Category: FOOTBALL

Schalick shut down

Cougars needed to be flawless to win the South Jersey Group I title game, but early miscues and top-seeded Glassboro never gave them a chance

GROUP I SECTIONAL FINALS
South: Glassboro 40, Schalick 9
Central: Woodstown 31, Shore 0
North I: Butler 42, Mountain Lakes 7
North II: Cedar Grove 35, New Providence 14
NOV. 15 STATE SEMIFINALS
Woodstown (10-1) at Glassboro (11-0), 6 p.m.
Butler (11-0) at Cedar Grove (12-0), 7 p.m.

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

GLASSBORO – Schalick coach Mike Wilson knew it was going to take a near flawless effort for his Cougars to get past top-seeded Glassboro in the sectional title game Friday night. As much as they wanted it, It just didn’t happen.

The Cougars mishandled fourth-down snaps on their first two possessions and the Bulldogs converted both into Xavier Sabb touchdowns to take early control of an eventual 40-9 victory for the South Jersey Group 1 sectional crown.

Glassboro (11-0) will now host Central Jersey champ Woodstown next week in the Group 1 semifinals. Woodstown beat Shore Regional 31-0 in its first playoff shutout in more than 40 years.

The Cougars (8-4) actually had three mishandled fourth-down snaps in the first half, leading to 32 yards in losses and three Glassboro touchdowns. The Bulldogs also had two defensive touchdowns on back-to-back snaps in the fourth quarter to put the game out of reach. 

“You have to play a perfect game, we shot ourselves in the foot,” Wilson said. “We fought in the second half … what are you going to do? 

“Our kids played their (butts) off. They played hard. The effort’s there. Great group of kids. They did a lot for the program and they’ve done a lot of good things over the last four years.”

Schalick quarterback Kenai Simmons was under seize all night. The Bulldogs came after him with such fury they eventually sent him to the sidelines with a leg injury after being fallen on twice by massive Glassboro lineman Brandon Simmons. It forced the Cougars to bring in backup Gary Simonini for the final 3:37 of the half.

“I knew what it was like, I played against them three times and every time they probably had at least three, four sacks on me a game,” Simmons said after his final high school game. “In trying to get ready for this game, I planned on getting out of the box a little bit more, but a couple of their guys kept me in the box. If we complete a couple more of those passes we have a better ballgame in the first half.”

The pressure Glassboro brought Friday was “way more” than it did in their regular-season win over the Cougars, Brandon Simmons said. The Bulldogs held Schalick to 86 total yards and they got almost half of that on a 34-yard pass to Dylan Sheehan in the fourth quarter. They had more than a dozen plays that went for negative yardage.

“We learned from our mistakes,” he said. “We realized we gave him too much time in the pocket, he felt too comfortable. I talked with the D-line, we’ve all been talking all week, once we put so more pressure on him it makes our DBs’ and linebackers’ job way easier. 

“We knew we kind of screwed them over a little bit last time we played them by giving them by giving them too much time in the pocket, so we knew we had to help the team out and put more pressure on them.”

Schalick trailed 27-3 at halftime with only 11 yards of net offense. Quarterback Simmons, who left the field at halftime under his own power, returned to the lineup to start the second half and the Cougars came out looking to make something happen. They recovered the onsides kick to open the half and put together a 10-play, 50-yard drive for their only touchdown – a 2-yard pass from Simmons to Jace Volovar.

“We always play to win,” Wilson said. “We were not thinking we were going to lose that ball game. We were like, this is how we get back in the game. We weren’t going to roll (over).”

Glassboro put it out of reach with two defensive touchdowns on back-to-back snaps 21 seconds apart midway through the fourth quarter. The first was a 33-yard fumble return by Devon Barr after Simmons and Dorian Kelsey flushed Kenai Simmons from the pocket and into something that looked like a pass but was allowed to come back as a fumble. The other was a 38-yard interception return by Sabb on another deep ball thrown under pressure.

“This is probably one of the top two defensive games we ever had,” Sabb said. “They couldn’t run the ball. (and0 throwing the ball was a nightmare. They had a couple special plays, but outside of that … That quarterback, he likes to run a lot and we checked him out early, so once we took that away it was about over.”

“We wanted to play physical,” Glassboro coach Timmy Breaker said. “We wanted them to feel the physicality in the beginning of the game and the boys did a heck of a job doing it.”

While the loss ended Schalick’s season, in some ways this may have been a better year than last year’s 11-1 campaign. The Cougars moved into the strongest Group I division of the WJFL and played better competition all season long. Their four losses have come from three of the four teams playing for a berth in the Group I title game, teams that are a combined 33-1 — Cedar Grove, Woodstown and Glassboro (twice) – and that one loss came from within the group.

“We played fantastic this year against much better competition,” Wilson said. “We rose to the occasion. We go to back-to-back sectional championship games; that’s not easy to do.

“Big picture, can’t be upset. Obviously you don’t want to lose games and it’s going to kill us to look at the tape and see could’ve, would’ve, should’ve, but the bottom line is these kids have done a lot.”

Glassboro 40, Schalick 9

SCHALGLASS
71st Downs12
26-36Rushing17-93
7-15-2C-A-I10-19-0
52Passing139
5-1Fum-lost4-3
3-23.7Punts0-0
7-60Penalties11-101
Schalick (8-4)0360-9
Glassboro (11-0)1413013-40

SCORING SUMMARY
G-Xavier Sabb 16 run (kick failed), 10:42 1Q
G-Xavier Sabb 29 pass from Jack O’Connell (Amari Sabb run), 7:06 1Q
S-Hunter Dragotta 30 FG, 10:26 2Q
G-Kenny Smith 1 run (Sal Esgro kick), 7:29 2Q
G-Amari Sabb 29 pass from Jack O’Connell (kick failed), 3:54 2Q
S-Jace Volovar 2 pass from Kenai Simmons (pass failed), 5:01 3Q
G-Davon Barr 33 fumble return (Sal Esgro kick), 7:21 4Q
G-Xavier Sabb 38 interception return (kick failed), 7:00 4Q

WJFL Patriot Stars

Pennsville’s first playoff team since 2019 placed four players on the WJFL Patriot Division all-star team as voted upon by the coaches last week and recently approved by the athletic directors — OL Jacob Hand, 1,000-yard rushing RB Rylan Hardy, DB Malik Rehmer and LB Connor Ayars. Former Penns Grove player Bryce Wright, a transfer to West Deptford this season, was picked as a first-team LB. Division winner Camden Catholic had nine players on the first team.

WJFL PATRIOT DIVISION OFFENSE
OLRyan BurkeOverbrook
OLLars StegnerCamden Catholic
OLJacob HandPennsville
OLSal FilfeWest Deptford
OLChris NeffPaulsboro
QBMike MoritzCamden Catholic
RBNymir DailyCamden Catholic
RBRylan HardyPennsville
WR/TEYon AndersonCollingswood
WR/TEJeremiah CarrPaulsboro
WR/TESean WeideCamden Catholic
KMatthew KilicCamden Catholic
ATHTeriq MooreOverbrook
ATHKyair HarveyPaulsboro
WJFL PATRIOT DIVISION DEFENSE
DLJonah JordanAudubon
DLJoel AmegatherCamden Catholic
DLJarred HazelPaulsboro
DLEric ScottPaulsboro
DBTommy QuinnAudubon
DBJoshua CollierCamden Catholic
DBMalik RehmerPennsville
DBZamir DavisWest Deptford
LBSean O’ReillyCamden Catholic
LBConnor AyarsPennsville
LBCaden LubyCollingswood
LBBryce WrightWest Deptford
PLogan GilbertAudubon
ATH Bryce ClarkCamden Catholic

This week’s schedule

Here is this week’s sports schedule for events involving teams from Salem County for the week of Nov. 11-16

TUESDAY
BOYS SOCCER
SJ GROUP I SEMIFINALS
Haddon Twp. at Schalick, 2 p.m.
Palmyra at Woodstown, 4 p.m.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Bucks County CC at Salem CC, 7 p.m.
WOMENS COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Anne Arundel CC at Salem CC, 5 p.m.

THURSDAY
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Delaware Tech at Salem CC, 7 p.m.
WOMENS COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Delaware Tech at Salem CC, 5 p.m.

FRIDAY
FOOTBALL
GROUP I SECTIONAL FINALS
Schalick at Glassboro, 6 p.m.
Shore at Woodstown, 7 p.m.
Mountain Lakes at Butler, 7 p.m.
New Providence at Cedar Grove, 7 p.m.
BOYS SOCCER
GROUP I SECTIONAL FINALS
South: Palmyra-Woodstown winner vs. Haddon Twp.-Schalick winner
Central: Brearley-Shore winner vs. College Achieve-Roselle Park winner
North I: Lenape Valley-Emerson Boro winner vs. Indian Hills-Waldwick winner
North II: Wallington-Glen Ridge winner vs. Verona-New Providence winner

SATURDAY
CROSS COUNTRY
Meet of Champions, Holmdel Park
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Lehigh Carbon CC at Salem CC, 2 p.m.
WOMENS COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Lehigh Carbon CC at Salem CC, noon

Cougars find a way

Schalick rallies after losing big lead, beats Paulsboro for spot in SJ Group I finals, 200th all-time win

SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I
Friday’s Semifinals
Schalick 33, Paulsboro 28
Glassboro 55, Riverside 8
Nov. 15 Championship
(2) Schalick at (1) Glassboro

GROUP I SECTIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
Central: Shore (10-0) at Woodstown (9-1)
South: Schalick (8-3) at Glassboro (10-0)
North Jersey I: Mountain Lakes (6-4) at Butler (10-0)
North Jersey II: New Providence (9-2) at Cedar Grove (11-0)

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PITTSGROVE – The Schalick Cougars couldn’t help feeling like another local team in green with the way their South Jersey Group I playoff game went Friday night.

The Cougars, reminiscent of the Philadelphia Eagles last week against Jacksonville, lost a 21-point second-quarter lead in the second half, but pulled it back together and eventually escaped with a 33-28 win over Paulsboro to reach the South Jersey Group I championship game.

“You always worry about complacency as a coach and I think we got a little complacent,” Cougars coach Mike Wilson said. “But we figured it out. Games are swings of momentum. They got the momentum, then we got it back and we finished on top. As an Eagles fan, I can see why you’d say that.”

It also was the 200th win in the history of the program. Thirty have come on Wilson’s watch (30-20).

The Cougars (8-3) shook off an opening interception and early 6-0 deficit to lead 27-6 in the second quarter before enduring a 15-minute stretch of what Mike Wilson called “some unfortunate stuff” that found them trailing 28-27 after three quarters.

“Anything that could go wrong went wrong,” Wilson said. “But we battled back and found a way to win. There wasn’t a light-bulb moment. We just calmed down and played football again.”

They put together the game-winning drive capped by Reggie Allen’s second touchdown of the game, a 6-yard run with less than five minutes to play.

“We just needed to take a deep breath, relax and start playing like we played earlier in the game,” Wilson said. “We just had to settle down.”

The Cougars built their lead on a 3-yard run by Kenai Simmons, a 57-yard run by Sherrod Jones, Matthew LaMazza’s fumble recovery in the end zone and Allen’s 2-yard run.

Paulsboro (8-3) brought it back to take the lead with a touchdown three seconds before halftime, a 73-yard touchdown pass, a short run after recovering a Schalick fumble and a pair of two-point conversions.

“I knew if we would just settle down and relax, do our jobs, we were fine,” Wilson said. “Our senior leadership kicked in, the kids calmed themselves down, they all looked at themselves and said hey we’ve done this before, we’re fine and that’s what they did.

“It was great as coach to see because you see the maturation of your team. A group of sophomores might panic, but these seniors have seen everything … and they did a great job tonight.”

The win earned the Cougars a trip to Glassboro next week for the sectional championship. It’s a tall task considering the top-seeded Bulldogs (10-0) have beaten their first two playoff opponents by a combined score of 119-15.

The two teams played last year in the Central Jersey final with Glassboro winning 20-0. The Bulldogs won this year’s regular-season meeting 20-10.

“Let’s go,” Wilson said. “This is our third time playing them within the last calendar year. We feel that we’re only a few plays away and we’ve just got to play good football.”

Schalick 33, Paulsboro 28

Paulsboro (8-3)66160-28
Schalick (8-3)62106-33

SCORING SUMMARY
P-24-yard pass (PAT failed), 1Q
S-Kenai Simmons 3 run (kick failed), 1QS-Sherrod Jones 57-run (Hunter Dragotta kick), 2Q         
S-Matthew LaMazza fumble recovery in end zone (Hunter Dragotta kick), 2Q
S-Reggie Allen 2 run (Hunter Dragotta kick), 2Q
P-NA, 2Q
P-73-yard pass (conversion), 3Q
P-Quarterback scramble (conversion), 3Q
S-Reggie Allen 6 run (PAT failed), 4Q

Cover photo of Reggie Allen by Heather Papiano

Wearing ’em down

Woodstown keeps the ball on the ground, runs past Pennsville to reach Central Jersey Group I finals

CENTRAL JERSEY GROUP I
Friday’s Semifinals
Woodstown 21, Pennsville 6
Shore 17, Woodbury 7
Nov. 15 Championship
(2) Shore at (1) Woodstown

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

WOODSTOWN – Back in the day when Woodstown football was at its best, the Wolverines would run over, run around and run through opponents to get where they wanted to go. Sometimes it’s good to go back to the past to find the way forward.

The Wolverines went back to their roots Friday night, just pounding play after play on the ground and that strategy carried them past county rival Pennsville 21-6 in the Central Jersey Group I semifinals.

They wound up with 213 yards on 39 time-consuming carries and now will host unbeaten Shore Regional for the sectional championship next week.

“Running has been part of Woodstown football for a very long time – it’s been run, run, run,” running back Alex Torres said. “Then we’ve had amazing quarterbacks come through here and we’ve been in the pass game. They couldn’t stop the run, so we just kept running and we were putting the ball down their throat.”

“It was just working,” quarterback Garrett Leyman said. “We knew we could pound the ball down their throats. We got some long drives in and capitalized.”

Their longest drive of the night actually sealed the game. They put together a 10-minute, 16-play, 90-yard drive that started in the third quarter and ended in the fourth and was capped by Torres’ third short-yardage touchdown of the game. There were 15 running plays in the drive.

The Wolverines threw only four passes in the game. Pennsville coach Mike Healy figured to see a lot of run from them, but nothing quite like that.

“I expected them to be very run heavy; I didn’t think it was going to be that much, but they were having success,” he said. “There was one drive in the third into fourth quarter they just kept getting yards. We knew they could run the ball, we knew they’re tough up front. We still feel like we’re tough up front, too, there were just a couple things kind of went their way.”

The Wolverines (9-1) showed right off the bat they meant business when it came to running the football. Torres took the first snap of the game for 26 yards. In fact, the first play of each of their first six possessions in the first half went for 26, 10, 2 (touchdown), 5, 20 (a pass) and 52 yards.

“We want to establish the run and we want to run the ball,” Woodstown coach Frank Trautz said. “And if we’re able to do that and feel like we’re getting what we need to get to, then that’s going to be the plan; we’ll stick with it.”

“I’ve got to give props to our line,” Leyman said. “They were out there grinding. It was a hard-fought win for them, too.”

Woodstown’s Alex Torres (6) bursts through a big hole in the line for one of his three touchdowns against Pennsville. (Photo by Ellen Sickler)

Once again the Wolverines got big games from their next men up – Torres and Leyman.

Torres, drawing the start at running back ahead of Bryce Belinfanti for the second week in a row, rushed for 111 yards on a career-high 23 carries and scored all three Woodstown touchdowns on short-yardage runs (2, 3, 2). It was his second straight 100-yard game and third of his career.

The Wolverines continue to go slow with the ankle Belinfanti rolled in the Glassboro game. The senior was back in the game Friday, but got most of his time against the Eagles on defense. He did get one carry — late in the third quarter – and picked up a first down with it. He still needs 10 yards for his second straight 1,000-yard season rushing.

“I just knew I couldn’t let my team down,” said Torres, who had 152 yards rushing in the playoff opener against KIPP. “I knew that I worked all summer for this and as soon as they brought me up I knew it was my time to show what I can do and I definitely did. As soon as they said my name I knew I had to put everything out there for my team.”

Leyman, meanwhile, continues to hold the reins at quarterback and he rushed for 100 yards on 14 carries. Most of his yards came on a 52-yard burst that set up Torres’ second touchdown.

It was reminiscent of his days as a running quarterback as an eighth grader, the last time he played the position before being thrust into the role at Salem (with great success) following the shoulder injury to starter Jack Holladay in the Haddon Heights game Oct. 12.

“It definitely reminded me of eighth grade,” he said. “I feel like that’s my strong suit, my running game. I know I just had to do it.”

The Wolverines are hopeful of a full return for both injured players – Belinfanti, Trautz said, is “almost 100 percent,” almost to the point the Wolverines could have used him on offense Friday they needed to, and Holladay is “getting closer” – but they’re also confident they can continue to succeed with these next men up as the go deeper into the playoffs.

“One hundred percent,” Trautz said. “These aren’t backup players who are playing. These are guys who have played a million varsity game for us. If we need to, we’re ready to roll with them and we’re very confident in what they can do.”

“It just shows how dominant we can be,” Leyman said. “We have guys all over the place who can step in and play when their number is called.”

Pennsville came out ready to go. The Eagles put together a five and a half minute, nine-play, 86-yard drive on their first possession with Robbie McDade hooking up with Malik Rehmer on a 53-yard pass play for the game’s first score. But the Eagles missed the extra point.

They held the lead until a muffed punt later in the quarter set up Woodstown at 2. Torres scored his first touchdown on the next snap and Jake Ware’s extra point gave the Wolverines the lead for good.

Woodstown’s Bump Carter (71) is in hot pursuit of Pennsville quarterback Robbie McDade. Carter sacked McDade for a big loss late in the fourth quarter. (Photo by Ellen Sickler)

Woodstown 21, Pennsville 6

PVILLEWOOD
61st Downs11
17-75Rushing39-213
6-14-1C-A-I2-4-0
77Passing41
2-2Fum-lost2-0
4-28.5Punts5-31.6
1-5Penalties5-35
Pennsville6000-6
Woodstown 7707-21

SCORING SUMMARY
P-Malik Rehmer 53 pass from Robbie McDade (kick failed), 3:29 1Q
WO-Alex Torres 2 run (Jake Ware kick), 1:11 1Q
WO-Alex Torres 3 run (Jake Ware kick), 1:03 2Q
WO-Alex Torres 2 run (Jake Ware kick), 7:18 4Q

Playoff head-to-head

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

TEAMPGSALPVLWOOSCHTOTAL
Penns Grove—2-10-11-13-06-3
Salem1-2—1-01-01-14-3
Pennsville1-00-1—1-2NA2-3
Woodstown1-10-12-1—1-04-3
Schalick0-31-1NA0-1—1-5

This week’s schedule

The South Jersey Group I & II playoffs in boys soccer, girls soccer, field hockey and volleyball get underway this week. Here is the weekly sports schedule for teams in Salem County for the week of Nov. 4-9

NOV. 4
GIRLS SOCCER
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT
(9) Clayton at (8) Gateway, 2 p.m.
(12) Pennsville at (5) Riverside, 3 p.m.
(13) Buena at (4) Haddon Twp., 4 p.m.
(14) Wildwood at (3) Woodstown, 2 p.m.
(11) Maple Shade at (6) Palmyra, 2 p.m.
(10) Pitman at (7) Glassboro, 2 p.m.
(15) Cape May Tech at (2) Schalick, 3 p.m.
FIELD HOCKEY
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT 
(16) Audubon at (1) Shore
(9) Florence at (8) Salem, 2 p.m.
(12) Lower Cape May at (5) Gloucester
(13) Haddon Twp. at (4) Haddon Heights
(14) Maple Shade at (3) West Deptford
(11) Bordentown at (6) Gateway, 4 p.m.
(10) Collingswood at (7) Woodstown
(15) South Hunterdon at (2) Schalick, 2 p.m.

NOV. 5
BOYS SOCCER
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT
(16) Cape May Tech at (1) Schalick, 2 p.m.
(9) Penns Grove at (8) Pitman, 2 p.m.
(12) Gateway at (5) Audubon, 2 p.m.
(13) Pennsville at (4) Haddon Twp., 4 p.m.
(14) Woodbury at (3) Palmyra, 4 p.m.
(11) Glassboro at (6) Riverside, 4 p.m.
(10) Maple Shade at (7) Wildwood, 2 p.m.
(15) Clayton at (2) Woodstown, 4 p.m.
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP II TOURNAMENT
(15) Salem Tech at (2) Haddon Heights
VOLLEYBALL
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP II TOURNAMENT
(14) Salem Tech at (3) Seneca

NOV. 6
FIELD HOCKEY
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT
Salem at Shore, 4 p.m.
Gloucester at Haddon Heights, 2 p.m.
Bordentown at West Deptford, 2 p.m.
Collingswood at Schalick, 2 p.m.
WOMENS COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Salem CC at Bryn Mawr, 7 p.m.

NOV. 7
GIRLS SOCCER
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT
Gateway at Audubon
Riverside at Haddon Twp.
Palmyra at Woodstown
Glassboro at Schalick

NOV. 8
FOOTBALL
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I PLAYOFFS
Riverside at Glassboro, 6 p.m.
Paulsboro at Schalick, 6 p.m.
CENTRAL JERSEY GROUP I PLAYOFFS
Pennsville at Woodstown, 7 p.m.
Woodbury at Shore, 7 p.m.
BOYS SOCCER
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT
Pitman at Schalick
Audubon at Haddon Twp.
Riverside Palmyra
Wildwood at Woodstown

NOV. 9
CROSS COUNTRY
NJSIAA Group Championships, Holmdel Park
MENS COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Delaware County CC at Salem CC, noon

Familiar foe, familiar result

Cougars offense catches up to defense, together they blank Audubon in the opening round of the playoffs for second year in a row; contains updated material

SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I
Friday’s Games
(1) Glassboro 64, (8) Pt. Pleasant Beach 7
(2) Schalick 24, (7) Audubon 0
Saturday’s Games
(5) Riverside 40, (4) Haddon Twp. 20
(3) Paulsboro 34, (6) Manville 9
Nov. 8 semifinals
Riverside at Glassboro
Paulsboro at Schalick

By Riverview Sports News

PITTSGROVE – Wasn’t it that famous old sage Yogi Berra who once said it was like deja vu all over again?

Schalick played Audubon in the opening round of the Group I playoffs for the second year in a row Friday night and it felt like a rerun.

The Cougars took out the Green Wave 24-0 in their first game in the South Jersey Group I bracket. It was 35-0 last year in the Central Jersey bracket.

The Cougars (7-3) now host Paulsboro in the sectional semifinals Friday. Paulsboro beat Manville 34-9 Saturday. The Cougars shut out Paulsboro 17-0 on Oct. 7.

“If we go out and we play to the level we’re capable of playing … we’re hard to beat when we don’t make mistakes,” Cougars coach Mike Wilson said. “If we don’t mistakes, even if we’re not moving the ball great, we have very good special teams and we’re playing very good defense.”

Schalick held the Green Wave to less than 100 yards of net offense and just 1-of-12 third-down conversions. It was the Cougars’ third shutout of the season.

It was a battle of punters and field position early, which the Cougars really didn’t mind, but they finally broke the ice when Kenai Simmons went on a 9-yard touchdown run with 6:01 left in the first half. Once they adjusted to the way the Wave was playing their unique offense, Simmons threw a 70-yard touchdown pass to Levi Feeney-Childers in the third quarter. Simmons passed for 99 yards and rushed for 13.

“Our kids have to learn to be patient that sometimes winning ugly is OK,” Wilson said. “What I mean by ugly is … it’s OK to punt and play defense sometimes.

“One of my buddies said to me even though it was 7-0 (at halftime) the way you guys are playing special teams and defense you weren’t going to lose that game.”

The Cougars extended their lead in the fourth on Dragotta’s 28-yard field goal and Dezyon Purnell’s touchdown run. Dragotta handled both the punting and placements in the game. His leg got a workout in the first half and he came within inches of hitting a school-record field goal late in the half, the ball hitting the left upright.

“It takes us a couple series to figure out how people are going to line up to us,” Wilson said. “If you notice every game once we figure it out and make our adjustments then we start scoring points. We came out the second half and just blew the ball right down the field.

“The kids have to just relax and understand we have great special teams, we have a very good defense and the offense will score points because we’re too talented not to. Just calm down and play football.”

Schalick 24, Audubon 0

AUDSCH
51st Downs9
17-30Rushing36-106
12-27-1C-A-I4-15-0
54Passing99
1-1Fum-Lost0-0
NAPunts6-36.3
NAPenalties4-29
Audubon (2-6)0000-0
Schalick (7-3)07710-24

SCORING SUMMARY
S-Kenai Simmons 9 run (Hunter Dragotta kick)
S-Levi Feeney-Childers 70 pass from Kenai Simmons (Hunter Dragotta kick)
S-Hunter Dragotta 28 FG
S-Dez Purnell run (Hunter Dragotta kick)

Another ‘next man’ delivers

Torres steps in as lead running back and has a career night as Woodstown tops KIPP Academy in CJ Group I playoffs; Next up: Pennsville

By Riverview Sports News

WOODSTOWN — The Woodstown football team has been surviving the second half of the season in a next-man-up kind of world, and Friday night another next-man-up came up big for the Wolverines.

Alex Torres stepped in for injured Bryce Belinfanti as the Wolverines’ lead running back and the senior responded with a career-high 152 yards rushing and two touchdowns as the Wolverines got past KIPP Cooper Norcross 31-8 in the opening round of the Central Jersey Group I playoffs.

“He was ready for the moment,” Woodstown coach Frank Trautz said. “We were confident in him and we knew he’d be able to deliver for us. He’s a great kid who plays super tough, does everything we ask him and he had his moment tonight.”

It’s not like he came in from left field. Torres has been big part of the rotation the last two years and he came into Friday’s game with 19 carries for 45 yards and no touchdowns. His previous single-game high rushing was 120 yards and two scores last year at Deptford.

The first two times he touched the ball Friday he went for 8 and 9 yards. He had six runs of 10 yards or more in the second half, including consecutive carries of 20, 13 and 15 yards.

The Wolverines’ offensive depth chart has been taking a hit in recent weeks. They already were playing with their third quarterback as Garrett Leyman continued to fill in as senior starter Jack Holladay continues to rehab a sprained shoulder, and that in turn shuffled their receiver rotation. Holladay gets re-evaulated Monday.

Belinfanti hurt his ankle in last week’s Diamond Division championship game at Glassboro and although he spoke confidently after the game of his return this week he didn’t play Friday. He was available if needed, but the coaching staff decided to give him another week’s rest.

“I think it’s a testament to our team,” Trautz said of the Wolverines’ ability to maintain their standard through the adversity. “We have faith and trust in the system, the kids trust the coaching and they trust their rules and Alex was able to execute tonight.

“I know we’re playing some backups at certain positions, but they’re not backup players. They’re really good football players who are doing whatever it takes to help us win right now.”

The Wolverines (8-1) now host county rival Pennsville in the sectional semifinals next Friday night.

Woodstown 31, KIPP 8

KIPP (6-4)0008-8
Woodstown (8-1)72715-31

SCORING SUMMARY
Wo-Garrett Leyman 7 run (Jake Ware kick), 1:25 1Q
Wo-Safety
Wo-Alex Torres 20 run (Jake Ware kick), 7:55 3Q
Wo-Alex Torres 1 run (Jake Ware kick), 9:11 4Q
Wo-Laitton Roberts 1 run (Bryceton Rooney pass from Carter Orlandini), 5:05 4Q
K-Michael Morton 25 run (Michael Morton pass from YahSan Cosby)

Woodstown’s Corbin Walz (54) comes off the field celebrating another sack in Friday night’s playoff game against KIPP. On the cover, Alex Torres (6) gets to the corner on his way to another big gain. (Photos by Ellen Sickler)



Living the dream

Big-man defensive touchdown kicks off Pennsville’s rout of Burlington City, Eagles’ first playoff win since 2016; Next up: Woodstown

CENTRAL JERSEY GROUP I
Friday’s Games
(1) Woodstown 31, (8) KIPP Cooper Norcross 8
(5) Pennsville 41, (4) Burlington City 20
(6) Woodbury 35, (3) Middlesex 28
(2) Shore 21, (7) New Egypt 0
Nov. 8 Semifinals
Pennsville at Woodstown
Woodbury at Shore

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News 

BURLINGTON – Jayden Gurnovich has been dreaming of scoring a touchdown his whole life. It’s the No. 1 dream of defensive linemen everywhere.

He just couldn’t believe his good fortune when the Burlington City quarterback just laid the ball in his hands less than two minutes into their playoff game Friday night.

Recognizing the screen pass that was about to come, the big Pennsville junior defensive end jumped the route, got his big paws in the air and simply absorbed the football he couldn’t believe came his way.

Then he effortlessly changed directions and motored his 290-pound frame through 31 yards of open field for the early touchdown that sent his Eagles off on an historic 41-20 win over Burlington City in the Central Jersey Group I playoffs.

“I’ve been dreaming of this my whole life; it’s very rare to happen,” Gurnovich said. “When I caught the ball I thought I was in a dream. When I was running I was just ready to wake up because it didn’t feel real at all. It was something special … the best thing ever.”

“There’s nothing better in football than a big-man’s touchdown,” Pennsville coach Mike Healy said.

And once he caught the ball, it wasn’t like he was some big lumbering hulk plodding his way downfield just hoping he’d make it before somebody ran him down. Nobody was catching him.

“Every day in practice we work on jet sweeps, getting the timing down,” senior receiver Malik Rehmer said. “Gurney’s supposed to pull and block for me and every day when I’m running I cannot catch him. It’s unbelievable. I’m pretty fast for my weight, but he gets 10 yards ahead of me and I can’t catch him. 

“He’s a tremendous athlete. That’s the first time I’ve ever seen a big man get a pick-six in high school. He doesn’t practice that. He’s a great athlete.”

Pennsville lineman Jayden Gurnovich (79) is congratulated on the sidelines after returning an interception for a touchdown that sent the Eagles on their way to victory in the Group I playoffs.

What it did was energize the Eagles even more than the day. It was their first playoff game since 2019 and their first playoff win since 2016. They also made the playoffs in 2017. The Eagles (6-4) now play top-seeded Woodstown in the sectional semifinals next week.

“It’s kind of a weight off the back, just like winning The Boot earlier this year,” Healy said, referencing the Eagles’ rivalry win over Penns Grove for the Wildman Willey Trophy. “We set these goals each year and we want to get them. Keep checking them off. It’s kind of a relief. It’s excitement. I’m just really fired up right now, to be honest.”

The Eagles dominated the Blue Devils on both sides of the ball when their regulars were in the game. They started the half with Gurnovich’s defensive score and ended the half with Rehmer’s 58-yard pick-six. In between they scored on three consecutive offensive possessions on 18 total plays, including a 55-yard score by Rehmer on the jet sweep.

Rylan Hardy scored the other two touchdowns, on a 25-yard pass from Robbie McDade and a 2-yard run. Hardy, the Eagles’ first 1,000-yard rusher since 2016 (Nick Bard), ran for 61 yards to bring his season total to 1,064.

“Overall in the first half we did everything we set out to do and executed,” Healy said. “Earlier this season that was lacking but the last couple games we’ve been really executing a lot better.”

Pennsville 41, Burlington City 20

PVILLEBC
131st Downs9
27-223Rushing27-68
2-3-0C-A-I8-12-2
21Passing97
1-1Fum-lost4-1
1-30.0Punts4-36.0
3-25Penalties6-75
Pennsville132170-41
Burlington City 08012-20

SCORING SUMMARY
P-Jayden Gurnovich 31 interception return (kick failed), 10:05 1Q
P-Malik Rehmer 55 run (Malik Rehmer kick), 1:56 1Q
BC-Caleb Hilton-Ingram 10 pass from Kysir Hodges (Malachi Sadler run), 6:49 2Q
P-Rylan Hardy 25 pass from Robbie McDade (Malik Rehmer kick), 3:48 2Q
P-Rylan Hardy 2 run (Malik Rehmer kick), 31.7 2Q
P-Malik Rehmer 58 interception return (Malik Rehmer kick), 9.3 2Q
P-Jovanni Rios 55 run (Luke Wood kick), 3Q
BC-Malachi Sadler 19 pass from Kysir Hodges (run failed), 8:40 4Q
BC-Malachi Sadler 30 pass from Kysir Hodges (run failed), 5:56 4Q

This week’s schedule

The first round of the NJSIAA football playoffs highlights the schedule for Salem County teams for the week of Oct. 28-Nov. 2

MONDAY
BOYS SOCCER
Salem at Penns Grove
Salem Tech at Schalick
GIRLS SOCCER
Penns Grove at Salem
Pennsville at Wildwood
Schalick at Salem Tech
VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at Highland

TUESDAY
FIELD HOCKEY
Clayton at Pennsville
Glassboro at Woodstown
Millville at Schalick
GIRLS SOCCER
Paulsboro at Salem Tech

WEDNESDAY
FIELD HOCKEY
Oakcrest at Pennsville
BOYS SOCCER
Salem at Gloucester Catholic
GIRLS SOCCER
Vineland at Woodstown
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Penn State Brandywine at Salem CC, 5:45 p.m.

FRIDAY
FOOTBALL
South Jersey Group I playoffs
Point Pleasant Beach at Glassboro
Audubon at Schalick
Central Jersey Group I playoffs
KIPP Cooper Norcross at Woodstown
Pennsville at Burlington City
Woodbury at Middlesex
New Egypt at Shore

BOYS SOCCER
Schalick at Cumberland

SATURDAY
FOOTBALL
South Jersey Group I playoffs
Riverside at Haddon Twp.
Manville at Paulsboro
CROSS COUNTRY
Sectionals at Dream Park