Golf Championships, but only one from that pair returns this fall.

Bradley, who tied with Jack Breutsch of Center Moriches for third place in the county last season, a year after winning the county title, transferred to a golf academy in Florida in January and then recommitted to the same academy earlier this summer and will therefore not play for the Bonackers this season. But East Hampton head coach Rich King feels that even with the big loss of Bradley, and with Carter Dickinson sitting the season out due to an injury he suffered playing baseball in the spring, his team still has enough coming back to compete among the top teams in League VIII, and beyond.

With Bradley out of the fold, Horan-Puglia is seemingly the top golfer on the team, but he’ll have competition from within. Trevor Stachecki, J.P. Amaden, Juan Palacios and Egan Barzilay are all returning with years worth of varsity experience and will be a formidable group for fellow East End teams such as Pierson/Bridgehampton, Southampton and Westhampton Beach, all of which make up League VIII, along with Center Moriches and William Floyd.

“All of the guys played on the team basically when they were in middle school so they all have the experience of playing in county tournaments. A couple of them even played at states,” King said. “I’m confident with the group that we have.”

King said there is a strong group of freshmen, three or four, who are vying to fill the remaining two spots in the starting lineup. But the goals remain the same, he said — win a league title and compete for a county championship.

The Bonackers open the season this Thursday, September 8, against Center Moriches at Rock Hill Golf and Country Club in Manorville at 4 p.m.

The East Hampton boys cross country team lost 10 of its runners to graduation at the end of last season. That group included two-time state qualifier Evan Masi and another talented runner in Amari Gordon.

After graduating so many runners, the team has understandably gotten extremely young with only three seniors on this year’s team. But head coach Kevin Barry said the team will be led by its three juniors this fall in Mikey Gilbert, Liam Fowkes and Brayan Rivera, all of whom have years of varsity experience under their belts by now. Barry said one of those three seniors, Isaiah Robins, will also be a key contributor. Overall, Barry said numbers are good with 24 coming out for the team and a strong freshman class that he said he’s still learning about in the early goings.

After going undefeated and winning the League VI title last season, East Hampton has moved up to League V along with another strong East End school in Westhampton Beach. Both, Barry said, have a shot at claiming this year’s league title. He also mentioned that if both stay undefeated throughout the season it will make for an interesting finish with both teams facing each other in East Hampton in the regular-season finale on October 18. The Bonackers open their season at homecoming, September 17, at the high school, against Hills West at 1:30 p.m.

Almost the entire East Hampton girls cross country team that placed second in League VI, third in Division III and fourth in Suffolk County overall, returns this season led by a pair of now juniors in Dylan Cashin and Ryleigh O’Donnell. Emma Hren was the only runner to graduate. Emma Tepan, Brianna Chavez, Zion Osei and Riley Miles are all returning as well. Head coach Diane O’Donnell said three new girls have joined the team to make up a roster of 10.

East Hampton was moved up to League V and will have to compete with the likes of Westhampton Beach, Rocky Point, Half Hollow Hills West, Islip and Wyandanch.

“I feel the girls are coming into the season very strong, and I’m looking forward to this year’s competition,” O’Donnell said.

The Bonackers have their first meet of the season scheduled for this Tuesday, September 13, against Hills West at Sunken Meadow State Park in Kings Park at 4:30 p.m.

After being eliminated in the first round of the Suffolk County Class A playoffs by Wyandanch, the East Hampton boys soccer team saw 16 players depart for graduation. Only four starters return from last season, according to head coach Don McGovern. That includes senior forwards Eric Armijos and Michael Figueroa, who McGovern is looking to provide leadership to the large group of younger players making the transition from junior varsity to varsity. Junior midfielders Gary Gutama and Brian Tacuri also played significant minutes the past two seasons and will be expected to make an impact this season as well.

“We have a very nice group of players who are learning fast and improving each day and coming together as a unit,” McGovern said.

Thanks to a longstanding push by former Athletic Director Joe Vasile-Cozzo, there are many sports that are geographically placed and that seemed to affect boys soccer quite a bit when compared to the other fall sports. Specifically for East Hampton, it won’t have to make long trips out to Amityville, Kings Park or Elwood/John Glenn during the regular season. The Bonackers will play in League IV this season which includes Bayport-Blue Point, Comsewogue, Eastport-South Manor, Hampton Bays, Miller Place, Mount Sinai, Sayville, Rocky Point, Shoreham-Wading River and Westhampton Beach.

“We are placed in the new geographical league alignment which will see us playing some new opponents and some old ones as well,” McGovern said. “Not really sure if the league placement helps us or not, as I think all our opponents are quality teams and every match will be difficult, but we will not be traveling as far as some of the past years for league games. We are looking forward to an exciting season of growth and maturity on the part of all the boys.”

East Hampton opened the season with a 4-2 nonleague loss at William Floyd on August 31 and is scheduled to play its home opener this Saturday, September 10, in another nonleague contest against Jericho at 2 p.m.

The East Hampton/Pierson/Bridgehampton girls swim team is returning much of its talent that led to a 4-1 League II season, a 5-2 overall mark and second place in the League II Championships before Camryn Hatch represented the Bonackers at the New York State Swimming Championships. It’s possible they have even more talent.

Jane Brierley, who didn’t compete for the Bonackers last season, is returning and will certainly add a punch to the lineup after being just a few years removed from being a state qualifier herself. With sophomores Ava Castillo and Lily Griffin also returning, and freshman Lylah Metz adding depth to the team by swimming the 500-yard freestyle, East Hampton could be looking at an even more successful season than last.

East Hampton head coach Craig Brierley said his swimmers set team goals and the coaches help facilitate those goals, which include hopes of a league title, for at least one relay to qualify for states and even more individuals to qualify.

“My hope for the team this season continues to be for the girls to be inspired to learn what it takes to be their best,” he said. “They will be challenged every day both in and out of the pool. This season’s team has a lot of talent, and if they compete to what they are capable of then the season will be a success.”

East Hampton is scheduled to host its season opener, a nonleague meet against Connetquot this Tuesday, September 13, at the East Hampton YMCA at 5 p.m. After a pair of nonleague away meets, Bonac will return home September 29 and host West Babylon in its League III opener at 5 p.m.