BY BRIAN C. HOREY
Contributing Writer
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ONEONTA _ Lightning struck twice Saturday for the New York Stallions.
James Armstrong's 80-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter marked the first strike. The second was actually part of a colorful light show in the dark clouds above Hartwick College's Wright Stadium, prematurely ending the Stallions' 19-15 Empire Football League victory over the visiting Amsterdam Zephyrs.
"The game was called because of lightning in the fourth quarter, but a win is a win," Stallions co-owner Del Anthony said of the first victory in the history of the second-year adult football franchise. "I'm so proud of the guys, the organization and everybody who supports us. We had a great turnout.
"We did it," continued Anthony, whose team suffered through an 0-10 season as part of the Regional American Football League in 2009, when New York was outscored, 529-18. "This was a big step."
Perhaps nobody took bigger steps than Walton resident Armstrong, who scored the final touchdown with about 11 1/2 minutes left. Following an Amsterdam punt that barely entered the end zone for a touchback, Armstrong broke away on first down for an 80-yard TD run that featured several broken tackles.
"I felt that I was the fastest man on the field today," said Armstrong, who returned two kickoffs for touchdowns in New York's 37-23 season-opening loss at the Broome County Dragons on July 10. "Once I got the openings, I could break their arm-tackles."
Armstrong also helped the Stallions (1-1) take control early.
After returning the opening kickoff 23 yards up the right side of the turf field, Armstrong followed a lead block from fullback Kyle Besemer on second down for a 48-yard TD run. That led New York to a 7-0 advantage a little more than a minute into its home opener.
Amsterdam cut it to 7-6 in the opening quarter when Elijah White scored on a 13-yard run.
Besemer made it 13-6 on a run up the middle in the second quarter. A Champen-to-Champen pass _ quarterback James to receiver Noble _ went for 62 yards to set up Besemer's 4-yard TD run on first down.
The Zephyrs answered with a 74-yard TD run by Alex Heath, pulling them to 13-12, then took a 15-13 lead on a field goal with 7:12 to go in the third quarter.
The teams exchanged stalled drives before Armstrong struck for his 80-yard TD. Moments later, lightning struck, a fierce thunderstorm followed and the game was over.
"It was great block-and-tackle football and it was entertaining," first-year Stallions head coach and co-owner Tom Terry said. "We want to be competitive and we are in the right league, but most important, we want to put on a good show."
The Stallions will take that show on the road this Saturday, when they visit the first-place Plattsburgh North Stars (2-0).
Amsterdam, which played its season opener Saturday, will host New York in the regular-season finale for both teams at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 25.
