ADAMS — Amherst Regional football coach Chris Ehorn Jr. had to be happy seeing Berkshire County in the rearview mirror of the team bus. Two games into his first year as coach, and Berkshire County teams have had their way with the Hurricanes.

Hoosac Valley flexed its muscles Friday night at Renfrew Park. The Hurricanes in red and white responded from its season-opening defeat by scoring 30 unanswered points against visiting Amherst and went on to win 36-16, in a battle of the Hurricanes.

Four Hoosac players scored touchdowns in the game. Sophomore backup quarterback Vance Eugene scored two on runs of 27 and 10 yards.

The big run of the game came in the fourth quarter when Matt Hall scampered 73 yards for a touchdown. Hall ran the ball for 87 yards in four carries, nearly double what the Amherst Hurricanes did on the ground in 27 attempts.

“Two tough games in a row,” Ehorn said. “It was a good test for our team.”

For the Hurricanes from the Pioneer Valley, it is farewell to Berkshire County teams for a while. Amherst lost to Wahconah last week and have been outscored by Berkshire teams 71-22 in two games. Amherst will play one more, Monument Mountain, on Sept. 30.

But for a team that is rebuilding, a game like this can be used as a measuring stick for the future.

“It’s a little tough,” Amherst quarterback Miles Foerster said of opening with Hoosac and Wahconah. “We’re a small team but we’re playing strong. We’re going to hit harder next week.

“I hope our team can kick it in gear.”

The high point for the Pioneer Valley Hurricanes came on a 75-yard touchdown drive that spanned the first and second quarters.

Hoosac led 6-0 after a 27-yard scoring run by Eugene. Amherst took the kickoff with 9:19 left in the first quarter and aided by a costly Hoosac penalty, held the ball for the next 13 minutes of elapsed time, before Foerster (8 of 15, 146 yards, 1 interception) hooked up with Will Budington on a 17-yard touchdown pass. The 2-point conversion gave Amherst an 8-6 lead, coincidentally with 9:19 left in the half.

“We were excited. We believe in our offense and we believe in our quarterback Miles. He’s a great player,” said Ehorn. “He led us down and scored. We were feeling really good at that point.”

Hoosac got the ball back on its 27. Eleven plays later, David Critelli scored on a 1-yard run. Hoosac converted two third-down plays on the drive, one on a 10-yard run by Brendan Ellsworth on the Amherst 27.

Following a three-and-out by Amherst, Hoosac went 64 yards in the final minute of the second quarter. Eugene scored on a 10-yard run and Hall ran in the 2-point conversion. That made it 20-8. Amherst didn’t get on the board again until the waning minutes of the fourth quarter.

Three Hoosac runners gained 80 yards or better. Seven Hoosac players ran the ball, and there was only one negative play — a 6-yard sack against Waterman.

Amherst didn’t get on the scoreboard again until Foerster scored on a 3-yard run with 4:34 left in the game. The conversion made it 36-16, and Hoosac just ran out the clock.

Amherst was outgained 365 yards to 194. Amherst ran the ball 27 times for only 48 yards. Several of Foerster’s completions were after scrambling to keep plays alive.

The first-year coach and his team have a date with Turners Falls next week.

Hoosac Valley 36,
Amherst Regional 16

By HOWARD HERMAN

For the Gazette

First quarter

H—Vance Eugene 27 run (Run failed), 9:24.

Second quarter

A—Will Buddington 17 pass from Miles Foerster (Foerster run), 9:19.

H—David Critelli 1 run (Run failed), 3:05.

H—Eugene 10 run (Matt Hall run), 0:05.

Third quarter

No scoring

Fourth quarter

H—Steve Stojda 21 run (Stojda run), 8:52.

H—Matt Hall 73 run (Brendan Ellsworth run), 7:08.

A—Foerster 3 run (Steven Steele Pass from Foerster), 4:34.

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING—HV: Matt Hall 4-87, Vance Eugene 6-85, Brendan Ellsworth 9-58, Steve Stojda 9-84, David Critelli 4-15, Nick Waterman 1-(minus-6), Maxwell Shafer 2-6. A: Miles Foerster 10-33, Marcus Suom 11-14, Will Buddington 5-1, Dimitris Son 1-0.

PASSING—HV: Waterman 3-4-1 36. A: Foerster 8-15-1 146.

RECEIVING—HV: Hall 3-36. A: Buddington 4-73, Steele 2-48, Isaiah Rodriguez 1-6.