Beacon–Port Jervis: How Do You Beat Them Twice?

Beacon at Port Jervis • Friday, October 16 • 7 p.m. • Glennette Field

This is going to be a hell of a matchup.

Beacon is 6–0. Port Jervis is 4–2, has scored 89 points across its last two games and is getting another important piece back into its offense. The Bulldogs bring an unbeaten season into Glennette Field. The Raiders bring the standard every Class B challenger has to confront.

This has the look of a potential Class B championship preview. Friday can tell us plenty about the first meeting—and what a second one might demand.

Austin Mack gives Beacon another problem

Port has Austin Mack back at receiver, and he wasted no time scoring in his first game back.

Mack has experience in important games. His return gives Port Jervis a staple at receiver—a viable outside option Beacon has to account for alongside the run game led by Amato Natale. Natale is also a target in the passing game, and having Mack back gives the Raiders another way to challenge a defense committed to stopping the run.

Beacon has to prepare for both. It cannot focus on Natale and the ground game without accounting for Mack at receiver.

That matters against a Port team coming off a 56–7 win over Red Hook. The Raiders already had momentum. Now the passing game has another familiar option heading into its biggest remaining Class B test.

Beacon gave us the defensive response we wanted

We questioned Beacon’s defense after New Paltz scored 34 first-half points in the Bulldogs’ 63–34 win. Beacon shut out the second half, then followed with a 49–6 win over defending Class B champion Saugerties.

That is the response we wanted to see. The next question is whether Beacon can carry it into Port Jervis, against an offense with Mack back in the picture.

The common opponent makes the comparison interesting. Port blanked Saugerties 33–0. Beacon scored 16 more points against the Sawyers, winning 49–6. Port allowed fewer; Beacon scored more. Those results give us talking points, but Friday gives us the direct answer.

Win the first meeting. Be ready for the second.

The preparation has a similar feel to Middletown–Newburgh in Class AA. If you believe you could see this opponent again with a championship on the line, the question grows: how do you beat them twice?

First, you still have to win Friday. But every adjustment also teaches the other sideline something. Which matchups hold up? What can the defense take away? What happens when the opponent has seen your best answer and gets another chance to prepare?

Port Jervis clinches a playoff place with a win in KOT845’s qualification calculation. The Raiders enter 3–0 in Class B; Beacon is 4–0 and has already secured its place. A Port win makes those records 4–0 and 4–1. A Beacon win moves the Bulldogs to 5–0 and leaves Port 3–1.

The head-to-head result matters for seeding, but a championship rematch still requires both teams to get there. Friday settles this meeting and changes the class race; it does not settle the entire bracket.

For Beacon, it is a chance to bring its unbeaten start into Glennette Field and make a direct statement. For Port, it is a chance to show that Class B still runs through the Raiders.

Seven o’clock Friday. This one deserves your attention.

Beacon–Port Jervis Game Center → · Class B standings · Series history

More Week 6 coverage

Coach I’s picks for all 21 games → · Who can clinch this weekend → · Section IX in the state rankings → · Complete Week 6 guide →