AHOSKIE – Hertford County pulled off a big upset last week.

That win now behind them, first-year Head Football Coach Diego Hasty has his team focused on the next task at hand.

This week the Bears play their first game at home during the 2007 season as they welcome Southern High School from Durham.

Hasty said he hadn’t been able to learn much about Southern, but his main concern either way was focusing on Hertford County getting better.

“I’m trying to get us better at the things we do,” he stressed. “We’ve been going back over call and making sure we understand our assignments.”

Defensively, the Bears got two huge interceptions, one returned for a touchdown and the other setting up a score.

“We didn’t look like a polished machine, but I want to get a little better,” Hasty said. “We’ve moved some folks around on offense and defense to help us out.”

As the Bears come home Friday, the coach said he would be keeping an eye on how his young team responds to playing in the friendly confines of Bear Stadium.

“We played one on the road and handled ourselves well,” he said. “Now we have to see how we respond at home in what is not going to be an easy battle.”

Hasty said his team wouldn’t have to make a long road trip like they did to Winston-Salem a week ago, but would have to get ready for playing in front of the home crowd.

He said one of the important components would be getting crowd support from the fans.

“We play the games for their support,” he said. “We want the families and friends of these young men to come out and support them.

“This is Hertford County High School,” he added. “We’re going to try to keep the tradition going.”

Hasty said he wanted his team to continue to improve this week and that it wasn’t as important for any one player to step up as it was for the entire group.

“I want everyone on the team to step up another notch,” he said. “Everybody contributed last week, but I am seeking even more out of them this week.”

The Bears will welcome Southern at 7:30 p.m. Friday night.