Author: almusky

Cougars have it covered

Schalick girls soccer beats Haddon Twp.; Miller scores twice, Hayman gets a goalie assist and shutout

SOUTH JERSEY GROUP !
GIRLS SOCCER
Monday’s quarterfinals
Audubon 2, Clayton 0
Maple Shade 1, Pitman 0 (SO)
Schalick 2, Haddon Twp. 0
Palmyra 5, Gloucester 2
Semifinals
Maple Shade (13-4-1) at Audubon (17-1-2)
Schalick (15-4) at Palmyra (17-3)

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PITTSGROVE — Emily Miller has scored a lot of goals for the Schalick girls soccer team this year – a lot of goals – but none more important than the two she got Monday afternoon.

The senior striker banged home goals 46 and 47 to lift the Cougars over Haddon Twp. 2-0 in the South Jersey Group I playoffs. The Cougars (15-4) now play at Palmyra (14-4-2) in the sectional semis Thursday.

‘These are two very important goals that I had today,’ Miller said.

Indeed. The first goal came with 4:16 gone in the match when she settled a long punt from goalie Carly Hayman and broke in untouched. She clinched the Cougars’ seventh straight victory when she took a pass from Cali Fisler, raced against the wind and beat the keeper with 23 seconds to play.

It was Fisler’s 22nd assist this season, extending her single-season school record. Fourteen of the assists have been on goals by Miller.

“This is super exciting,’ Miller said. ‘I had low hopes for today, I’m not going to lie. I had a low mindset. I wasn’t too confident, but I put it away early and I finished it off at the end of the game.”

With 47 goals, she has more goals than half the teams in the 16-team sectional field, including two that reached the quarterfinals. Fifty goals “is on the back of my mind,” she admitted, but she won’t be too upset if she misses the mark because she already has hit her main goal – breaking the single-season school record for goals.

“I think if she continues to put her head down and do the work that she knows she can do, I think the goal tally is going to be endless for her,” Schalick coach Will Kemp said.

You might say her big season is making up for lost time. She broke her collarbone as a freshman and stayed out as a sophomore (when the Cougars won the sectional), but returned to the pitch last season and “just fell in love with (soccer) again.” But it might not be her first love. When she’s not playing soccer, she’s racing dirt bikes, and that might be her true calling.

Hayman, meanwhile, usually makes her biggest contributions in the back of the field. With her hands in a game where nobody else can use theirs.

She assisted the Cougars in another way Monday — with literally a big assist. 

The senior goalie drove a wind-blown punt well across the midline, sending Miller on a semi-breakaway. It was Hayman’s third assist this year –  first on a punt – and seventh of her career.

“Her foot has helped us multiple times in the past,” Miller said.

“I was surprised it went that far, but I was really happy I got an assist and we got a goal early on,” Hayman said. “I knew (Miller) was going to get to it and when she had it I knew she was about to score this and I was already jumping around by the time she did.”

“Carly’s a student of the game,” Kemp said. “She understands weaknesses in teams and understands how to exploit them. Her distribution skills have always been at the top, especially with her feet, and that’s one of the reasons I put her in the field in certain matches.”

Returning to her more traditional role of stopping shots, she kept the Hawks out of the net, making 17 saves in her 12th shutout and third in a row. She took a point-blank shot in the breadbasket about nine minutes after Miller’s first goal and later watched the wind blow a Haddon Twp. shot past the right post.

She was even sharper in the second half when the Hawks (8-10-2) played with the wind. She withstood several corner kicks dodged a bullet with 17 minutes left when the Hawks got one over her head and hit the crossbar. And the defensive four in front of her turned back a final threat in the last minute, with Athena Eberl making a nice sliding tackle deep in the corner to dislodge Jaylene Peebles from the ball.

The clearing ball on that play sent Miller off to her second goal.

Schalick keeper Carly Hayman plays the angle and guards the post as Haddon Twp.’s Sage Looram (24) looks to shoot. Top photo: The Hawks made sure they had multiple defenders around Cougars striker Emily Miller (9) at all times and Miller still scored twice.

This week’s schedule

Here is the high school sports schedule for Salem County teams for the week of Oct. 30-Nov. 4

FOOTBALL
Thursday
Regional Consolation Tournament
South Jersey Group I
Keansburg at Pennsville, 5 p.m.

Friday
South Jersey Group I Playoffs
Penns Grove at Woodstown, 7 p.m.

Central Jersey Group I Playoffs
Shore at Schalick, 7 p.m.
Glassboro at South Hunterdon

Saturday
South Jersey Group I Playoffs
Burlington City at Woodbury

CROSS COUNTRY
Saturday
NJSIAA Championships, Holmdel Park

BOYS SOCCER
South Jersey Group I Playoffs
Wednesday
Haddon Twp. at Schalick, 2 p.m.
Woodstown at Palmyra, 4 p.m.

GIRLS SOCCER
South Jersey Group I Playoffs
Monday
Haddon Twp. at Schalick, 2 p.m.

FIELD HOCKEY
South Jersey Group I Playoffs
Tuesday
Schalick at Middle Twp., 2 p.m.

Wednesday
Woodstown at Collingswood, 2 p.m.

Local playoff angle

In honor of this week’s Penns Grove-Woodstown playoff matchup, here are some notes and charts specifically for Salem County football

Making strides

Three of the five Salem County football teams this season have improved records over the year before with one basically a wash. Woodstown could match its 2022 record with a playoff win over Penns Grove this week. The chart tracks this year’s senior class.

TEAM
2020
2021
2022
2023
22-23
+/-		4YR
+/-
Pennsville2-53-71-85-4+4+2
Schalick0-74-67-310-0+3+8.5
Penns Grove6-36-53-85-5+2.5-1.5
Woodstown4-49-38-27-2-0.5+2
Salem6-111-28-52-8-4.5-5.5

Playoff head-to-head

Here are the records of Salem County teams in head-to-head playoff matchups since 2003.

TEAMPGSALPVLWOOSCHTOTAL
Penns Grove—2-10-11-03-06-2
Salem1-2—1-01-01-14-3
Pennsville1-00-1—1-1NA2-2
Woodstown0-10-11-1—1-02-3
Schalick0-31-1NA0-1—1-5

The Games

2022
Woodstown 45, Schalick 8

2019
Woodstown 47, Pennsville 14
Salem 31, Woodstown 6

2018
Penns Grove 40, Woodstown 6
Penns Grove 14, Salem 7

2017
Penns Grove 52, Schalick 30

2016
Pennsville 21, Woodstown 6

2014
Salem 22, Penns Grove 14
Salem 56, Pennsville 7

2013
Salem 41, Schalick 13
Penns Grove 22, Salem 17

2011
Pennsville 21, Penns Grove 14

2009
Penns Grove 14, Schalick 6

2006
Penns Grove 35, Schalick 34

2003
Schalick 7, Salem 0

The Rematches

When the playoff game is a rematch of a regular season meeting, the winner of the regular season game is 8-3, the home team in those playoff game are 8-3 (since 2003). Bold playoff team was at home

YEARREGULAR SEASONPLAYOFF GAME
2023Woodstown 21, Penns Grove 6Penns Grove at Woodstown
2019Woodstown 35, Pennsville 0Woodstown 47, Pennsville 14
2018Penns Grove 33, Woodstown 0Penns Grove 40, Woodstown 6
2018Penns Grove 26, Salem 20Penns Grove 14, Salem 7
2016Pennsville 28, Woodstown 7Pennsville 21, Woodstown 6
2014Salem 12, Penns Grove 0Salem 22, Penns Grove 14
2014Pennsville 23, Salem 19Salem 56, Pennsville 7
2013Schalick 30, Salem 18Salem 41, Schalick 13
2013Penns Grove 24, Salem 19Penns Grove 22, Salem 17
2009Penns Grove 36, Schalick 0Penns Grove 14, Schalick 6
2006Schalick 20, Penns Grove 8Penns Grove 35, Schalick 34
2003Schalick 26, Salem 0Schalick 7, Salem 0
NOTE: The 2019 Salem-Woodstown and 2011 Pennsville-Penns Grove regular season games were played after the playoff meeting

Cover photo: Woodstown and Penns Grove will mix it up for the second time this season Friday night. The first one was for the division title, this one will be to stay alive in the playoffs. (Photo by Ellen Sickler)

Historical pursuit

Woodstown advances to boys soccer sectional semifinals, Ibarra ties junior scoring record; top-seeded Schalick survives Pitman

SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I
Second-round games
Schalick 1, Pitman 0
Haddon Twp. at Audubon, Sat.
Woodstown 2, Wildwood 0
Riverside at Palmyra, Sat.

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

WOODSTOWN — Adrian Ibarra tied the school record for goals by a junior and the defense posted another shutout as Woodstown blanked Wildwood 2-0 Friday in the South Jersey Group I playoffs.

The third-seeded Wolverines now play the winner of Saturday’s Riverside-Palmyra game in the sectional semifinals.

Trips to the sectional semifinals are rare for the Wolverines, prompting coach Darren Huck to tell his players in the post-game huddle they were making history.

This might be the second time in three years the Wolverines have made it to the sectional semis, but it’s only the fifth time since 2010.

“We’ve only made the semifinals maybe three or four times in school history … so this is quite an accomplishment for the program,” Huck said. “I can think of many teams we come across (that have kept them out). For a lot of those years it was tough because Woodstown was a Group One school and we were in a division, conference where we had to beat Group Three and Four schools to get into it. A lot of times we’d get that 8-9 draw and then we get the No. 1 seed the next one.”

This one won’t be any easier to get through, either. Seventh-seeded Riverside put nine goals on Gateway in the opening round and Palmyra is the No. 2 seed that opened the season with a 12-game unbeaten streak and could be a No. 1 with an earlier win over Schalick.

“As a coach you’re never satisfied always looking for one more when it comes to playoffs; you hold onto it and treasure it as much as you can,” Huck said. “Am I proud of my players? Absolutely. We’re further along than I was anticipating. I knew we were going in a good direction, I knew we were going to be doing some really good things, but they’re being done a little sooner than anticipated.”

Ibarra (pictured) scored his 26th goal of the season with 8:07 left in the first half to put the Wolverines on top. He took a cross from Kaleb Gerace, settled the ball on his foot and fired a  precise and powerful shot inside the left post.

He tied the record set by Geoff Schaefer in 2014 and has at least one more game left to break it. But that’s not really on his mind.

“I’m all about team wins, so I’m just grateful that we’re advancing to the semifinals,” Ibarra said. “I could care less about the record as long as we’re advancing. I hope we take the title this year.”

His uncle, Oscar Hernandez, scored 29 goals in his best season at Woodstown and Ibarra would like to top that – within the framework of helping the Wolverines advance, of course.

“I would like to score more than him,” he said softly.

It looked like it would be the only goal of the game until Bryce Ayars found the net the hardest way possible, on a cross-field shot in the final minute. Ayars had been trying all half to score and nearly got one earlier on a header that went from the ground to the crossbar before finally getting his first career playoff goal on a long shot from the left side into the upper right corner.

“It’s amazing,” he said. “This is my first playoff goal ever out of my two years. Putting the game away for my team was a relief and then my coach was nailbiting all the second half with me not finishing but I finally put it in to secure the win.

“When it came down to it, man, did he put a really nice one away,” Huck said.

The win was the Wolverines’ seventh straight. The only goal they’ve given up in the streak has been in a penalty kick. Ben Stengel collected five saves in the latest shutout.

“It’s definitely my defense,” Stengel said. “We’ve got a good line this year, a very good line. We’ve got strength everywhere. They’re all doing great for me. With them in front of me, I didn’t have to do anything, really.”

SCHALICK 1, PITMAN 0: Mike Nelson headed home a free kick from Anthony Sepers with less than three minutes left in the first half and Evan Sepers made eight saves in another shutout to help top-seeded Schalick avoid the upset and advance to the sectional semifinals.

“It was very much a defensive battle,” Cougars coach Joe Mannella said. “Both teams were fighting tooth and nail to keep the ball out of the net.”

The Cougars await the winner of Saturday’s Audubon-Haddon Twp. match to complete its semifinal matchup. Haddon Twp. is the No. 13 seed that upset No. 4 Glassboro in the first round.

“We owe Twp. after several defeats to them over the past four years,” Mannella said.

Schalick has won seven in a row, the last five by shutout. They’ve only allowed one goal during the winning streak.

Intensity is the word

Woodstown field hockey ramps it up in second half, puts away Maple Shade in sectional 
tournament; Salem falls in its opener

SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I
First-round games
Haddon Twp. 3, Salem 1
Woodstown 2, Maple Shade 1
Collingswood 8, Gateway 1
Middle Twp. 6, Audubon 0
Schalick 3, Bordentown 0
Gloucester 5, Lower Cape May 0
Florence 6, New Egypt 0
Quarterfinals
Haddon Twp. at West Deptford
Woodstown at Collingswood
Schalick at Middle Twp.
Gloucester at Florence

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

WOODSTOWN — Most teams when they break it down to take their game to the field usually shout out something like their school’s name or mascot.

The Woodstown field hockey team chooses its word with purpose.

The word of the day to start the second half Friday was “intensity,” and the Wolverines brought a lot more of what they already had.

They scored both of their goals in the first 10 minutes of the third quarter to fuel a 2-1 come-from-behind win over Maple Shade in the South Jersey Group I playoffs. The Wolverines now will play at No. 4 Collingswood in the quarterfinals. Collingswood beat Gateway 8-1.

“There’s a lot behind the word intensity,” Wolverines coach Bryanna Roberts said. “The second half is when you really have to come out. Obviously you want it in the first half, but it’s now or never at this point.

“As far as the word intensity, all the girls show it and that’s the word that we use because going into that second half it’s now or never and you’ve got to work hard for it.”

It’s not like they weren’t intense in the first half. They actually dominated the play with more corners (11-1) and shots on goal (5-1), but they trailed the Wildcats 1-0.

Lexi Andrada scored on a shot from the top of the circle with 4:26 left in the first quarter to give the Wildcats the lead. Woodstown’s Megan Donelson had the tying goal disallowed by a foot foul in the goalmouth with two minutes left in the half and that seemed to inspire using the key word even more.

“It just gets us all fired up,” Donelson said.

“It really does motivate us to keep moving forward,” goal-scorer Brea DiGregorio said. “If we put that in the air, then it shows on the field.”

Shyann Higinbotham tied the game with a shot from the right side of the circle with only 1:53 gone in the third quarter. The Wolverines continued to press the attack and DiGregorio scored the game-winner with 5:33 left in the quarter. 

“I saw the ball coming towards me and I knew I had to be ready and get my stick down in order to hit it back because that was my responsibility,” DiGregorio said. “(Coming from behind) shows our grit and our toughness that we ‘re able to bring it back after they score. We responded.”

HADDON TWP. 3, SALEM 1: The Hawks took control with two goals in the first quarter, added a third before halftime and kept the Rams at arm’s length in the second half. Anna Buzby scored Salem’s goal in the third quarter.

Haddon Twp. now travels to rested West Deptford for the quarterfinals. The top-seeded Eagles drew a first-round bye.

Cover photo: Woodstown’s Taylor Predergast (6) tries to steer clear of the pressure being applied by Maple Shade’s Rachel Loomis during Friday’s South Jersey Group I field hockey tournament game.

Bryce’s big game

Top-seeded Woodstown routs Dunellen, sets up SJ semifinal rematch with Penns Grove; Red Devils edge previously unbeaten Florence for first road playoff win since 2011 and fourth in program history

SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I PLAYOFFS
Friday’s games
No. 1 Woodstown 42, No. 8 Dunellen 6
No. 5 Penns Grove 6, No. 4 Florence 3
No. 7 Burlington City 60, No. 2 Middlesex 15
Saturday’s game
No. 3 Woodbury 40, No. 6 Riverside 8
Semifinals games
Penns Grove at Woodstown, Friday, 7 p.m.
Burlington City at Woodbury

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

WOODSTOWN – The Woodstown football team got to wear its black jerseys again Friday night – this time with orange britches in honor of Halloween – and it was truly a scary sight for the visitors.

The Wolverines got a big Homecoming win when coach John Adams surprised them with the black jerseys for the first time against Salem and they worked like the charm they were again, this time in a 42-6 rout of Dunellen in the opening round of the South Jersey Group I playoffs.

“That pretty much set up the night,” running back Bryce Belinfanti said.

As if the Halloween-themed garb wasn’t scary enough, Belinfanti struck fear in the Destroyers’ defense every time he touched the ball. He scored five touchdowns, two of which covered 85 and 50 yards on successive possessions in the second quarter. He also scored on runs of 11 and 8 yards and a 24-yard pass from Max Webb.

The 80-yarder came shortly after Webb had a long touchdown run recalled by a holding penalty.

Playing just a half, he had 168 yards rushing (on only eight carries) and the TD catch was his only reception. Webb rushed for 62 yards. Alex Torres had 47 yards and their last touchdown on 10 carries.

Unlike the first time when Adams sprung the black jerseys on the players at the mid-day pep rally, this time he gave them a heads up on the color combination.

“I loved it,” Belinfanti said. “I thought it was going to be really cool. Like October 27th, black and orange, and our student section is great, so …

“I knew if we made it to the playoffs and if we were the first seed we’d probably break them out one more time. Not with the orange pants, I didn’t think. It looked pretty cool. The black jerseys had some orange on them, so it matched up pretty well.”

The Wolverines had another thing going for them. They were playing for a long-time booster and Woodstown alum Jimmy Lee Brooks who was recovering from injuries suffered in a recent car accident. Brooks, Class of ’72 and grandfather of former Woodstown captain Abu Hall, rarely missed a game, but being away for this one he requested whoever scored the first touchdown hold the ball up in salute.

Belinfanti honored the request when he scored on the opening drive and did it at least one other time in the game. It is said Brooks saw the gesture from his room in the rehab center where he was recovering.

With all that going for the Wolverines, the Destroyers, who passed Pennsville on the final weekend of the regular season for the final SJ-I playoff spot, didn’t stand a chance.

“It was a great night,” Belinfanti said. “All week we studied how their defense was going to act and what they were going to run to us. A lot of it had to do with game-planning. We knew the cutback was going to be there all night. It was a good night.”

The win sends the top-seeded Wolverines (7-2) to face fifth-seeded county rival Penns Grove (5-5) for the second time in three weeks. The Wolverines won the first meeting 21-6 to clinch the Diamond Division title, their first outright division title since 2013.

“I’m excited for it, to see how they play us differently,” Belinfanti said. “It’ll be a good game, yeah.”

Woodstown 42, Dunellen 6

Dunellen (5-4)0006 –6
Woodstown (7-2)142170 –42

Scoring plays:
W – Bryce Belinfanti 11 run (Jake Ware kick)
W – Bryce Belinfanti 24 pass from Max Webb (Jake Ware kick)
W – Bryce Belinfanti 8 run (Jake Ware kick)
W – Bryce Belinfanti 85 run (Jake Ware kick)
W – Bryce Belinfanti 50 run (Jake Ware kick)
W – Alex Torres 1 run (Jake Ware kick)
D – Chiekezie Ogbuewu 16 run (run failed)
Woodstown’s Zach Bevis and Bump Carter (71) made life miserable for the Dunellen offense Friday night. (Photos by Ellen Sickler)

PG scores rare road playoff win

FLORENCE – A lot of special things have to happen for a team to win a playoff game on the road, especially against an undefeated team with a lot of emotion and history behind it.

But Penns Grove got a lot of special things to happen. The Red Devils scored the game’s only touchdown in the third quarter and their defense was its typical unyielding self as they handed Florence its first loss in the final playoff game of Flashes coach Joe Frappoli’s 50-year tenure, 6-3.

Penns Grove coach John Emel (R) made it a point after the game to grab a picture with retiring Florence coach Joe Frappolli. (Submitted photo)

Freshman Karon Ceaser scored the game’s only touchdown on a 38-yard run on the opening series of the second half. The Penns Grove defense allowed only 82 net yards. It was the third time in four games they have allowed their opponents three points or less.

“The defense played well,” Emel said. “Once we got the lead I felt like our defense played really well. That was the difference in the game – our defense in the second half and our ability to move the ball a little bit, enough to kind of shorten the game and work the clock. We’re going to have to clean up the penalties.”

The Red Devils overcame 90 yards in penalties in the first half (including offsides on the opening kickoff) to score their first playoff road win since 2011, a 36-8 first-round win at Paulsboro, and fourth in the history of the program. It was the first of coach John Emel’s 11 career playoffs wins to come on the road.

“We’re not real happy because we played fairly sloppy, but it’s our first road playoff win as a program since 2011,” Emel said. “We’ve won some neutral games and things like that, but that’s our first road win in the playoffs.”

Ceaser finished with 77 yards rushing on 11 carries and had an interception on defense. Bryce Wright had 102 yards on 23 carries and completed a pass to Knowledge Young for 18 yards.

Emel said his players are fired up to play Woodstown again.

“It’s good,” he said. “We’ve given ourselves an opportunity to play them again. Obviously we weren’t happy with way things went last week. Usually when that happens you’ve got to wait a while, you’ve got to wait until next season (to try again). It’s hard to beat a team twice. It’s hard to beat a good team once, so we’ll have our hands full.”

Penns Grove 6, Florence 3

PGFLO
121st Downs7
37-169Rushing32-77
1-2-0Passes1-6-1
18Passing5
0-0Fum-lost0-0
5-31.8Punts3-39.3
9-93Penalties9-44
Penns Grove (5-5)0060 –6
Florence (7-1)0300 –3

Scoring plays:
F – John Dodge 32 FG
P – Karon Ceaser 38 run (run failed)








Band on the run

Schalick uses running attack, strong defense to shut down Audubon in Central Jersey playoff opener; Salem falls at South Hunterdon

CENTRAL JERSEY GROUP I PLAYOFFS
Friday’s games
No. 1 Schalick 35, No. 8 Audubon 0
No. 4 Shore 14, No. 5 Clayton 0
No. 3 Glassboro 28, No. 6 Keyport 0
No. 2 South Hunterdon 16, No. 7 Salem 6
Semifinals games
Shore at Schalick
Glassboro at South Hunterdon

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PITTSGROVE – Old habits die hard.

Whenever he was asked about it, Schalick coach Mike Wilson said the reason the Cougars invested so much time in the offseason improving their passing game was because they got exposed for the lack of one in the playoffs last year.

If you’re going to beat the better teams, especially those you’ll see in the playoffs, he said, you have to throw the football.

But two weeks after quarterback Kenai Simmons set all kinds of career highs passing the football and now in the first round of those playoffs, the Cougars were back to pounding the ground. They ran it 42 times for 269 yards Friday night and threw only five passes (completing three).

But you can’t argue with the results. They beat Audubon 35-0 for their first playoff win since 2007 and their first playoff shutout since 2003.

The undefeated top seed in the Central Jersey Group I playoffs (10-0) will now host Shore Regional (6-3) in the sectional semifinals Friday.

“It was odd because our game plan coming into this week was really to pass the ball more,” Simmons said. “We saw last year, first round of the playoffs, that’s where we failed at. We ran the ball so much and Woodstown stopped us, so we felt we had to step it up and pass the ball.

“But after we saw Reggie Allen breaking a couple plays we figured like he was hungry so let’s feed him and keep it on the ground.”

Allen led the rushing attack with 117 yards on 21 carries. He scored two touchdowns. Simmons had 98 yards, including a 60-yard dash in the fourth quarter that was more than the Green Wave rushed as a team the entire game. Levi Feeney-Childers had 44 yards on eight carries and a touchdown.

Eighteen of the Cougars’ first 19 plays were runs and they only really started throwing it on their last possession of the first half. They threw one pass in the second half, a 34-yard completion to Jake Siedlecki.

“Here’s the thing, as that game went on we threw when we had to,” Wilson said. “Last year we couldn’t do that. So it’s not the volume, it’s can we make the timely pass when you need it.

“We liked the tempo of the game, we were playing great defense, the stuff they gave us was (by) us not them; we were getting a surge all night. The gameplan was with the question mark on Kenai’s (shoulder), we’re just going to run the football this week. And then Kenai looked like his old self so the training wheels are going to come off.”

Dylan Sheehan looks back into the field after reaching the end zone on his pick-six in the second quarter. (Photo by Heather Papiano)

The Cougars’ defense also played a big role in the win. It was led by Dylan Sheehan’s one-handed pick-six and three sacks by freshman first-time starting nose Aiden Torres. 

Wilson said the Cougars were back to the form they displayed prior to the slowdown brought on by back-to-back forfeit wins in the middle of the schedule.

“It was a good, complete first-round game,” he said.

Sheehan played with a thick black cushion wrapped around his right hand to protect a fractured knuckle in his pinky he suffered in last week’s game. It didn’t hurt his chances making the interception, though, as he snared it with his left hand and used the pad to help bring it into his body.

Then he took off down the left sideline for the first pick-six of his high school career. It gave the Cougars a 14-0 lead they carried into halftime.

“As soon as it was in my hands I knew it was in the crib,” Sheehan said. 

Torres, meanwhile, had been elevated to the varsity three games ago after giving the regulars fits on the scout team and originally was used as a rotational player. He was told after last week’s regular-season finale he was going to start in the playoff game, had a whole week to mentally prepare for the biggest game of his life and made the most of his opportunity.

“First play I’m always nervous, but it wasn’t anything really big, I just had to play like I always play, do what I’ve got to do,” the 5-10, 250-pounder said, clutching a game ball in his massive hands. “It was fun. I like it. I really like it. It’s more intense, everything is more fast paced. I like it way better.”

Schalick freshman Aiden Torres (70) wraps up Audubon quarterback Breyson McCracken for one of his three sacks in his first varsity start. (Photo by Heather Papiano)

No. 1 Schalick 35, No. 8 Audubon 0

AUDSCH
121st Downs16
14-56Rushing42-269
11-22-2Passes3-5-0
100Passing46
0-0Fum-lost0-0
2-30.5Punts1-44.0
4-33Penalties7-62
Audubon (3-5)0000 –0
Schalick (10-0)014714 –35

Scoring plays:
S – Reggie Allen 12 run (Hunter Dragotta kick), 7:57 2Q
S – Dylan Sheehan 64 interception return (Hunter Dragotta kick), 6:28 2Q
S – Levi Feeney-Childers 4 run (Hunter Dragotta kick), 3:39 3Q
S – Reggie Allen 1 run (Hunter Dragotta kick), 10:15 4Q
S – Kenai Simmons 5 run (Hunter Dragotta kick), 3:07 4Q

Salem haunted by missed opportunities

LAMBERTVILLE – Salem missed several opportunities to take control of the game in the first half and it came back to bite it in the end.

Second-seeded and once-beaten South Hunterdon stopped turning the ball over in the second half and scored 16 straight points to end the Rams’ playoff dreams and first season under coach Danny Mendoza 16-6.

The Rams stopped South Hunterdon four times with takeaways in the first half, all of them setting up inside the Eagles’ 30, but had only a 6-0 lead on Jared Pew’s 13-yard touchdown run in the second quarter to show for it. The defense collected three interceptions and a fumble recovery to hold the Eagles (9-1) back. They returned one of the picks for a touchdown, but it got called back for a block in the back.

As the seventh seed in the Central Jersey Group I bracket, the Rams (2-8) were destined to play on the road throughout the playoffs. But it wouldn’t have fazed them. They played four of their previous, but were only scheduled for two before their old field was reopened after undergoing repairs.

South Hunterdon 16, Salem 6

Salem (2-8)0600 –0
South Hunterdon (9-1)0079 –16

Scoring plays:
S – Jared Pew 13 run (run failed)
SH – Ryder Manfready 14 run (PAT kick)
SH – Safety, Ramaji Bundy tackled in end zone
SH – Ryder Manfready 12 run (PAT kick)



Quick strike Cougars

Schalick’s attacking style rewarded with quick goals at the start of each half in sectional field hockey opener

SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I
First-round games
Haddon Twp. at Salem, Fri., 2 p.m.
Maple Shade at Woodstown, Fri., 2 p.m.
Gateway at Collingswood, Fri., 2 p.m.
Middle Twp. at Audubon, Fri., 2 p.m.
Schalick 3, Bordentown 0
Gloucester 5, Lower Cape May 0
Florence 6, New Egypt 0
Second-round games
Haddon Twp.-Salem winner at West Deptford
Woodstown-Maple Shade vs. Gateway-Collingswood
Middle Twp.-Audubon vs. Schalick
Gloucester at Florence

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PITTSGROVE — If you were late getting to your seat at the start of Schalick’s South Jersey Group I playoff opener or getting back to it at the start of the second half, you missed a lot of the home team’s scoring Thursday.

The Cougars came out fast at the start of each half and rode that momentum to a 3-0 victory over Bordentown.

Proving they mean business in this year’s playoffs, the Cougars scored just over a minute into the match and extended their lead with a goal 30 seconds into the third quarter.

“The girls are pumped up,” Cougars coach Heather Cheesman said. “We always try to go out with intensity and be the aggressors and have pressure on goal constantly. 

“We’ve always been a second half team, but this team’s different. This team is not like that. I’ve been coaching 10 years now and Schalick has always been a second half team, but this team is different.”

Leading scorer Phoebe Alward announced the Cougars’ presence in the playoffs. The fans sitting across the way hardly settled into their seats when the sophomore banged home a cross from Ava Scurry 62 seconds into the match. It was her 16th goal of the season, a surprising number to her that matches her jersey number.

Cheesman couldn’t ever remember scoring that quickly to open a game, regular season or playoffs.

“I was excited,” she said. “I like getting the first goal because it gets them pumped up. They were excited.”

Scurry gave the Cougars a 2-0 lead when she scored with 2:46 left in the first half. It was her 12th goal, to go with 16 assists.

“I knew this could have been our last game because the playoffs are single elimination,” Scurry said. “So I put it all out there and tried to do what was best for the team.”

Lucy Virga didn’t waste any time when the teams came out the break. She got the Cougars’ third goal being “in the right place at the right time” to bang home a rebound 30 seconds into the second half.

“Our plan is to come out really strong and just not let up after any restart,” Scurry said.

The Cougars, the sixth seed, now play the winner of today’s Middle Twp.-Audubon game at a site and date to be determined. Middle is the third seed.

Record smasher

Schalick’s Miller sets school’s single-season goal-scoring record with five in Cougars’ 7-0 win over Salem

SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT
Thursday’s games
Audubon 9, Penns Grove 0
Clayton 2, Glassboro 1
Pitman 5, Gateway 0
Maple Shade 8, Buena 0
Schalick 7, Salem 0
Haddon Twp. 6, Pennsville 0
Gloucester 4, Woodstown 1
Palmyra 9, Woodbury 0
Second-round games
Clayton at Audubon
Pitman at Maple Shade
Haddon Twp. at Schalick
Gloucester at Palmyra

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PITTSGROVE – For a player who didn’t want to be a striker, Schalick’s Emily Miller has sure made the most of it playing there.

Miller has turned into a veritable goal-scoring machine this season for the Cougars. She scored five goals Thursday in their 7-0 rout of Salem in the South Jersey Group I girls soccer tournament and set the school record in the process.

The senior now has 45 goals on the season, breaking the record of 43 set by Kerri Jackson last year. It was the second time this season she has scored five in a game.

It was her 14th multi-goal game this year and seventh with three goals or more. She has scored 23 goals in the 10 games since the Cougars (14-4) were shut out by Sterling on Sept. 29, the only game she hasn’t scored in this season.

“She definitely fell into the role,” Schalick coach Will Kemp said. “She had this inside her last year, but I think was a little timid. She had just returned last year (after missing the previous two seasons) and when one of our strikers went out for an injury we moved her there.

“She never wanted to be a striker. I told her she was going to be and she is one, and now she loves it.”

The Cougars scored their seven goals in 15 minutes.

Miller scored their first two to inch closer to the record. She tied the mark by converting a cross from Olivia Bergholz into the upper corner to make it 4-0 and then broke on the goal that made it 5-0. 

They stopped the game after she got the record-setting goal and Schalick thletics director Doug Volovar presented her the game ball on the spot. Her teammates all gave her a hug.

“It was a great, great moment,” Kemp said.

But Miller wasn’t finished. She punched in goal No. 45 moments later to make it 6-0.

The Cougars’ other two goals were scored by Cali Fisler and Karlie Bakley.

“Our girls played at the top of their game today,” Kemp said. “I was really impressed with them.”

The third-seeded Cougars will host fourth-seeded Haddon Twp. (8-9-2) in the second round Monday.

Asked if he thought his record-breaking scorer had 50 goals in her, Kemp didn’t hesitate.

“Yes, I definitely believe so,” he said.

GLOUCESTER 4, WOODSTOWN 1: Anabelle Conley scored in the first half to snap a 1-1 tie and the seventh-seeded Lions ((14-5) added two goals in the second half to put away the Wolverines, who had been unbeaten in their last six games. 

Talia Battavio scored the tying goal for Woodstown (9-8-1). It was her 15th goal of the season and 10th in the last five games.

AUDUBON 9, PENNS GROVE 0: Nine different players scored for the top-seeded Green Wave (16-1-2). Erin Connelly, Molly Sullivan and Emily Powers all had a goal and an assist. Morgan Wiltsey had a goal and two assists.

HADDON TWP. 6, PENNSVILLE 0: The sixth-seeded Hawks (8-9-2) scored all their goals in the first half with Emerson McDonald getting three. McDonald has 16 goals this season.

Passing the test

McDade connects on 20 of 23 passes, Pennsville wins consolation tournament opener to guarantee .500 season

SJ GROUP I
CONSOLATION TOURNAMENT
Thursday’s games
Pennsville 41, New Egypt 14
Keansburg 48, Manville 20

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE — Robbie McDade has worked hard this season to make himself a better passer and all that work came to a head Thursday night.

The Pennsville sophomore quarterback had one of the best passing efficiency games in program history. He completed a career-high 20 of 23 passes for a second-best 179 yards and two touchdowns in the Eagles’ 41-14 victory over New Egypt in the South Jersey Group I regional consolation semifinals.

In a game that might be an afterthought to some teams shut out of the NJSIAA playoffs, McDade and the Eagles were as sharp as they’ve been all season.

McDade was 14-of-15 passing in the first half and completed his last 11 in a row (a stretch that extended to 12 in the third quarter). He directed the Eagles to touchdowns on each of their last four possessions of the half for a 28-6 halftime lead.

Of the three passes he missed, two were dropped and the third was thrown out of bounds after he was flushed from the pocket. He had an NCAA-style passer rating of 181.03 for the game.

“I had a lot of good receivers who got open,” McDade said. “It’s a team game. The receivers did their job. Got open. I’ve just got to deliver the ball.”

And he spread the wealth. He hit six different receivers throwing a combination of mid-range possession passes and flippy shuttle tosses. Hayden Sherman caught eight balls for 47 yards. Malik Rehmer caught six for 62 yards. The touchdown passes went to Caden Thomas and Ty Young. 

“I’m just trying to throw it to the open guy and lot of people got open today,” McDade said. “The receivers did a good job.”

He’s been finding his receivers a lot lately. McDade has had a 50 percent or better completion rate in three of his last four games and has passed for more than 100 yards in every game this season. For the year he is 97-of-184 for 1,238 yards, making him the Eagles’ first 1,000-yard passer since 2019 (Blayne Swaffar, 1149 yards) and their most productive since 2017 (Brandon Morris, 1507 yards).

“He’s getting better at getting the ball to the open guy, make the easy throw, take the easy throw and let our kids try to make plays, and that’s what he did a good job with tonight,” Eagles coach Mike Healy said. “Every game he’s getting better. He had a tough game last week and he was frustrated, but with him he’s going to come back and keep working hard and fix some things, which is good.”

The win guaranteed the Eagles (5-4) a .500 season. They will host Keansburg (4-5) for the South Jersey Group I consolation final Thursday. The Titans, located on the Raritan Bay a lot closer to Yankee Stadium than Lou D’Angelo Stadium, beat Manville 48-20 in the other semifinal.

“We’re using this for kind of two things,” Healy said. “One, we want to send the seniors out right. Two, we were 1-8 last year. If we have the opportunity to keep winning and get a winning record that’s a huge improvement. We bring back so many kids also, we want to keep trying to get better.

“We came out to play. I didn’t feel like we treated it as a game like it didn’t mean anything to us. Kids were running around making plays. We had goals at the beginning of the season. We didn’t achieve them all, but still we had a bunch of goals that show our progress and that’s what we need to keep doing, so overall there was a lot of good stuff.”

Pennsville quarterback Robbie McDade got hot in the first half and stayed hot, completing 20 of 23 passes in the Eagles’ 41-14 victory over New Egypt Thursday night. (Photos by Lorraine Jenkins)

Pennsville 41, New Egypt 14

NEPVL
51st Downs23
14-43Rushing38-183
7-18-2Passes20-23-0
88Passing179
2-0Fum-lost1-0
4-25.3Punts-avg2-38.5
3-18Penalties4-35
New Egypt (3-7)6008 – 14
Pennsville (5-4)72176 –41

Scoring plays:
P – Sky Eppes 5 run (Jackson Leino kick), 6:01 1Q
N – Connor Fischer 22 pass from Caleb Kowaleski (kick failed), 3:02 1Q
P – Caden Thomas 14 pass from Robbie McDade (Jackson Leino kick), 11:50 2Q
P – Rylan Hardy 8 run (Jackson Leino kick), 6:03 2Q
P – Sky Eppes 3 run (Jackson Leino kick), 0:21 2Q
P – Ty Young 14 pass from Robbie McDade (Jackson Leino kick), 1:56 3Q
N – Lucas Burgos 4 run (Brayden Nelson pass from Caleb Kowaleski), 6:20 4Q
P – Rylan Hardy 30 run (kick failed), 1:21 4Q
Rylan Hardy (19) ran for two touchdowns in Pennsville’s victory. (Photo by Lorraine Jenkins)