By Kim J. Harmon

When it came to their fourth game of the 2000 season, the Nighthawks had no trouble at all with adrenaline, no trouble at all with enthusiasm, and – ultimately – no trouble at all with Brookfield.

It could have been the fact that the ‘Hawks were 2-1 and looking to win their third game (when they won just three games all of last year) or the fact that Brookfield is Newtown’s top, most hated rival.

Or, maybe it was just a phase of the moon that caused them to come charging down the back hill at the school last Saturday night more fired up than they have been all season long.

“We realized what he had to do to get into the SWCs and the states and that was to win out,”_said co-captain Matt Saunders. “We were fired up and playing with a little anger over everything that has happened to us with Brookfield.”

Their 39-0 win over Brookfield was such an overwhelming thing that it might be easier, for the moment, to boil it all down to a few bullet points that illustrate how electrifying and how emotional the entire evening became for the ‘Hawks.

+Kyle Tobin cuts inside, off tackle, and races 37 yards for Newtown first touchdown on its fifth play from scrimmage.

+Petretti tosses a little pass in the flat to Nick Savino, who scampers 41 yards down the sideline, throwing in a little juke at the two, for Newtown’s second touchdown on its 10th play from scrimmage.

+With 9:59 left in the first half, Mark Werbeck catches his first touchdown pass of the season and has to go up against two defenders in the corner of the end zone to do it.

+Matt McCarthy throws down a beautiful, bone-shattering block on a Nick Savino punt return late in the second quarter. Never mind that the play was called back because of a holding penalty, it was a highlight-reel block.

+With 13.8 seconds to go in the first half, Adam Hayden – going to his left – throws a pass on the halfback option to Nick Savino for a 16-yard touchdown pass . . . ala the New York Jets in their National Football League win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

+With 4:50 to go in the third quarter, freshman kicker Ross Coates – who tried out for the position on Friday – drilled his first extra-point as a Nighthawk. He even did it was five yards further out than normal thanks to an illegal procedure call.

+Even while ahead, 33-0, an exploding defensive charge swamps Brookfield quarterback Rick Olivia and forces a fumble . . . which Collin Anderson picks up and brings down to the one.

+Tom Ryan, kick off man and punter, gets his first touchdown as a quarterback when he sneaks a ball in from the one-yard line to put Newtown ahead, 39-0.

“I_knew we would bounced back (from the loss to Bunnell,”_said Petretti. “We didn’t play that well against Stratford, but we got the win, and then we come back and played maybe our best game.”

It was all Newtown, right from the start. Brookfield fumbled five times (the first was on the first snap of the game) in the first half and didn’t get a first down until the third quarter. Even then, the Bobcats never got closer to the end zone than the Newtown 25-yard line (and only twice in the entire game did they get past midfield).

It was similar to what Bunnell did to Newtown just a few weeks ago.

But the ‘Hawks didn’t well on it.

“We put that behind us two minutes after it was over,”_said Saunders. “You have to forget your wins like you do your losses. Every week we are going to be focussed on that one week, that one win we need.”

And so, at 3-1, the Nighthawks are tied for second in the Colonial Division of the South-West Conference and showing that their pre-season optimism had genuine merit.

“Even though we played well,”_said Petretti, “there are still things we can work on an improve.”

The ‘Hawks hope to move to 4-1 this Friday when they travel to Milford to take on Jonathan Law in a 7 pm contest.

Brookfield     0   0   0   0  - 0

Newtown      14  12   7   6 - 39

I.                          

First Quarter

I.        N – Tobin, 37-yard run (run failed)

II.       N – Savino, 41-yard pass from Petretti (Petretti run)

III.        

Second Quarter

I.        N – Mark Werbeck, 8-yard pass from Petretti (pass failed)

II.       N – Savino, 16-yard pass from Adam Hayden (kick failed)

Third Quarter

I.        N – Tobin, 37-yard run (Coates kick)

II.         

Fourth Quarter

I.        N – Ryan, 1-yard run (kick no good)

II.         

RUSHING       ATT  YDS   TD

Kyle Tobin               15     162       2

Adam Hayden            7       53       0

Jon_Werbeck              8       25       0

Rich_Petretti              3       19       0

Tom Ryan                  1         1       1

PASSING   CMP ATT YDS   TD

Rich Petretti        8       5    83       2

Adam Hayden      1       1    16       1

RECEIVING    REC YDS   TD

Nick_Savino                3      61       2

Mark Werbeck            2      23       1

Jon_Werbeck              1      15       0