Salem sophomore Parsley reaches 1,000-yard plateau with big game against Pennsville, Rams win fifth straight 52-12
FRIDAY’S GAMES
Salem 52, Pennsville 12
Woodstown 45, Pitman 10
By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News
PENNSVILLE — The countdown started sometime between the first time he touched the ball and the middle of the second quarter.
After Cashmir Parsley broke off another long touchdown run that was called back by a penalty the whispers started along the sidelines. How many yards does he need, what’s he got now, the players would ask the man with the clipboard.
They all wanted their teammate to get 1,000 yards before the end of the regular season. Parsley wanted it, too.
The sophomore needed 198 yards going into Friday’s regular-season finale to join the elite rushing club. He got it and then some — rushing for a career-high 239 yards and three long touchdowns — in leading Salem to a 52-12 win over Pennsville to continue the Rams’ second-half surge.
Parsley is the Rams’ first 1,000-yard rusher since junior Daviyonn Jackson went for 1,245 yards in 2023 and the youngest in more than 15 years records are available.
“It was a big improvement from last season,” Parsley said. “Last season I only had 468 (yards) and I just worked all summer to get to this goal.
“My goal coming into high school was to break the school record in total yards. I put in more work this season to try to break the single-year record.”
That’s a lofty goal. The Rams’ single-season record is Jonathan Taylor’s then state record 2,815 in 2016.Taylor had 4,632 yards rushing in his four-year Salem career.
He didn’t waste any time going after it. The first time he touched the ball, on the Rams’ first offensive snap, he went 52 yards for a game-tying touchdown. He also scored on runs of 24 and 33 yards. He had a 51-yard touchdown run reduced to a six-yard gain by a penalty and he went over 1,000 on a 72-yard burst up the middle that didn’t quite reach the end zone late in the fourth quarter.
“My goal coming into the game was get 1,000 before the regular season was over,” he said. “In the beginning of the year I heard that we weren’t capable of having a thousand-yard rusher, so I took that very personally. That was my mind set coming into this game.”
The five-game winning streak is the Rams’ longest since they won six in a row in 2021. They’ve won 12 in a row in the series with the Eagles.
This story will be updated.
Salem 52, Pennsville 12
| SAL | PMHS | |
| 17 | 1st Downs | 12 |
| 25-334 | Rushing | 11-(-33) |
| 6-10-1 | Passes | 11-25-1 |
| 74 | Passing | 184 |
| 0-0 | Fum-Lost | 2-2 |
| 1-28.0 | Punts-Avg | 3-26.3 |
| 13-142 | Penalties | 12-98 |
| Salem | 8 | 22 | 16 | 6- | 52 |
| Pennsville | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0- | 12 |
SCORING SUMMARY
P-Jake Layfield 2 run (kick failed), 8:09 1Q
S-Cashmir Parsley 52 run (Desmund Thomas run), 7:57 1Q
S-Cashmir Parsley 24 run (Desmund Thomas run), 11:52 2Q
S-Myshon Barnes fumble recovery in end zone (run failed), 11:39 2Q
S-Safety, snap out of end zone, 3:12 2Q
S-Desmund Thomas 1 run (pass failed), 59.8 2Q
P-Lucas Thomas 13 pass from Jake Layfield (pass failed), 10.5 2Q
S-Cashmir Parsley 33 run (Cashmir Parsley run), 9:49 3Q
S-Desmund Thomas 13 run (Desmund Thomas run), 4:58 3Q
S-Adrian Alleyne 7 run (run failed), 2:54 4Q
