Unofficial (but generally pretty accurate) UPR rankings has Penns Grove holding the final spot in the South Jersey Group I playoffs heading into final regular-season game; official list has Red Devils 20th
By Riverview Sports News
Penns Grove’s hopes for a spot in the Group I football playoffs may not be as far off as the final nine minutes of its game Saturday at Woodbury might have led one to believe.
In the South Jersey Group I power ratings updated Sunday by Gridiron New Jersey, the official supplier of the state’s UPR rankings that determine the 16-team playoff brackets, the Red Devils were No. 20, one full UPR point behind current No. 16 Audubon. The outlet noted its rankings would change “slightly” when it finalizes Strength Index Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the Central Jersey Sports Radio index, which has been one of the most accurate unofficial UPR sources, has the Red Devils in a more favorable position. It lists them at No. 16, four-tenths of a point ahead of No. 17 Highland Park.
The Red Devils (1-7) wrap up their regular season Saturday at winless Salem (0-8) and will have to win the game to at least meet the minimum wins qualification for playoff consideration.
Their position looked strong early in the second half Saturday. They grabbed a nine-point lead early in the third quarter and carried it into the fourth. They held a two-point lead with less than six minutes to play, then misplayed a punt and fumbled a pitch that led to Woodbury touchdowns.
Woodstown, Schalick and Pennsville all seem safely in the field. If Pennsville gets in, it will be the Eagles’ first playoff appearance since 2019.
Here are the rankings according to the two groups:
SJ Group I power ratings
TOP 16
(as of Oct. 20)
SCHOOL
RECORD
POWER PTS
OSI
UPR
Glassboro
7-0
12.00
57.08
2.4
Woodstown
7-0
11.57
61.83
3.0
Shore
7-0
13.71
45.61
3.4
Paulsboro
6-2
11.81
48.65
4.0
Schalick
5-3
10.13
49.7
5.4
Haddon Twp.
5-1
11.58
41.19
6.2
Riverside
6-2
12.13
38.32
8.0
Middlesex
6-2
11.38
40.13
8.2
Burlington City
5-3
10.50
39.67
9-2
Pennsville
4-4
8.44
40.94
10.4
Woodbury
3-4
7.71
42.88
10.8
New Egypt
5-2
8.86
38.67
11.0
Manville
6-2
9.25
37.35
11.8
Clayton
4-2-1
8.00
34.00
16.8
Pt. Pleasant Beach
4-3
7.71
35.68
16.8
Audubon
2-4
7.83
34.78
17.0
20. Penns Grove (1-7) 18.0, 21. Salem (0-8) 19.4. Source: Gridiron New Jersey
PROJECTED PLAYOFF MATCHUPS (Based on current standings) SOUTH JERSEY Glassboro vs. Audubon Middlesex vs. Burlington City x-Paulsboro vs. New Egypt x-Schalick vs. Manville CENTRAL JERSEY Shore vs. Clayton Haddon Twp. vs. Woodbury Riverside vs. Pennsville Woodstown vs. Point Pleasant Beach x-Schalick jumps Paulsboro based on head-to-head
CENTRAL JERSEY RADIO RANKINGS South Jersey Group I Top 16 1. Glassboro, 2. Woodstown, 3. Shore, 4. Paulsboro, 5. Schalick, 6. Middlesex, 7. Haddon Twp., 8. Riverside, 9. Burlington City, 10. Woodbury, 11. Pennsville, 12. New Egypt, 13. Manville, 14. Clayton, 15. Audubon, 16. Penns Grove.
If this scenario remains, Penns Grove would play Glassboro or Woodstown in the first round of the playoffs, depending on who wins that game Friday night.
Leyman has game of his life, plugged in at quarterback, throws 4 TD passes, picks two, returns one for TD, in Woodstown rout of Salem; Woodbury dulls Penns Grove’s playoff hopes with late rally
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
SALEM — Garrett Leyman has played a lot of games in a Woodstown uniform over the years, but he’s never had a game like he did Saturday.
The senior was responsible for five touchdowns on both sides of the ball as the Wolverines took it to Salem 42-13 to remain unbeaten and set up a WJFL Diamond Division title game at Glassboro next week.
Pressed into action as the Wolverines’ third quarterback this season Leyman threw four touchdown passes on the only varsity passes he’s ever thrown in his life. Then on defense he intercepted two passes and returned one of them for a touchdown.
Leyman threw two touchdown passes to M.J. Hall (55 and 48 yards) and one each to Bobby Donahue (49) and Rocco String (5). The first two completions gave him a passer rating of 866.80 and curiously it dropped with each successive completion. His 4-for-4 for 157 yards and four TDs total netted him a passer rating of 759.70 for the game.
If he isn’t somebody’s dot-com Player of the Week either the voting is flawed or nobody’s paying attention.
“After last week we faced a lot of adversity, I knew I needed to step up,” said Leyman, who was more of a run threat when he last played quarterback in eighth grade. “Coach chose me to play in Jack’s (Holladay) position, so I knew I had to go out and perform and I did.
“I wasn’t expecting it to go how it did, but I was confident going into today. It felt amazing.”
The Wolverines were into their third quarterback after losing starter Holladay to a sprained left shoulder in the first half of last week’s game at Haddon Heights. JV quarterback Lucas Fulmer played the rest of the game and completed the 17-8 victory.
It was the Fulmer’s first varsity action and while the backup checked all the boxes in his relief appearance it was Leyman’s experience and familiarity with the offense that led Trautz to start him against the Rams. Leyman was told he’d be playing quarterback Monday and had all week to prepare himself.
“He’s played a million football games for us; he’s just football smart, he’s got great football IQ and we can trust him in these situations,” Trautz said. “We know that he’s going to make the right decisions and you saw today. He commanded this offense, he was able to run it fully and he shined. It was nice to see him spin it.
“I’m not the least surprised with what he did today. He’s just a great player and he doesn’t back down from the moment. He elevates his game when the lights start shining the brightest.”
The Wolverines used a sanitized version of the playbook for Fulmer last week, but Leyman had full reign of it this week.
“We were going to run our offense the way we run it and take what they give us and we did a good job executing it,” Trautz said.
Salem moved the ball through the air, too. They immediately answered Woodstown’s first touchdown, working the ball downfield through a series of possession passes.
Rams quarterback Troy Carey was 12-of-15 in the first quarter and finished the game 25-for-35 for 241 yards and touchdowns to Kaden Robinson (5) and Terrance Smith (16). Robinson caught seven passes for 53 yards. Smith caught four for 103.
“It was just trusting our receivers, trusting them to make plays, putting the ball in their hands,” Carey said. “We work on certain plays every week just working to get better at things that affect our craft and just finding open men reading the defense.”
The win sets up a titanic battle of unbeatens between Woodstown and Glassboro Friday night. Whether Leyman gets the call again at quarterback depends on Holladay’s status during the week. Both Trautz and Holladay are hopeful of a return at some point this season.
Players on the Glassboro roster believe the Wolverines will be treating the showdown as “their Super Bowl” because of the recent history in the series; the Bulldogs beat them twice last year, once in overtime and once in the Group I state semifinals. The Wolverines, however, are approaching it, as usual, as any other game.
“It’s Week 8 for us,” the usually understated Trautz understated. “We’re going to attack it like we attack every week and we’re looking forward to the challenge next Friday.”
NOTES: Woodstown’s other touchdown was Bryce Belinfanti’s weekly long run, this one going for 94 yards … String’s TD catch was the first of his career … Salem had thrown only 78 passes in their first seven games. The 35 passes and 241 yards Cater threw for Saturday were the most by a Rams quarterback since 2022 when Jahki Coates threw 29 passes against Woodbury in 2022 and for 245 yards against Pleasantville. His game passer rating was 136.70 … The Rams will be looking to avoid their first winless season since 2012 (0-10) next week against Penns Grove.
Cover photo: Woodstown senior Garrett Leyman (10) rolls out in his first career start at quarterback. Leyman threw four passes – all for touchdowns.
Woodstown 42, Salem 13
WOOD(42)
SAL(13)
7
1st Downs
19
15-203
Rushing
17-31
4-4-0
C-A-I
24-35-2
157
Passing
241
1-1
Fum-lost
1-1
1-58.0
Punts
1-38.0
6-58
Penalties
3-35
Woodstown (7-0)
14
21
7
0-
42
Salem (0-8)
7
0
0
6-
13
SCORING SUMMARY WO-M.J. Hall 55 pass from Garrett Leyman (Jake Ware kick), 9:26 1Q S-Kaden Robinson 5 pass from Troy Cater (Andrew May kick), 2:21 1Q WO-Bobby Donahue 49 pass from Garrett Leyman (Jake Ware kick), 2:01 1Q WO-M.J. Hall 48 pass from Garrett Leyman (Jake Ware kick), 9:29 2Q WO-Garrett Leyman 33 interception return (Jake Ware kick) WO-Bryce Belinfanti 94 run (Jake Ware kick), 35.6 2Q WO-Rocco String 5 pass from Garrett Leyman (Jake Ware kick), 9:32 3Q S-Terrance Smith 16 pass from Troy Cater (kick failed), 9:12 4Q
Woodstown receiver M.J. Hall races towards the end zone with one of his two touchdowns catches Saturday. (Photo by Ellen Sickler)
Late miscues spoil PG upset bid
WOODBURY — KaRon Caesar’s 68-yard touchdown run on Penns Grove’s first play of the third quarter gave the Red Devils a nine-point lead and hopes for playoff contention. They carried that lead carried into the fourth quarter, but Woodbury took advantage of late Penns Grove mistakes to score three touchdowns in the final nine minutes to hand the Red Devils their sixth straight loss, 37-23.
Tim Holmes’ 34-yard touchdown pass to Jason Solomon cut Penns Grove’s lead to 23-21 with 9:06 left and then the mistakes set in for the Red Devils.
Penns Grove had Woodbury stopped later in the quarter but mishandled a punt and the Herd recovered at the 30. Holmes ran for 20 yards, then Marquis Taylor ultimately scored from 2 yards out to give the Herd their first lead since the game’s opening drive, 29-23 with 2:49 left.
Solomon iced the game with a 10-yard scoop and score with a fumbled pitch.
Caesar rushed for a career-high 228 yards with touchdown runs of 73, 14 and 68 yards.
Had the Red Devils held on, they would have earned their second win of the season with a shot for a third and possibly a playoff spot against struggling Salem next week. They currently hold the 20th spot in the South Jersey Group I power rankings that should be updated Sunday.
Woodbury 37, Penns Grove 23
Penns Grove (1-7)
7
9
7
0-
23
Woodbury (3-4)
7
7
0
23-
37
SCORING SUMMARY WO-Marquis Taylor 4 run (Fabian Gonzalez kick) PG-KaRon Ceaser 73 run (Tre Brown kick) PG-KaRon Caesar 14 run (Tre Brown kick) WO-Marquis Taylor 30 pass from Tim Holmes (Fabian Gonzalez kick) PG-Safety, QB tackled in end zone PG-KaRon Ceaser 68 run (Tre Brown kick) WO-Jasuan Solomon 34 pass from Tim Holmes (Fabian Gonzalez kick), 9:06 4Q WO-Marquis Taylor 2 run (Marquis Taylor run), 2:49 4Q WO-Jasuan Solomon 10 fumble return (Elijah Young pass from Marquis Taylor)
WJFL Standings
DIAMOND DIVISION
DIV
ALL
Glassboro (1)
4-0
7-0
Woodstown (2)
4-0
7-0
Schalick (5)
2-2
5-3
Woodbury (11)
2-2
3-4
Penns Grove (20)
0-4
1-7
Salem (21)
0-4
0-8
NOTE: Number in parenthesis is South Jersey Group I UPR power ranking through Oct. 19
FRIDAY’S GAMES Glassboro 20, Schalick 10 SATURDAY’S GAMES Woodbury 37, Penns Grove 23 Woodstown 42, Salem 13 NEXT WEEK’S GAMES FRIDAY Woodstown at Glassboro, 6 p.m. Woodbury at Schalick, 6 p.m. SATURDAY Salem at Penns Grove, noon
PATRIOT DIVISION
DIV
ALL
Camden Catholic (NPB-3)
5-0
7-0
Paulsboro (4)
5-1
6-2
West Deptford (G2-14)
3-2
4-4
Pennsville (10)
2-3
4-4
Audubon (16)
1-4
2-4
Collingswood (G2-18)
1-4
3-5
Overbrook (G2-23)
1-4
3-4-1
NOTE: Number in parenthesis is South Jersey Group I UPR power rankings through Oct. 19 (G2-Group 2, NPB-Non Public B)
FRIDAY’S GAMES Pennsville 35, Lawrence 8 Camden Catholic 55, Collingswood 0 Paulsboro 18, West Deptford 12 SATURDAY’S GAMES Overbrook 34, Audubon 6 NEXT WEEK’S GAMES THURSDAY Paulsboro at Clayton, 6 p.m. FRIDAY Collingswood at Pennsville, 7 p.m. Overbrook at West Deptford, 7 p.m. Camden Catholic at Audubon, 7 p.m.
SJ Group I power ratings
TOP 16
(as of Oct. 20)
SCHOOL
RECORD
POWER PTS
OSI
UPR
Glassboro
7-0
12.00
57.08
2.4
Woodstown
7-0
11.57
61.83
3.0
Shore
7-0
13.71
45.61
3.4
Paulsboro
6-2
11.81
48.65
4.0
Schalick
5-3
10.13
49.7
5.4
Haddon Twp.
5-1
11.58
41.19
6.2
Riverside
6-2
12.13
38.32
8.0
Middlesex
6-2
11.38
40.13
8.2
Burlington City
5-3
10.50
39.67
9-2
Pennsville
4-4
8.44
40.94
10.4
Woodbury
3-4
7.71
42.88
10.8
New Egypt
5-2
8.86
38.67
11.0
Manville
6-2
9.25
37.35
11.8
Clayton
4-2-1
8.00
34.00
16.8
Pt. Pleasant Beach
4-3
7.71
35.68
16.8
Audubon
2-4
7.83
34.78
17.0
20. Penns Grove (1-7) 18.0, 21. Salem (0-8) 19.4
PROJECTED PLAYOFF MATCHUPS (Based on current standings) SOUTH JERSEY Glassboro vs. Audubon Middlesex vs. Burlington City x-Paulsboro vs. New Egypt x-Schalick vs. Manville CENTRAL JERSEY Shore vs. Clayton Haddon Twp. vs. Woodbury Riverside vs. Pennsville Woodstown vs. Point Pleasant Beach x-Schalick jumps Paulsboro based on head-to-head
Glassboro uses three big pass plays early to seize control, then shuts down Schalick in second half to remain undefeated; Pennsville crushes Lawrence to enhance playoff hopes
FRIDAY SALEM COUNTY FOOTBALL Pennsville 35, Lawrence 7 Glassboro 20, Schalick 10
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
PITTSGROVE – Every season when the West Jersey Football League schedule comes out the history buffs on the Schalick coaching staff, of which head coach Mike Wilson is a big one, start looking for that one game the Cougars call their “Stalingrad game.”
It’s the kind of game the Cougars look to play in close quarters and wait for their opponent who likes to play in the open field to become impatient.
Sometimes, though, the best laid plans just aren’t enough against superior forces. Instead of getting caught up in the Cougars’ “Rattenkrieg,” Glassboro played “Bombs Away” Friday night.
The Bulldogs hit their hosts with three big pass plays in the first half to either set up or score touchdowns to seize control of the scoreboard in an eventual 20-10 victory that kept them undefeated and sets up a presumptive WJFL Diamond Division title game next week with Woodstown.
“That was 100 percent the game plan, to shorten the game, the only thing we didn’t do, we gave up three big plays – again,” Wilson said. “We didn’t change anything. We stayed patient the entire game. No unnecessary risks. It came down to three big plays, which we coached all week. We just didn’t execute.”
In hopes of frustrating the Bulldogs (7-0) into making a mistake, the Cougars (5-3) wanted to play a ball-control style of offense, picking up three and four yards at a time, to chew up a lot of game clock and play field position. It’s the same approach they took when they played in Bulldogs in last year’s 20-0 Central Jersey Group I title game.
Glassboro beat the strategy Friday by holding the Cougars to a three-and-out on the opening possession and then connecting on a 52-yard pass from Kristopher Foster to Mekhi Parker on its first offensive play of the game. The bomb set up Kenny Smith’s 4-yard touchdown run seven plays later to open the scoring.
Later in the half, Foster connected on a 70-yard touchdown pass to Amari Sabb on the first play of the second quarter and a 63-yard scoring strike to Xavier Sabb 3:41 before halftime to make 20-3. Foster was 4-of-7 for 187 yards passing in the first half and threw for 206 yards in the game.
“We trust the players we’ve got,” Glassboro coach Timmy Breaker said. “We knew they were going to load the box. On film they blitz, blitz, blitz, blitz, blitz, so we came out to take a shot first play of the game.”
Xavier Sabb’s touchdown catch was a thing of beauty. He turned in one direction on the pattern to counter the cornerback, Foster put the ball on his other shoulder and Sabb twisted back in midair to catch it and go.
“I really closed my eyes, honestly,” he said. “I just trusted my hands. I knew he was going to dive at me so I picked my legs up and it was over after that.”
“Special kid, special talent and you’ll see a lot of that from him,” Breaker said. “He’s a gamer. Explosive. At any point in time in the game he can take over the game.”
Schalick scored 10 points in the second quarter on Hunter Dragotta’s 32-yard field goal and Kenai Simmons’ 18-yard touchdown pass to Dylan Sheehan.
The Cougars shut out Glassboro in the second half – even made a goal line stand after the Bulldogs returned the second half kickoff 67 yards to the 19 – but they couldn’t generate any offense as the Bulldogs cranked up the defense.
Glassboro held Schalick to just nine yards of net offense in the second half.
“Take those three plays out it’s 10-0,” Wilson said. “That’s the kind of game we wanted to play. We moved the ball decently here and there. Defensively I thought we played well outside of those plays. In a game like that it just came down to a couple plays and we lost them again.”
Cover photo: Glassboro’s Xavier Sabb (0) had a 63-yard touchdown catch against Schalick. (Photo by Heather Papiano)
Pennsville bounces back
LAWRENCE – Moments after his team lost to Paulsboro last Saturday, Pennsville coach Mike Healy told his players there was still plenty in the season to play for, but now there was no room for error.
The Eagles bounced back on a long road trip to Mercer County Friday night. They played as if their playoff lives depended on it, jumped out to a big halftime lead and eventually put away Group IV Lawrence 35-7.
“We were very honest with the kids that we didn’t have any more wiggle room, we had to get the job done,” Eagles coach Mike Healy said. “The big thing for us is from the opening kickoff we showed up.
“I told them before the game we need to be physical the entire game and we need to be aggressive all game, we need to play with effort the entire game. I thought for the first half today we really showed up and did those things. We’ve had some games where we’re lacking one of those things, but I thought today we played up to our potential.”
Quarterback Robbie McDade ran for one touchdown and threw a pair of touchdown passes to Luke Wood and Rylan Hardy rushed for two scores. Hardy remains on track to become the Eagles’ first 1,000-yard rusher since Nick Bard in 2017 (1,657 yards).
The Eagles were up 22-0 with 2:03 left in the first half. They made it 28-0 with 14 seconds left and after the Cardinals fumbled the first play after the kickoff McDade threw his second TD pass to Wood with five second left in the half to make it 35-0.
“It was a pretty cool end to the half,” Healy said
WJFL Standings
DIAMOND DIVISION
DIV
ALL
Glassboro (4)
4-0
7-0
Woodstown (1)
3-0
6-0
Schalick (6)
2-2
5-3
Woodbury (11)
1-2
2-4
Penns Grove (20)
0-3
1-6
Salem (23)
0-3
0-7
NOTE: Number in parenthesis is South Jersey Group I UPR power ranking through Oct. 12
FRIDAY’S GAMES Glassboro 20, Schalick 10 SATURDAY’S GAMES Penns Grove at Woodbury Woodstown at Salem
PATRIOT DIVISION
DIV
ALL
Camden Catholic (NPB-3)
5-0
7-0
Paulsboro (5)
5-1
6-2
West Deptford (G2-13)
3-2
4-4
Pennsville (12)
2-3
4-4
Audubon (13)
1-3
2-3
Collingswood (G2-16)
1-4
3-5
Overbrook (G2-25)
0-4
2-4-1
NOTE: Number in parenthesis is South Jersey Group I UPR power rankings through Oct. 12 (G2-Group 2, NPB-Non Public B)
FRIDAY’S GAMES Pennsville 35, Lawrence 8 Camden Catholic 55, Collingswood 0 Paulsboro 18, West Deptford 12 SATURDAY’S GAMES Audubon at Overbrook
It isn’t easy being a first-year head football coach and in Salem County it’s been particularly challenging
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
Every football coach who comes into a new situation brings with him enthusiasm and optimism. He usually gets his first win even before the team takes the field, winning the introductory press conference.
Winning on the field, well, that takes a little longer as he tries to make headway against the reality of the underlying circumstances that brought him to the position in the first place.
It isn’t easy being a first-year head football coach and in Salem County it’s been a particularly bumpy ride.
This year has seen the largest turnover of head coaching spots among the county’s five football-playing schools since 2006 – three (Penns Grove, Salem, Woodstown) – and for two of them it’s been a tough go.
Woodstown’s Frank Trautz has had the best of it, going 6-0 with two regular season games remaining after being promoted from within an already winning staff. But it hasn’t been quite so rosy for Penns Grove’s Marc Maccarone or Salem’s Kemp Carr, two outside hires who are 1-6 and 0-7, respectively, going into this weekend’s games.
But the struggles have been the norm for new Salem County coaches. Of the 18 first-year head coaches over the last 21 years, only four have had winning first-year campaigns – Seth Brown (Schalick), Ryan Wood (Pennsville), Montrey Wright (Salem) and Trautz – but they’re the unicorns. Eleven have had losing seasons and three have broken even.
Only eight have gotten to the playoffs in their first year, with Trautz expected to join that list this year. The Wolverines are currently the No. 1 team in the South Jersey Group I power points standings.
“Where a school is hiring a football coach it’s rarely a good situation,” said Schalick head coach Mike Wilson, who went 0-7 his first year with the Cougars to 11-1 last season. “Most of the time the program has struggled and there’s a reason why they’re looking for a coach. There’s not too many programs where you just hand it off and they keep it rolling. It does happen, but usually it’s not a great job when you get that first job; there’s a lot of work to do.”
The chart below documents the struggles of Salem County’s most recent first-year coaches. It’s not an indictment on their coaching ability. Almost all of them have gone on to produce multiple winning/championship seasons once they got their program in place; Carr and Maccarone won championships at other postings. It’s just an illustration of how hard it is to get it started.
“The coach can only control so much,” Wilson said. “They need the support of the school, the administration, the community, the parents; it’s a total group effort. And you need patience because a year turnaround doesn’t happen. You need patience, your school needs patience and if you don’t have support of those other things there’s only so much you can do.
”It really comes down to how much does the school, the administration and the community want football to be successful, because if you’re trying to build a program you need all those things. It takes time and patience. Just show up and play football from August to November, you can’t do that anymore.”
Once that first-year coach gets his program blueprint established and starts to taste a little success, a whole new set of challenges present themselves. The next goal becomes finding a way to maintain that success. That, friends, is a whole different conversation.
Cover photo: Salem County’s three new head football coaches (from left) Woodstown’s Frank Trautz, Salem’s Kemp Carr and Penns Grove’s Marc Maccarone.
First Year Salem County Football Coaches (Since 2003)
Here is the high school sports schedule for Salem County teams for the week of Oct. 14-19
MONDAY, OCT. 14 BOYS SOCCER Palmyra at Schalick Woodstown at Clayton, 11 a.m. GIRLS SOCCER Woodstown at Clayton, 1 p.m.
TUESDAY, OCT. 15 GIRLS TENNIS Salem at Penns Grove Wildwood at Schalick, 4:15 p.m. Group I Sectional Finals Pennsville at Pitman, Shertel Park, 3 p.m. Glen Ridge at Hanover Park New Providence at Highland Park Pascack Hills at Glen Rock CROSS COUNTRY TCC Batch Meet at Kingsway, 3:30 p.m. FIELD HOCKEY Deptford at Pennsville Glassboro at Salem St. Joe’s at Schalick BOYS SOCCER Salem at Highland GIRLS VOLLEYBALL Salem Tech at Cape May Tech
WEDNESDAY, OCT. 16 BOYS SOCCER Penns Grove at Pennsville, 3:30 p.m. Pitman at Salem Woodstown at Salem Tech GIRLS SOCCER Gloucester at Schalick Penns Grove at Paulsboro Salem at Pennsville, 6 p.m. Salem Tech at Woodstown GIRLS TENNIS Haddon Heights at Schalick Pennsville at Millville, 3:45 p.m.
THURSDAY, OCT. 17 FIELD HOCKEY Overbrook at Schalick Pennsville at Bridgeton Salem at Clayton Woodstown at Clearview GIRLS TENNIS Overbrook at Woodstown Penns Grove at Schalick Salem at Glassboro
Group I Final Four Mercer County Park Semifinals, 11 a.m. Championship Match, 1 p.m.
BOYS SOCCER Penns Grove at Pitman, 6:30 p.m.
FRIDAY, OCT. 18 FOOTBALL Pennsville at Lawrence, 6:30 p.m. Collingswood at Camden Catholic Glassboro at Schalick Paulsboro at West Deptford FIELD HOCKEY Egg Harbor Twp. at Woodstown BOYS SOCCER Clayton at Salem Tech Salem at Gloucester Catholic Schalick at Glassboro Woodstown at Overbrook GIRLS SOCCER Clayton at Salem Tech Gloucester Catholic at Salem Pennsville at Penns Grove Overbrook at Woodstown GIRLS TENNIS Pennsville at Salem, 3:45 p.m. Penns Grove at Pitman Schalick at Glassboro VOLLEYBALL Salem Tech at Triton
SATURDAY, OCT. 19 FOOTBALL Penns Grove at Woodbury, 10:30 a.m. Audubon at Overbrook, 11 a.m. Woodstown at Salem, noon GIRLS SOCCER Cherry Hill West at Schalick
Saturday football: Pennsville’s loss at Paulsboro turns on three big miscues in second half; Woodstown hits 6-0 for first time since 2013, but facing adversity
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
PAULSBORO – Pennsville came out for the second half Saturday brimming with confidence. After a flat first half and long halftime, they were convinced things were going to be different.
And they did start fast, getting two long touchdown bursts from Rylan Hardy to take their first lead of the game. Sure, it was only a two-point lead, but momentum was building on their side. Even their sideline sounded louder after the first score tied the game.
But then things went south. In a hurry. Like a Jenga tower when the wrong block gets pulled.
The Eagles gave up a big play and a touchdown on the next possession to lose the lead and then made three huge mistakes over the next five minutes of game clock they couldn’t recover from and lost to Paulsboro 36-24.
They gave up a 48-yard run to Sawyer Cabanas on the first play after Hardy’s 65-yard touchdown run and Robbie McDade’s conversion pass to Malik Rehmer gave the Eagles a 16-14 lead with 4:39 left in the third quarter. That eventually led to Aundre Hill’s second touchdown of the quarter to put the Red Raiders back on top.
But it got worse. It was still only a six-point game, but the Eagles mishandled a bouncing ball on the ensuing kickoff and Paulsboro recovered. They made the Red Raiders work for it, but Jahsir Johnson tossed a 2-yard TD pass to Jeremiah Carr on fourth-and-goal to stretch the lead.
On the next possession Hardy had a for-sure 47-yard touchdown run, but it was called back by a holding penalty. The Eagles started going backwards after that and then on fourth down they snapped a ball over the punter’s head for a 23-yard loss.
Paulsboro took over in the red zone and Cabanas eventually scored on a 1-yard run.
“You can call it bad luck, but you’ve got to make your own luck also in football, and we just didn’t do some things right today,” Pennsville coach Mike Healy said. “It kind of started compounding and we weren’t able to settle down and get control of the game again. We just kept making mistakes one on top of the other and that’s what happens.
“It’s frustrating but at the same time we put ourselves in that position by not playing well in the first half.”
The first half was kind of a snoozefest with very little action, but that changed in the second half. The teams traded touchdowns on the first four possessions and then it broke on the mishandled kickoff.
The play happened on the far side of the field and Healy didn’t get a clear look at it so he deferred comment except to chalk it up to cascade of mistakes that was to come.
“We’ve got to coach that up better,” Healy said.
The loss spoiled a big game from Hardy. The junior running back came to life in the second half and picked up 127 of his 145 yards rushing in the third quarter with runs of 28, 29 and 65 yards. And he was denied another 47 yards in the fourth.
Paulsboro, meanwhile, spread the wealth. KyAire Harvey rushed for 113 yards in the first half, including a 64-yard touchdown for the only points of the half. He finished with 193 yards rushing. Cabanas had 73 yards and Hill had 70.
The Eagles did salvage a bit of pride when they drove 45 and scored on Robbie McDade’s 9-yard touchdown pass to Malik Rehmer with just under a minute to play.
“I was glad to us playing there til the end,” Healy said. “Defensively we were still trying to get after kids. It’s frustrating all around, but it’s always good to see kids are still trying to move the ball and do what they’re supposed to do. You’re still to coach ‘em the whole time even when it’s in a situation like that.”
Paulsboro 36, Pennsville 24
PENN
PAUL
8
1st Downs
12
22-161
Rushing
40-343
6-11-0
Passes
5-8-0
67
Passing
29
2-1
Fum-Lost
2-1
3-28.7
Punts
1-25.0
7-45
Penalties
7-50
Pennsville (3-4)
0
0
16
8-
24
Paulsboro (5-2)
8
0
14
14-
36
SCORING SUMMARY PB-KyAire Harvey 64 run (Jeremiah Carr pass from Jahsir Johnson), 6:36 1Q PV-Rylan Hardy 29 run (Malik Rehmer pass from Robbie McDade), 7:18 3Q PB-Aundre Hill 30 run (pass failed), 5:36 3Q PV-Rylan Hardy 65 run (Malik Rehmer pass from Robbie McDade), 4:30 3Q PB-Aundre Hill 9 run (Jeremiah Carr pass from Jahsir Johnson), 1:10 3Q PB-Jeremiah Carr 2 pass from Jahsir Johnson), 10:21 4Q PB-Sawyer Cabanas 1 run (kick failed), 4:14 4Q PV-Malik Rehmer 9 pass from Robbie McDade (Robbie McDade run), 58.1 4Q
Woodstown backup quarterback Lucas Fulmer (2) watches starter Jack Holladay throw a pass in the first half against Haddon Heights. Fulmer directed the offense in the second half after Holladay got hurt late in the second quarter. (Photo by Ellen Sickler)
Wolverines win, but face adversity
HADDON HEIGHTS – Throughout his first season as Woodstown’s head coach, Frank Trautz has preferred to focus on the progress of his players and their team above any buzz their season-opening winning streak is creating.
The Wolverines won again Saturday, beating Haddon Heights 17-8 to reach 6-0 for the first time since 2013, but they’re about to face the first real challenge to that all-for-one mindset they’ve embraced.
Senior quarterback Jack Holladay suffered an upper body injury in the collarbone/shoulder area late in the second quarter and didn’t play the second half. The extent of his injury won’t be known until further evaluation Monday.
The Wolverines are currently tied with Glassboro for the WJFL Diamond Division lead and are the No. 1 team in the latest South Jersey Group I power points standings, meaning they would be a No. 1 South or Central Jersey seed for the third year in a row if the playoffs started today.
Holladay was in his first year as the Wolverines’ starter, stepping into the role following the graduation of his four-year starter cousin, Max Webb. In the first five games of the season he completed 17 of 35 passes for 325 yards and four touchdowns. He was 3-for-3 for 53 yards, including a 42-yard pass to Garrett Leyman shortly before getting hurt.
“I think you know what I’m going to say about (the winning streak) – we’ll enjoy the win, let’s get ready for next week,” Trautz said. “We’re just a complete team. We can do it in a lot of different ways. The kids just pick each other up and it doesn’t matter really who’s doing it. We find a way to get it done.”
With Holladay on the sidelines, the Wolverines turned to backup quarterback Lucas Fulmer to run the offense in the second half. The junior has been the Wolverines’ JV quarterback and his appearance in the second half was his first varsity action.
“In my opinion in sports that’s one of the toughest spots to go in as a backup quarterback,” Trautz said. “He handled the offense well. He got us in and out of the huddle, controlled everything. I was very proud of the way he handled himself out there today.”
Of course, the playbook shrunk “a lot” with Fulmer in the game and the second half became more about “grind it out and get the win any way necessary,.”
“Football is all about facing adversity,” running back Bryce Belinfanti told Brian Tortella of South Jersey Glory Days after the game. “That’s what we had to do is face adversity. It’s a football game and at the end of the day we still had to go out and win the second half.”
The Wolverines were leading 10-0 at the time Holladay got hurt. Belinfanti capped their first possession with a 2-yard touchdown run and Jake Ware kicked a 25-yard second-quarter field goal. Belinfanti rushed for 98 yards in the game.
It stayed that way until the final minute of the game when Bobby Donahue scored from two yards out. The Garnets returned the ensuing kickoff for a touchdown to avoid the shutout.
“That was huge to get that extra touchdown there at the end,” Trautz said.
If Holladay can’t go next Saturday at Salem Trautz has “complete faith” in Fulmer stepping up and doing the job. The 2013 team whose start this year’s team matched started 11-0.
“These guys play for one another and they pick each other up,” Trautz said. “I have no doubt if Jack can’t go next week then these guys will be ready to go.”
Woodstown 17, Haddon Heights 8
WOOD
HH
8
1st Downs
7
43-138
Rushing
25-35
3-3-0
Passes
5-8-1
53
Passing
11
4-20
Penalties
NA
Woodstown (6-0)
7
3
0
7-
7
Haddon Heights (1-5)
0
0
0
8-
8
SCORING SUMMARY WO-Bryce Belinfanti 2 run (Jake Ware kick) WO-Jake Ware 25 FG WO-Bobby Donahue 2 run (Jake Ware kick) HH-Camaj Matthews 75 kickoff return (Damier Outterbridge-Ali pass from Amare Ridley)
Lucas Fulmer (2) turns to hand the ball to Bryce Belinfanti in the second half against Haddon Heights. Belinfanti rushed for 98 yards in the game. (Photo by Ellen Sickler)
WJFL Standings
DIAMOND DIVISION
DIV
ALL
Woodstown (1)
3-0
6-0
Glassboro (4)
3-0
6-0
Schalick (6)
2-1
5-2
Woodbury (11)
1-2
2-4
Penns Grove (20)
0-3
1-6
Salem (23)
0-3
0-7
NOTE: Number in parenthesis is South Jersey Group I UPR power ranking through Oct. 12
THURSDAY’S GAME Glassboro 40, Cinnaminson 10 Delran 38, Penns Grove 8 FRIDAY’S GAMES Schalick 28, Gloucester City 21 West Deptford 58, Salem 19 SATURDAY’S GAMES Willingboro 43, Woodbury 30 Woodstown 17, Haddon Heights 8
PATRIOT DIVISION
DIV
ALL
Camden Catholic (NPB-3)
4-0
6-0
Paulsboro (5)
4-1
5-2
West Deptford (G2-13)
3-1
4-3
Pennsville (12)
2-3
3-4
Audubon (13)
1-3
2-3
Collingswood (G2-16)
1-3
3-4
Overbrook (G2-25)
0-4
2-4-1
NOTE: Number in parenthesis is South Jersey Group I UPR power rankings through Oct. 7 (G2-Group 2, NPB-Non Public B)
FRIDAY’S GAMES Audubon 7, Collingswood 0 West Deptford 58, Salem 19 SATURDAY’S GAMES Camden Catholic 41, Overbrook 6 Paulsboro 36, Pennsville 24
West Deptford puts up season-high 58 points, collects nearly 400 yards of offense as Emel gets big win against his alma mater
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
WEST DEPTFORD — Coaches try to tell their players that every game carries the same weight, whether it’s a long-time rivalry or some random team in the middle of the schedule, but you know there are some games that are just bigger than others.
On the emotional scale, the games that get West Deptford coach John Emel’s heart racing a little more are, no matter where he’s coaching, the ones he gets to face Salem.
WEST. DEPTFORD NEXT: Paulsboro, Oct. 18, 7 p.m.
He played there as a high schooler and cut his coaching teeth there before getting his first head coaching job at Penns Grove. On Friday night, for the 13th time as a head coach, he got on that emotional rollercoaster again and this time it was happy reunion as his team rolled over the Rams 58-19.
“I’m a graduate of Salem, my brother’s a graduate of Salem; we bled Salem Blue while we were players and all through college,” Emel said. “Once I went to Penns Grove that was always the most emotional game.
“To tell you the truth, I was a lot more nervous, not necessarily to play Salem, but to play (Rams) coach (Kemp) Carr. Have tremendous respect for him. Coached with him for eight years. Battled against him when he was an assistant coach, but this is the first time we went against each other as head coaches. He’s got passion. He was an assistant coach when I was a player at Salem. We were in the same huddle for eight years trying to get guys ready at Penns Grove.
“Playing him and playing Salem, all those things mean something, so you want to perform well. I know I was ready to go and I feel like I coached a pretty good game on offense.”
Indeed. The Eagles (4-3) scored their most points in a game this season – the most since putting 70 on Sterling in 2022 – and amassed nearly 400 yards of offense. They scored all seven times they possessed the ball and answered the Rams’ first touchdown by returning the ensuing kickoff for a touchdown.
But Emel wasn’t the only person on the West Deptford sideline to whom the game meant something special.
Senior running back Bryce Wright went 1-2 against the Rams when he played for Emel at Penns Grove and Friday was his last chance to even the score. He responded by rushing for 122 yards and three touchdowns. Last year, in a different uniform, he went for 118 yards and a touchdown against the Rams.
“Me being down in the rivalry 2-1 just made me go out there and give it my all,” Wright said. “It’s my last year I get to play my rival so I had to go 100 percent. I definitely think I ran harder this game. A lot of the kids on the other side of the ball I know them personally, so roughing up on them is like childhood days.
“Last night (Emel) was like yeah, bud, you know it’s personal for us. Man, we’ve got to go out here and get a big one, four hard quarters of football, and that’s what we gave him.”
SALEM NEXT: Woodstown, Oct. 19, noon
The game was entertaining for a while. The Eagles jumped out to a 15-0 first-quarter lead, but the Rams didn’t fold.
One of the biggest faults of the Rams all season had been their ability to move the ball between the 30s but not being able to finish. They went about their business Friday alternating quarterbacks Troy Carey and Quimere Bergen on virtually every snap with an occasional direct snap to Pop Jackson as a change of pace.
“It’s a rhythm thing,” Carr said. “Both of the guys have their talents and their skills so we wanted to try to use them.”
The Rams got into the red zone three times in the first half and Carey got them in the end zone twice. Jackson pushed in from the 2 and Carey threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to Kaden Robinson.
“It felt good (getting into the end zone),” Carey said. “Guys were working together, we played together as a team. Everything was working well.”
But the Eagles answered both times – once on an 88-yard kickoff return by Zamir Davis and once on Brady Cobb’s TD pass to Michael Joseph with 29 seconds left in the half.
It was the time the Rams didn’t get in from the red zone, however, that had Carr upset. Jamaal Shockley raced 72 yards with the kickoff after Joseph’s score to set the Rams up at the West Deptford 5. On what amounted to the final play of the half, freshman Isiah Santiago dropped Carey’s pass in the front left corner of the end zone.
The halftime horn sounded shortly after the ball hit the ground, but Carr contended – and his sideline replays confirmed — there should have been time on the clock. That would have been enough to take another shot at the end zone or give Andrew May a shot at a field goal. Instead, they went into the break down 30-13.
“We didn’t get in when we should have gotten in,” Carr said. “You’ve got to score there and that’s the point. I don’t want to talk about us getting it in. I want to talk about we didn’t get it in and we should’ve gotten it in and we had the ball with 1.9 seconds on the clock and they said the time expired. That’s what makes me mad.”
The Rams had high expectations for the second half, but those were quickly dashed when Kaden Robinson mishandled the second half kickoff and Bergen fumbled in the next series while absorbing a 13-yard loss. The Eagles recovered both miscues and converted both times for a 44-13 lead.
“We’ve got to do those things better,” Carr said. “We do those things better and we’re in a different situation. Everybody can see we can play football … It’s like I’ve said: You can’t build a house from the ceiling down. You’ve got to build from the foundation. We saw some good things and we’ll take the good things that we did.”
West Deptford 58, Salem 19
SAL
WD
9
1st Downs
19
24-72
Rushing
43-312
4-9-0
Passes
4-7-0
49
Passing
67
1-1
Fum-Lost
0-0
0
Punts
0
4-24
Penalties
3-25
Salem (0-7)
15
15
20
8-
58
West Deptford (4-3)
0
13
6
0-
19
SCORING SUMMARY WD-Cole Paszkiewicz 41 run (Brady Cobb kick), 9:15 1Q WD-Bryce Wright 13 run (Zamir Davis run), 2:31 1Q S-Pop Jackson 2 run (Andrew May kick), 10:17 2Q WD-Zamir Davis 88 kickoff return (Brady Cobb kick), 10:03 2Q S-Kaden Robinson 17 pass from Troy Carey (kick blocked), 5:20 2Q WD-Michael Joseph 10 pass from Brady Cobb (Bryce Wright run), 28.9 2Q WD-Bryce Wright 6 run (pass failed), 9:10 3Q WD-Zamir Davis 4 run (Michael Joseph pass from Brady Cobb), 6:05 3Q WD-Bryce Wright 26 run (kick failed), 8.8 3Q S-Pop Jackson 84 kickoff return (kick failed), 0:00 3Q WD-Logan Rivell 2 run (Bryce Wynn run), 1:11 4Q
WJFL DIAMOND DIVISION
DIV
ALL
Woodstown (1)
3-0
5-0
Glassboro (5)
3-0
6-0
Schalick (2)
2-1
5-2
Woodbury (14)
1-2
2-3
Penns Grove (20)
0-3
1-6
Salem (22)
0-3
0-7
NOTE: Number in parenthesis is South Jersey Group I UPR power ranking through Oct. 7
THURSDAY’S GAME Glassboro 40, Cinnaminson 10 Delran 38, Penns Grove 8 FRIDAY’S GAMES Schalick 28, Gloucester City 21 West Deptford 58, Salem 19 SATURDAY’S GAMES Willingboro at Woodbury, 11 a.m. Woodstown at Haddon Heights, 11 a.m.
WJFL PATRIOT DIVISION
DIV
ALL
Camden Catholic (NPB-3)
3-0
5-0
Paulsboro (6)
3-1
4-2
West Deptford (G2-15)
3-1
4-3
Pennsville (10)
2-2
3-3
Audubon (17)
1-3
2-3
Collingswood (G2-13)
1-3
3-4
Overbrook (G2-23)
0-3
2-3-1
NOTE: Number in parenthesis is South Jersey Group I UPR power rankings through Oct. 7 (G2-Group 2, NPB-Non Public B)
FRIDAY’S GAMES Audubon 7, Collingswood 0 West Deptford 58, Salem 19 SATURDAY’S GAMES Camden Catholic at Overbrook, 11 a.m. Pennsville at Paulsboro, noon
Senior transfer receiver Mills grabs game-winning touchdown pass with less than 30 seconds left to lift the Cougars past Gloucester
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
GLOUCESTER — Schalick coach Mike Wilson opened up the playbook a little Friday night and found Zaeshawn Mills inside.
Mills, a senior transfer from Cumberland in only his second year playing high school football, made three big catches for the Cougars, two for touchdowns, including the game-winner with 26 seconds left to beat Gloucester, 28-21.
“The bottom line, and we’ve been talking about it for a couple weeks, for the offense to take it to the next level we’ve got to be able to throw the ball,” Wilson said. “It just makes us much more difficult to defend. Zaeshawn had a great game.”
Mills scored the first touchdown of the game on a 30-yard pass from Kenai Simmons and the final touchdown of the game on a 9-yarder from Simmons. He also made a leaping 37-yard catch to get the Cougars in the red zone on the winning drive.
“I’d say that’s my biggest catch,” Mills said of his game-winner. “I knew the ball was coming to me because my quarterback looked me in the eye and he was like, be ready, make it count. He told me to make it count. I came off the line, got in position, the ball was right in my hands.”
Simmons was 8-for-12 for 133 yards passing. Mills caught three balls for 78 yards.
Mills played lot of football in his youth, but he took time off after the COVID pandemic. He returned to the game last year as a junior at Cumberland — he even caught one of his eight passes in the game against Schalick — and then transferred to the Cougars for his senior year.
As a senior transfer he was required to sit the first three games of the season, but he’s assimilated well into the team’s culture.
“He’s a good addition to our locker room,” Wilson said.
Mills caught eight passes for 127 yards last year for Cumberland. He had caught only one pass for the Cougars prior to Friday night’s breakout.
“I want to thank my coaches for putting me in that position and my quarterback for trusting me,” Mills said. “That felt good.”
The game was a back-and-forth affair with each team answering the other’s touchdown. The lead changed hands four times before the Lions tied it at 21 with less than three minutes to play.
The Cougars started the winning drive from their own 37 with 2:50 to play with two time outs. They ran three straight running plays to get near midfield, then Simmons threw his big ball to a leaping Mills with a minute left. Reggie Allen picked up 6 on the next play to get it inside the 10 and then Simmons found Mills over the middle for the game-winner.
“We knew that at the very least we could get a field goal to win the game,” Wilson said. “We started moving the ball, we get the big chunk play to Mills and then we’re like, all right, we’ll take a shot in the end zone and if we don’t get it we’ll kick the field goal. We’ve got a kid with a great foot (Hunter Dragotta). Then we threw the slant to Mills and won the game that way.
“The real neat thing with this team is every week we have enough depth, enough kids, where this week it’s Mills, next week it could be somebody else. We’re more than just one person, which is really nice to coach and could be really nice down the stretch. Who knows who it’s going to be next week. I think it’s going to be one of those years, which I’m OK with.”
The Cougars (5-2), the No. 2 team in the South Jersey Group I power points standings, have won four in a row.
Cover photo: A screen grab from DW Broadcasting’s live stream shows Schalick receiver Zaeshawn Mills’ making the game-winning catch against Gloucester.
Schalick coach Mike Wilson presents senior receiver Zaeshawn Mills (R) with the offensive game ball. Mills caught two touchdown passes from Kenai Simmons (1), including the game winner in the final 30 seconds. (Photo by Heather Papiano)
Schalick 28, Gloucester 21
SCHAL (28)
GLOU (21)
16
1st Downs
11
36-147
Rushing
31-24
7-13-1
C-A-I
6-9-0
130
Passing
161
0-0
Fum-lost
2-2
4-38
Penalties
4-39
Schalick (5-2)
6
7
0
15-
28
Gloucester (2-4)
7
0
7
7-
21
SCORING SUMMARY S-Zaeshawn Mills 30 pass from Kenai Simmons (kick failed) G-Mason Widman 6 run (Ashton Wall kick) S-Kenai Simmons 5 run (Hunter Dragotta kick) G-Kevin Boulden 1 run (Ashton Wall kick) S-Kenai Simmons 7 run (Nyzier Wonder pass from Levi Feeney-Childers) G-Trevin Buchardt 2 run (Ashton Wall kick) S-Zaeshawn Mills 9 pass from Kenai Simmons (Hunter Dragotta kick)
WJFL DIAMOND DIVISION
DIV
ALL
Woodstown (1)
3-0
5-0
Glassboro (5)
3-0
6-0
Schalick (2)
2-1
5-2
Woodbury (14)
1-2
2-3
Penns Grove (20)
0-3
1-6
Salem (22)
0-3
0-7
NOTE: Number in parenthesis is South Jersey Group I UPR power ranking through Oct. 7
THURSDAY’S GAME Glassboro 40, Cinnaminson 10 Delran 38, Penns Grove 8 FRIDAY’S GAMES Schalick 28, Gloucester City 21 West Deptford 58, Salem 19 SATURDAY’S GAMES Willingboro at Woodbury, 11 a.m. Woodstown at Haddon Heights, 11 a.m.
QB Sacca accounts for four first-half touchdowns and Delran goes on to rout Penns Grove 38-8; Red Devils avoid shutout in fourth quarter
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
PENNS GROVE – Delran coach Colin Hewko couldn’t help feeling like a stranger in a strange land and he was sure his players felt the same way.
The Bears were playing a Penns Grove team they’d never faced before, on the road in a stadium they’d never played in before, on a Thursday night in the middle of the season they’d never played on before.
DEL
PG
15
1st Downs
8
28-116
Rushing
22-63
12-16-1
C-A-I
7-13-2
192
Passing
81
0-0
Fum-Lost
1-1
0-0
Punts
3-20.0
3-25
Penalties
6-38
The best way to combat all that, Hewko told his players, was just focus on being themselves, staying in the moment and doing something that would make them comfortable.
They didn’t wait. On the third play of the game, Bears quarterback Vinny Sacca hit sophomore Jayden Alford with a pass over the middle. The play looked like it was going to get a modest gain, then suddenly Alford rolled off the bodies of his would-be tacklers, regained his footing and raced 50 yards to the end zone.
The Bears went on to score three more times in the first half and eventually hand Penns Grove its fifth straight loss, 38-8.
“That set the tone,” Sacca said.
Hewko said he only called the play to get some space to make the next down a little more manageable. But, he pointed out, when you do the little things right like Alford did, sometimes they turn into big plays.
“I just kept my feet moving and made a great play,” Alford said. “Our coach does a great job telling us to keep our feet moving until you’re down and just dominate. Don’t stop.
“He alligator rolled me and I rolled over his back, then once I was up it was all open because everybody else just gave up on the play and thought I was down. That’s one thing our coach tells us, never give up on the play, always give 100 each play. Once he rolled off me, he thought I was down. He gave up and I didn’t and that’s what it comes down to.”
The play caught everyone by surprise. Hewko, who was dealing with a drone issue on the sideline, didn’t see it until they showed him the replay on the I-pad. Sacca didn’t know what was happening even while it was happening.
“I was surprised because I thought he initially got tackled and I looked at the sticks to see if he got the first down,” the quarterback said. “Then I looked back over at him and he’s still running and people are cheering. I’m thinking what’s going on. It was a great play.”
Sacca connected on his first seven passes in three first-quarter touchdown drives and accounted for four scores total in the first half. He threw touchdown passes to Alford and Justin Mary in the first quarter and ran for a pair of 1-yard scores as the Bears (6-1) opened a 28-0 halftime lead.
The Bears scored on their first three possessions and four of five in the first half. And the one they missed was turned away by Karon Ceaser’s interception in the end zone. Sacca completed 12 of 16 passes for 192 yards in the game. He also rushed for 34 yards.
Alford’s big play was his only reception of the night. Mary caught four passes — all in the first half — for 86 yards.
“I’d say it was a better (start than usual), but my teammates really make it easy for me,” Sacca said. “I knew it was a pretty good start. I just wanted to keep it going. We’ve got a special team here and we’re looking for special things.”
The Delran defense held Penns Grove (1-6) to 83 yards through the first three quarters.
The Red Devils’ offense came to life in the fourth quarter. Knowledge Young caught a 17-yard pass from Melo Erickson for the Red Devils’ touchdown with 2:34 to play. Erickson completed three passes in the 53-yard drive for 40 yards. The Red Devils had three plays of 10 yards or better in the drive.
Cover photo: Delran quarterback Vinny Sacca (9) looks towards the bench for a play during Thursday night’s game at Penns Grove.
Delran 38, Penns Grove 8
Delran (6-1)
21
7
3
7-
38
Penns Grove (1-6)
0
0
0
8-
8
SCORING SUMMARY D-Jayden Alford 50 pass from Vinny Sacca (Shane Palena kick), 10:26 1Q D-Vinny Sacca 1 run (Shane Palena kick), 5:50 1Q D-Justin Mary 14 pass from Vinny Sacca (Shane Palena kick), 13.3 1Q D-Vinny Sacca 1 run (Shane Palena kick), 05.0 2Q D-Shane Palena 22 FG, 4:11 3Q D-Zahir Cobbins 1 run )Shane Palena kick), 9:45 4Q PG-Knowledge Young 17 pass from Melo Erickson (Melson Erickson run), 2:34 4Q
WJFL DIAMOND DIVISION
DIV
ALL
Woodstown (1)
3-0
5-0
Glassboro (5)
3-0
6-0
Schalick (2)
2-1
4-2
Woodbury (14)
1-2
2-3
Penns Grove (20)
0-3
1-6
Salem (22)
0-3
0-6
NOTE: Number in parenthesis is South Jersey Group I UPR power ranking through Oct. 8
THURSDAY’S GAME Glassboro 40, Cinnaminson 10 Delran 38, Penns Grove 8 FRIDAY’S GAMES Schalick at Gloucester City, 6 p.m. Salem at West Deptford, 7 p.m. SATURDAY’S GAMES Willingboro at Woodbury, 11 a.m. Woodstown at Haddon Heights, 11 a.m.
Schalick blanks Paulsboro 17-0, moves to No. 2 in South Jersey Group I power standings; game was moved from Friday after host school discovered a threat specific to the football game on social media
MONDAY’S GAME Schalick 17, Paulsboro 0
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
PAULSBORO — Kenai Simmons was growing tired of the game being so close. His Schalick team had the best of the play, but had only one touchdown and a slim lead to show for it.
Finally, he had had enough. After the Cougars defense forced their hosts into a deep hole following a bad snap in the third quarter, Simmons walked through the bench area and said to anyone within earshot “this is where we put them away.”
Then he went out and made it happen. The senior quarterback led the Cougars on scoring drives the next two times they touched the ball and the defense did the rest to complete a 17-0 win over Paulsboro in a rare Monday game that carried big South Jersey Group I playoff seeding implications.
“I noticed they were off a little bit,” Simmons said. “This is what we like. We like capitalizing off the other team’s mistakes so I was ready to put them away. I was just trying to get us up.”
In the two scoring drives that put the game away, the Cougars (4-2) got a touchdown and a field goal in the fourth quarter.
Simmons led a seven-play 50-yard drive that started in the third quarter and ended with Reggie Allen’s 10-yard touchdown run two plays into the fourth quarter to break the ice.
In the next drive, Hunter Dragotta kicked a 36-yard field goal into a stiff wind with 5:48 left to make it 17-0.
“What we talked about all week was this game could go a couple different ways,” Cougars coach Mike Wilson said. “One way we talked about was being tight and we would take over in the second half. I think we wore them down and I think that’s what Kenai was echoing. The idea that we are a second-half team with everything we do.”
In their four wins this season, the Cougars have outscored their opponents 45-16.
Simmons threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to Sherrod Jones in the final minute of second quarter for the game’s first score. That capped a 10-play drive that covered 80 yards. After wearing down the Red Raiders on the ground, Simmons found Jones wide open over the middle for the score.
“They’ve got to respect our run,” Simmons said. “When you’ve got a defense that’s aggressive and hungry going against a team who runs hard, you’re going to bite at some point. When the outside linebacker ran to the run commit, it was right over his head.”
Schalick quarterback Kenai Simmons (1) led the Cougars on two scoring drive in the second half to put Paulsboro away. On the cover, Sherrod Jones jumps for joy after grabbing a touchdown pass right before halftime. (Photos by Heather Papiano)
Despite the close margin at halftime, Schalick dominated the first half. The Cougars had the ball for nearly 18 minutes and ran 30 plays to the Red Raiders’ 12.
When Paulsboro did get the ball, the Cougars’ defense never gave it a chance. Schalick held the Red Raiders to 41 yards of net offense, minus-5 yards net rushing, and ended two drives with fumble recoveries by linebackers Riley Papiano and Alec Bramell.
The Red Raiders (4-2) lost a huge chunk of yardage on the bad snap over their quarterback’s head and their two biggest gaining plays of the game were facemask and pass interference penalties against the Cougars.
It was Schalick’s third win in a row, second shutout of the season and the third time they held an opponent to fewer than three points.
“We played very fundamental,” said lineman T.J. Hymer, the recipient of the Cougars’ defensive game ball. “We were definitely a lot more physical than them. You can’t really have an offense to where you run around and just try to throw the ball up against a natural defense like us. Coach Wilson does a lot of planning and we’re not just some midget football defense. We have a scheme.”
Paulsboro came into the game fourth in the South Jersey Group I power points standings, while Schalick was sixth. The Cougars moved to No. 2 behind Woodstown with the win and would be the Central Jersey Group 1 top seed if the playoffs started this week. If Paulsboro and Schalick finish on consecutive lines in the final standings and Paulsboro somehow is ahead, the Cougars would draw the better seed by virtue of the head-to-head win.
“It’s a pretty big win,” Hymer said. “When you really look it, this team was like our most legitimate win. No offense to the other teams, but there’s a reason one team is oh-and-whatever and the other team maybe has one win.
“This is a really good stepping stone because people now know after we lost to two pretty good teams (Woodstown and Cedar Grove, both No. 1 in their sections) we’re not just some middle of the pack people. We’re coming to win.”
The game was moved to Monday after Paulsboro officials learned early Friday of a specific threat against Saturday’s game and took action. The alleged perpetrator of the threat reportedly has been arrested.
The players said it felt a little odd playing on what normally was a JV day. Wilson tried to keep the routine as normal as possible and the players made the best of it.
“It felt kind of weird playing on a Monday, I’m going to be honest,” Simmons said. “I never played in a JV game, but it felt like a JV game on a Monday at 4 o’clock.”
“It definitely messed our schedule up a little bit,” Hymer said, “but I think we came out to play.”
Schalick’s Reggie Allen (4) wraps up Paulsboro quarterback Malakhai McKenzie (2) with three of his teammates – T.J. Hymer (56), Riley Papiano (16) and Roneem Thomas (25) – in pursuit. The Cougars’ defense held Paulsboro to minus-5 yards net rushing. (Photo by Heather Papiano)
Schalick 17, Paulsboro 0
SCHAL
PAULS
14
1st Downs
7
42-176
Rushing
23-(-5)
3-6-0
Passes
6-13-0
25
Passing
46
3-0
Fum-Lost
3-2
3-30.0
Punts
3-33.0
7-55
Penalties
3-25
Schalick (4-2)
0
0
0
0-
0
Paulsboro (4-2)
0
7
0
10-
17
SCORING SUMMARY S-Sherrod Jones 12 pass from Kenai Simmons (Hunter Dragotta kick), 42.5 2Q S-Reggie Allen 10 run (Hunter Dragotta kick), 11:10 4Q S-Hunter Dragotta 36 FG, 5:48 4Q
WJFL DIAMOND DIVISION
DIV
ALL
Woodstown (1)
3-0
5-0
Glassboro (5)
3-0
5-0
Schalick (2)
2-1
4-2
Woodbury (14)
1-2
2-3
Penns Grove (20)
0-3
1-5
Salem (22)
0-3
0-6
NOTE: Number in parenthesis is South Jersey Group I UPR power ranking through Oct. 7
THURSDAY’S GAME Glassboro at Cinnaminson, 6 p.m. Delran at Penns Grove, 6:30 p.m. FRIDAY’S GAMES Schalick at Gloucester City, 6 p.m. Salem at West Deptford, 7 p.m. SATURDAY’S GAMES Willingboro at Woodbury, 11 a.m. Woodstown at Haddon Heights, 11 a.m.
WJFL PATRIOT DIVISION
DIV
ALL
Camden Catholic (NPB-3)
3-0
5-0
Paulsboro (6)
3-1
4-2
West Deptford (G2-15)
3-1
3-3
Pennsville (10)
2-2
3-3
Collingswood (G2-13)
1-2
3-3
Overbrook (G2-23)
0-3
2-3-1
Audubon (17)
0-3
1-3
NOTE: Number in parenthesis is South Jersey Group I UPR power rankings through Oct. 7 (G2-Group 2, NPB-Non Public B)
FRIDAY’S GAMES Audubon at Collingswood, 6 p.m. Salem at West Deptford, 7 p.m. SATURDAY’S GAMES Pennsville at Paulsboro, noon Camden Catholic at Overbrook, 11 a.m.
Riley Papiano (16) is congratulated by Schalick teammate Reggie Allen after coming out of the pile with the first of the Cougars’ two fumble recoveries Monday. (Photo by Heather Papiano)
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