Category: FOOTBALL

Sky-high confidence

Pennsville feeling good about season going into opener; all 5 county football teams in action this week

SALEM COUNTY SCHEDULE
Thursday’s games
Pleasantville at Penns Grove, 10 a.m.
Pennsville at Lindenwold, 6 p.m.
Haddon Heights at Woodstown, 7 p.m.
Friday’s game
Pitman at Schalick, 7 p.m.
Saturday’s game
Camden at Salem, noon

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE – Sky Eppes had never played running back on any level of organized football until Pennsville’s season opener last year against Lindenwold. But his first game – heck, his first carry – seemed to set him up as a natural.

Pennsville (0-0)
at Lindenwold (0-1),
Thursday, 6 p.m.

The then-junior admittedly was a little nervous going into it, but the first time he ever carried the ball in a varsity game he broke off a 20-yard run. He had two other long runs later, went for 200 yards and two touchdowns on 24 busy carries and the Eagles won by outscoring their visitors 34-26 when the clock ran out on the Lions.

The boys in blue seemed to be on their way to something special. But it didn’t continue. That spectacular beginning would be their only win as a bad mixture of internal and external forces conspired to tear their season apart.
 
Eppes and the Eagles open the new season against the same opponent Thursday – this time on the road — hoping for similar first-game results and confident about the needle trending upwards as they move forward.

“We won the game, but they had the ball driving it with time running out for a chance to tie it up, so it wasn’t like it was an easy game or anything for us,” Eagles coach Mike Healy said. “Obviously, it was great to get a win, but we knew we had some issues. 

“This year I feel more confident going into it, for sure. I think we’re just better overall (on) offense and defense right now going into it. We think we’re better prepared this year, better ready to go. We’ve played much better this preseason. We’re limiting a lot of mistakes. We still have some, but we’re doing a better job of limiting them going forward.”

The issues of last year behind them, the Eagles have brought in some new coaches with links to their most recent decorated past and the players are buying into what the coaches are selling. Now, it’s a matter of executing when they get on the field.

Lindenwold spread the Eagles out last year and exposed their coverage issues, but the Lions showed to be heavy run last week in their 19-0 season opening loss at Sterling.  

“We just want to execute properly, that’s really what it is,” Healy said. “We feel if we execute properly we can be in and win any game this year. I’m very excited with the group we have going this year. We’re still a young team but we have more experience coming back. There’s definitely anticipation because we think we can accomplish better stuff this year.

“We’re not dealing with internal things right now. We’re all focused on what the goal is. Everyone seems to have bought into their role on the team and understand that if we’re going to be successful we need all 11 guys on that field to do their job each time. We’re playing more as a team instead of 11 individuals.”

Eppes was as much a victim of whatever implosion was going on with the Eagles as anybody. He got moved to running back because Healy wanted some speed in the backfield and the move paid off with the 200 yards against Lindenwold, but he had only 452 in the eight games that followed.

His best rushing game the rest of the year was 97 yards against Schalick. In his defense, he also was used as a receiver and had 115 yards receiving against Cumberland.

“I was hyped,” he said about his first game at running back. “I was like we’re going to have a good year … and turn Pennsville around and bring it back to where it was in 2014. But it didn’t happen that way.”

This year promises to be better because attitudes are different and the Eagles have a scheme in place designed to put Eppes and the offense in situations to be able to do better. Now, he wants to set school rushing and touchdown records – once he learns what they are – and for the offense to have big games every week.

“This is my senior year; I’m trying to run as hard as I can and put up numbers,” he said. “I want to hit a big score again, I want to go hit a big score on everybody.

“We had bigger linemen (last year) but it isn’t about how big and strong you are, it’s about the heart that we have. The heart we have in this team will go very far. The heart and compassion for this team is what’s going to bring us along.”

PLEASANTVILLE (0-1) at PENNS GROVE (0-1): After suffering seven turnovers in their season opener – six lost fumbles – the Red Devils spent the week working on the highest priority for the offense – ball security. They moved the ball well enough to win, rushing for 328 yards, but the turnovers killed them. 

There wasn’t an idle moment in practice this week when a Penns Grove player didn’t have a football tucked tightly on their person. The thing coach John Emel didn’t want to see was a ball on the ground or the Red Devils would have, um, the hot place to pay.

“We made it a point of emphasis,” Emel said. “We practiced a lot of ball security drills. It’s not something we don’t talk about. Everybody has a Big 3 keys to win – we’ve done it forever – and the No. 1 on our board is always been ball security. If you take care of the ball, you win the turnover battle, no matter what else happens you have a better opportunity to win the game.

“We didn’t do that; that’s disappointing. We’ve definitely got to be better. I’m optimistic we’ll go out and play a lot better on Thursday and we’ll fix the things where we made mistakes. It wasn’t just a bad game, it’s the worst turnover game we’ve ever had in my 20 years of coaching high school.”

The most positive takeaway from the game was the debut of freshman Karon Ceaser. The Red Devils’ first true freshman skill position starter in 20 years rushed for 155 yards and two touchdowns, but he wasn’t immune to fumbling either. The difference was he recovered his.

Pleasantville also is looking to get on the right track. The Greyhounds are coming off a 14-6 loss to Ocean City in the Battle at the Beach. They beat Penns Grove last year 26-2.

HADDON HEIGHTS (0-0) at WOODSTOWN (0-0): https://godaddy623.wordpress.com/2023/08/29/a-ware-of-history/

PITMAN (0-0) at SCHALICK (1-0): The Cougars’ dramatic season-opening win over their longest-tenured rival sets them up for another piece of history this week.

The Cougars have a chance to go 2-0 for the first time since 2017 when they opened the season with back-to-back shutouts of Wildwood and Riverside and set up what some observers think can be an even more historic start.

Coaches are notorious for not looking ahead (publicly, at least) so coach Mike Wilson’s focus this week was correcting the mistakes that were made in the opening – and there were some – and simply going 1-0 this week.

“It’s like I told the kids Saturday when we watched the film, we still haven’t played our best football yet,” Wilson said. “We did a lot of good things, but we left a lot of points on the field and made a lot of opening-game mistakes we’ve been fixing this week.

“The kids know we did a good job, but that’s over with now and we’ve got to get better. There’s a lot of room for growth. I expect us to make a big jump this week.”

Another thing the film revealed was just how good a game junior nose T.J. Hymer had. Hymer made the back-to-back stops on the goal line to keep Gloucester City from taking the lead at that point in the fourth quarter, but he did more than that.

“We knew T.J. played a great game, but he played probably the best football game of his life Friday night,” Wilson said. “What he did at nose Friday night, he played well, but watching the film, he played excellent. If I was grading his film, he would get high grades across the board.”

The Cougars lead the series 21-17. They have won 12 of the last 13 by some substantial margins, including an 11-game winning streak that was snapped in 2020.

CAMDEN (0-1) at SALEM (0-1): Now that they’ve sorted out where they’re going to play, the Rams can get back to the bigger business of fixing the things that went wrong in their opening-game loss to Executive Education.

The focus of the week has been tightening up their defense. The Rams were as close as 14-13 in the third quarter, then got outscored 28-6 the rest of the game.

“Our guys knew what we do, we just didn’t do it,” Rams coach Danny Mendoza said. “The discipline part of defense is what we need to focus on to get us on the right track. We’ve got guys who can make plays, we’ve just got to get those guys to do what we’re telling them.”

Now that he’s seen what his team has and needs at the speed of a real game, Mendoza can go about tweaking the defense to put players in more advantageous positions for their skill sets.

It’s a new experience for Mendoza, too. His experience has long been on offense, but the late timing of his hiring dictated Mendoza take the role of overseeing a defense for the first time. He’s brought a different look to the unit and it’s a work in progress for both sides.

“It’s a new role,” he said. “As an offensive guy you always make the defense the villain. Now, you have to even it out. The offense will always be solid, but we’ve got to make sure we’re just as solid on that side of the ball as well.”

The game was supposed to be part of the Mid-Atlantic Pigskin Classic at Wilmington’s Abessinio Stadium, but conflicts at the site led to both teams pulling out. The game now will be played at Salem’s Walnut Street Field, the Rams’ long-time stomping grounds that fell into disrepair and led to the school building an on-campus stadium.

Photo: Pennsville’s Sky Eppes (1) runs the ball back during a recent scrimmage against Haddon Heights. Eppes and the Eagles make their regular-season debut Thursday night at Lindenwold. (Photo by Lorraine Jenkins)

Old home week

Salem will return to its old home field, Walnut Street Field, to play Saturday’s game with Camden; team plans walk-through Thursday

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

SALEM – Once (maybe twice) more, for old time’s sake.

The headache that was trying to find a venue for this week’s Salem-Camden high school football game got resolved Tuesday morning when Salem High School and city officials confirmed the Rams’ old Walnut Street Field will be available, with limitations, to host the teams.

Camden (0-1)
at Salem (0-1),
Walnut Street Field,
Saturday, noon

The facility has been undergoing repairs and on target for the Junior Rams youth team to play there Sept. 17. Salem City Administrator Ben Angeli told Riverview Sports News today crews “kind of rushed things a little” and have the bleachers ready for Sept. 2 occupancy. However, the press box and electrical will not be available at that time.

Salem athletics director Darryl Roberts confirmed this morning the game will be played at Walnut Street Saturday at noon. He is hoping they can find power for the scoreboard that can be operated remotely.

“I’m extremely pleased,” Roberts said. “We planned on going to Camden, but (Camden AD Will Hickson) called me yesterday and let me know their field’s not ready because they’re getting new bleachers and they’re not completed yet, so that kind of put us in a situation where we really didn’t have anywhere to play at this point.”

The Rams had played their home games at Walnut Street until the bleachers there fell into disrepair expediting plans for the high school to build its own stadium. The campus project is on-going and is expected to be finished in time for the team to play two games at home in October, but everything else it played had to be on the road.

The Salem-Camden game originally was scheduled as part of Saturday’s lineup in the Mid-Atlantic Pigskin Classic at Abessinio Stadium in Wilmington, but conflicts at the site prompted the teams to pull out and seek alternate venues.

“The field was great and people obviously came out,” Roberts said of Walnut Street. “The concern was always just the bleachers being unsafe, but the field is really great. We always said if we could just pick that field up and put it over here behind the school we’d be perfect.”

Rams coach Danny Mendoza doesn’t know a lot about the field except what he has heard, and he has heard some great things about its history. The plan is to take the team over for a walk-through Thursday.

“We’re excited to get back there,” he said. “There are a lot of years of tradition there. It’s a sacred field for the city there.

“There are a lot of great players who played there, all those guys who played on that field for like 60 years. The field’s been there a long time. It’s right in the center of the city and people come out to watch games from their porches and front yards. From what I hear it’s a great atmosphere and a place where a lot of people came together from the city to do a lot of good.”

Both teams are looking to bounce back from out-of-state season-opening losses. The Rams fell to Executive Education Academy of Allentown, Pa., 42-19, in Mendoza’s first game with the team. Camden lost 37-18 at Lake Taylor in Norfolk, Va.

Saturday’s game may not be the last time the Rams play in their old home this year.

“We might bring our (Sept. 16) Penns Grove game back over here also,” Roberts said. “If everything goes fine. As long as the City is fine with it. So, Penns Grove should technically be our last home game there at Walnut Street.”

A-Ware of history

Woodstown kicker will extend a family legacy when Wolverines open season Thursday, provides a needed piece to offense 

SALEM COUNTY SCHEDULE
THIS WEEK’S GAMES
Thursday
Pleasantville at Penns Grove, 10 a.m.
Pennsville at Lindenwold, 6 p.m.
Haddon Heights at Woodstown, 7 p.m.
Friday
Pitman at Schalick, 7 p.m.
Saturday
Camden at Salem (Walnut Street), noon

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

WOODSTOWN – The first game of every team’s season is always an exciting time, some more than others. Woodstown kicker Jake Ware has been looking forward to Thursday night’s season opener against Haddon Heights since the day he came back to the school last January.

WARE

Of all the places the junior could think of to play his first varsity game, the Wolverines’ Clint Ware Field could not be more appropriate or special. The place has his grandfather’s name on it. His father ran into the school record books there. It’s the reason he wanted to transfer back to Woodstown to finish his high school football career.

Jake has kicked on the field already this summer – in the Wolverines’ two home scrimmages against St. Joe (Hammonton) and Delsea – but this time it’ll mean a little more because now it’s for real.

“It’s going to be really cool,” he said. “My grandfather coached for over 20 years, my dad (Steve) had the running record, he still might have it.

“With all the history of my family being here for so long and then my dad playing here being coached by his dad, I think it’s just cool. I think it will be very exciting. I’m not too nervous about it because if I’m nervous about it I’ll think about it too much and I’ll get out of my flow of hitting it normal every time.“

Jake didn’t ever know his grandfather; he was born in 2007 and Clint died in 2001 at age 59 of complications from ALS, Lou Gehrig’s Disease. But through all the stories he’s heard over the years he knows his granddad was a giant in the community.

Clint was the longest tenured coach in Woodstown’s history, leading the football team to a 164-139-10 record over a 34-year Hall of Fame career. As a player, he starred in football, basketball and baseball in high school and went on to play college football at the University of Delaware. He also was active in the community, serving as a Salem City Councilman for six years and a county freeholder for more than a quarter-century, initiating numerous programs that are still in force today.

“I just know he used to be really nice, and a really good coach,” Jake said. “I don’t really know too much.”

Jake went to the Woodstown schools through the eighth grade, then transferred to Wilmington’s Salesianum School to be part of the Sallies’ nationally ranked soccer program. He was still living in Woodstown and regularly attended Wolverine games on Friday nights, but drove back and forth across the bridge every day to go to school. 

Actually, he never started kicking a football until about a year ago and when he kicked for Salesianum it was on the junior varsity and only extra points. It wasn’t the commute to Delaware every day that ultimately led to his return, but rather a return to his roots to fulfill his destiny and rejoin his childhood friends.

“I’m just really excited to be able to start my first varsity game and it makes it even better that it’s here with all my friends I grew up with,” he said.

When Woodstown coach John Adams learned of Ware’s return in January, it was like getting a late Christmas gift. The kicker immediately brings the Wolverines an element they haven’t had in a while.

They could have used a reliable leg in each of their last two playoff losses. He’s true on PATs, regularly kicks off into the end zone and is comfortable kicking field goals from beyond the 30; he’s kicked a 55-yarder once in a private workout. And he can punt it high and deep depending on the need.

The Wolverines were just 8-of-16 on PATs last season and had no field goals. They didn’t even attempt to kick an extra point the year before. Over the past 10 seasons they’ve only attempted 10 field goals. Ware kicks that many every practice.

It was a real shortcoming in the biggest games of the year. They missed their two-point conversion attempt in last year’s 15-6 sectional semifinal upset to Paulsboro. It was an even more glaring deficiency the year before when they lost to Woodbury 8-6 in the sectional final. They missed a two-point conversion in the second quarter and were in the red zone two other times and came away with no points.

“Ever since we lost Conner Batten, our kicker who went to Rowan to kick, we struggled with kicking,” Adams said. “Last season we had to go with two-point plays and spent a lot of practice time on all that. To have a guy transfer in who’s a great kid, who’s a really good kicker and only going to be a junior, we were like this is awesome.

“It filled a need for us and he works on his craft every day out here. We’re excited to have him because in Group I that can be a blessing for you. We’re excited that if it gets to be fourth down and we’re in the red zone we can go get points now and that changes how defenses have to play you and all that stuff. It’s going to be huge for us.”

Jake has been aware the name on the scoreboard is his grandfather’s from the time he was in first grade, so the charge of seeing it has worn off a little. But that doesn’t diminish the strong sense of pride he carries every time he goes on the field. It’ll just be a lot stronger Thursday.

Adams called the chance for Ware to kick on the field that bears his granddad’s name “special for him, special for his family” and there will be many members of the family on hand to witness it.

The coach will feel something, too.

“For him to come and kick on the field that’s named for his grandfather is just unreal,” he said. “It’s a great story.”

Woodstown’s Jake Ware practices his kickoffs during a recent practice. The junior will make his varsity debut Thursday night on the field that bears his grandfather’s name.

This week’s schedule

Here is the Salem County high school sports schedule for the week of Aug. 27-Sept. 2. The football games are regular season, all others are scrimmages. For additions or cancelations, email al.muskewitz@gmail.com

Aug. 28
GIRLS SOCCER
Schalick at Kingsway, 9 a.m.
Cumberland at Penns Grove, 10 a.m.
BOYS SOCCER
Clearview at Schalick, 9 a.m.
FIELD HOCKEY
Woodstown at Timber Creek, 9 a.m.
Deptford Twp. at Pennsville, 10 a.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
Williamstown at Pennsville, 10 a.m.
Woodstown at Ocean City, 11 a.m.

Aug. 29
FIELD HOCKEY
Salem at Hammonton, 4 p.m.
BOYS SOCCER
Penns Grove at Cumberland, 10 a.m.
Woodbury at Salem, 10 a.m.
GIRLS SOCCER
Pennsville at Buena, 10 a.m.
Salem at Woodbury, 10 a.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
Woodstown at Kingsway, 9 a.m.

Aug. 30
FIELD HOCKEY
Salem, Schalick, Bridgeton at Cumberland, 8:30 a.m.
GIRLS SOCCER
Schalick at Cumberland, 9 a.m.
Penns Grove vs. Gloucester Co. Christian at Paulsboro, 10 a.m.
BOYS SOCCER
Cumberland at Schalick, 9 a.m.
Williamstown at Woodstown, 9 a.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
Cumberland at Schalick, 9 a.m.
Woodstown at Timber Creek, 9 a.m.
Pennsville at Deptford Twp., 10 a.m.

Aug. 31
FOOTBALL
Pleasantville at Penns Grove, 10 a.m.
Pennsville at Lindenwold, 6 p.m.
Haddon Heights at Woodstown, 7 p.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
Delsea at Pennsville, 10 a.m.
Penns Grove at Haddon Twp., 10 a.m. 
Salem at Bridgeton, 10 a.m.
GIRLS SOCCER
Gloucester City at Woodstown, 9 a.m.
Haddon Heights at Pennsville, 9 a.m.
Penns Grove at Salem, 10 a.m.
BOYS SOCCER
Salem at Bridgeton, 10 a.m.

Sept. 1
FOOTBALL
Pitman at Schalick, 7 p.m.
FIELD HOCKEY
Salem at Buena, 10 a.m.
BOYS SOCCER
Woodstown at Haddon Twp., 4:15 p.m.
GIRLS SOCCER
Haddon Twp. at Woodstown, 4:15 p.m.

Sept. 2
FOOTBALL
Camden at Salem, noon

Photo credit: Ellen Sickler

Salem drops opener

FRIDAY’S COUNTY SCORES
Burlington City 33, Penns Grove 22
Executive Education 42, Salem 19
Schalick 17, Gloucester City 14

By Riverview Sports News

EASTON, Pa. – The Danny Mendoza Era of Salem football got off to a rough start Friday night as Executive Education Academy of Allentown, Pa., played an inspired second half and pulled away from the Rams 42-19 in Lafayette College’s Fisher Stadium.

Executive EACS 42,
Salem 19
NEXT: vs. Camden,
Sept. 2, site TBA

The Rams were in the game for two and a half quarters, then the Raptors, playing for their starting quarterback Salem knocked out in the first quarter, outscored them 28-6 the rest of the way.

The Rams trailed 14-7 at the half and had a chance for a tie. They were driving for a potential game-tying touchdown late in the second quarter and had it fourth-and-1 from the 16, but a false start knocked them back and they didn’t get it on the next snap.

They did get to within 14-13 on a Ramaji Bundy touchdown pass to Terrance Smith with about seven minutes left in the third quarter, but they didn’t get the extra point and the Raptors started pulling away.

“The backup came in and those guys just rallied around their guy,” Mendoza said. “They really wanted to take care of business for their quarterback so they played with a different intensity and for a different purpose that we didn’t match.

“They just ran the ball down our throat. We couldn’t stop the run. We couldn’t hold contain. Plays were they to be made. They didn’t run anything out of the ordinary. They ran three run plays that we couldn’t stop. It was a game for a good amount. They took the wind out of us.”

Smith scored Salem’s first touchdown and Bundy scored its third to make it 28-19.

“I lost my first game as a head coach (in Florida), so it’s all right; we’ve lost before, you just figure it out,” Mendoza said. “We’ve got some soul searching to do.”

Last-minute heroics

Schalick lives up to its season theme by finding a way to win, driving to score the winning TD against Gloucester City in the final minute

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PITTSGROVE – Kenai Simmons apologized for the quality of his voice as he talked about the game-winning drive, but it was that kind of game. It was one of those games that took all the encouragement he could muster to drive his team to victory.

Simmons capped a 59-yard drive with a 20-yard touchdown run with 56 seconds to play Friday night to give Schalick a dramatic 17-14 win over Gloucester City in the season opener for both teams.

Schalick 17,
Gloucester City 14
NEXT: vs. Pitman,
Friday, 7 p.m.

The Cougars held the lead for most of the game until Gloucester scored on a 19-yard fourth-down pass with 4:38 left. The score came after Schalick had to punt from its end zone after its defense made two stops on the goal line, led by T.J. Hymer, to keep the Lions out of the end zone on the previous possession.

It would have been a tough way to lose considering the way the Cougars played all game against last year’s Central Jersey Group II finalist.

But Simmons, who just took over the quarterback job this season after not playing the position since youth football, flawlessly directed a seven-play drive to give Schalick back the lead. 

Nothing was going to keep him out of the end zone  He started the drive with a 24-yard pass to Dylan Sheehan. He moved the chains with an 8-yard gain on third down that looked like it was going nowhere off the snap. And then he slipped through a crowded backfield into open field on his go-ahead touchdown.

Schalick quarterback Kenai Simmons (1) races to the corner of the end zone for the game-winning touchdown. Running back Reggie Allen (4) leads the celebration in the top photo. (Photos by Heather Papiano)

“I don’t think my words could explain how eager I was to  get in the end zone,” Simmons said. “We owed them one, No. 1, and we worked too hard for this to let them come back on us like that on our home turf.

“The way my team was pushing me around, like let’s go, we have this, we’ve got it in us. Before we started moving the ball down the field, I was like, OK, we’re on the same level right now and I like that. It encouraged me even more to get in there.” 

There was still some time on the clock, but the Cougars sealed it when kicker Hunter Dragotta drilled a rocket of a kickoff that bounced off the return man’s helmet and was recovered by Nylan Sutton at the 23.

Simmons took a knee twice and the Cougars had their victory in the longest running series in their program’s history.

“We’ve been preaching since the offseason and you’ll see it on our shirts, it’s called Find A Way To Win,” Cougars coach Mike Wilson said. “We told the kids it would take 48 minutes and play every play like it’s a new play and they did that tonight.

“They believed in themselves, they’ve been working hard and they truly found a way to win. We made some young mistakes tonight, but we persevered and found a way.”

Gloucester opened the game with an 80-yard touchdown drive, but Schalick answered with Levi Freeney-Childers’ 5-yard touchdown run and took the lead with Dragotta’s extra point. Dragotta also kicked a 32-yard field goal on the final play of the first half to give the Cougars a 10-6 halftime lead.

The kicker was setting up for a 29-yarder late in the third quarter that would have extended the Cougars lead, but a bad snap foiled the attempt.

Schalick controlled the ball in such a fashion Gloucester ran only 16 plays in the first half and 21 through three quarters.

Those last five plays were the start of the drive that Schalick eventually stuffed at the goal line. The Lions had gotten to the 1 on third down, but Hymer and his linemates stuffed Lions quarterback Jake Seibert twice.

“The center couldn’t push me around; I stood my ground and made sure I was playing,” Hymer said. “That’s probably the tiredest I’ve ever felt in a football game, but I knew I had to fight. I had to.

“I knew it was coming right to me because they thought they could bully us through the way they charged the ball down the field. Well, I stood up and made a stop. We made a stop. I knew that center was nervous, he had to get the push but didn’t, and I took it and ran with it. I didn’t come this far just to sit down and cry. I had to keep on pushing.”

Wilson considered taking a safety when his offense didn’t move the ball off the goal line, letting Dragotta kick it deep on the free kick and putting it in the hands of his defense from long range.

He did put it in the hands of defense, but from only 25 yards away as the Cougars punted from their end zone. They almost held the Lions there, but Gloucester scored its go-ahead touchdown against a broken coverage.

Schalick lineman T.J. Hymer (56) made two huge stops on the goal line to keep the Lions out of the end zone. (Photo by Heather Papiano)

Schalick 17, Gloucester City 14

GLOU CITY (14)SCHALICK (17)
111st Downs13
21-111Rushes-yds38-134
5-9-2Passes5-5-0
91Passing yds34
3-2Fum-Lost0-0
0-0Punts-avg0-0
6-60Penalties-yds2-10
Gloucester City6008 —14
Schalick7307 —17

Scoring plays
GC – Jaden Garris 22 pass from Jake Seibert (kick failed), 4:52 1Q
S – Levi Freeney-Childers 5 run (Hunter Dragotta kick), 0:35 1Q
S – Hunter Dragotta 32 FG, 0:00 2Q
GC – Justin Frazer 19 pass from Jake Seibert (Jaden Garris pass from Jake Seibert), 4:38 4Q
S – Kenai Simmons 20 run (Hunter Dragotta kick) 0:56 4Q

Schalick’s L.J. Loney (57) and Alec Bramell bring heavy pressure to Gloucester quarterback Jack Seibert. (Photo by Heather Papiano)



Bedeviled by turnovers

7 turnovers (6 fumbles) conspire to send Penns Grove to its first opening day loss since 2016

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNS GROVE – John Emel has seen it so many times before, but that doesn’t make it any more palatable when it’s happening to you.

Burlington City 33,
Penns Grove 22
Next: vs. Pleasantville, Thursday, 10:30 a.m.

It’s the first game of the season. Neither team really knows what the other is bringing. The difference will be who makes the least first-game mistakes.

The Penns Grove coach said as much when discussing Friday’s season opener two days ago.

In a reversal of last year’s opening game, his Red Devils were the ones with too many mistakes this time and they lost to Burlington City 33-22. It was their first loss on opening day since 2016.

They racked up close to 400 yards of offense and outgained the Blue Devils by nearly 120 yards, but they fell victim to six lost fumbles and an interception in what Emel called the worst display of ball security he’s seen as a coach.

“Keys to victory, No. 1 is ball security,” Emel said. “We know we’re young and inexperienced at the quarterback position, but too many older guys – and it wasn’t one guy, it was a combination … You’re not ever going to make those mistakes and win the game. That’s one of the worst in terms of efficiency I’ve seen since I’ve coached.”

One of the more frustrating aspects of it was several of the fumbles came after long runs. The Red Devils ran only one play in the first four minutes of the game – a lost fumble – and were down 13-0. Despite three lost fumbles in the half, they fought back to earn a 16-13 halftime lead, but the third quarter was their downfall.

All four of their possessions in the quarter ended in a turnover. They outgained the Blue Devils by 70 yards in the quarter and fell behind 27-16.

A fumble stopped the opening drive of the second half at midfield. The next possession was an interception on their first pass attempt of the game. The third was a fumble that City’s Dymear Hill returned 71 yards for a touchdown. And the fourth was a fumble in the red zone as they were looking to close the gap.

They did get back to within 27-22 early in the fourth quarter, but Burlington City answered on a touchdown pass from Ayden Shansey to Hill and then stopped the Red Devils on downs in the red zone to effectively put it away. Hill scored three touchdowns. Shansey threw four touchdown passes.

“It’s tough, man, it’s tough,” Emel said. “It’s frustrating. I don’t know how to say it. It hurts. It hurts to work hard and see kids struggle.

“Everything we worked on was there. It’s not really a game-planning thing, it’s an execution thing.”

The Red Devils moved the ball; the rushed for 328 yards in the game. KaRon Ceaser made an impressive varsity debut as their first true freshman skill position starter in nearly 20 years. He rushed for 155 yards and two touchdowns on 18 carries and had one interception where he went over a receiver and nearly a second in the end zone. He had 94 yards rushing on 12 carries in the second half.

A year ago he was playing youth football. He said the experience of his first varsity game matched his expectations.

“Most definitely,” he said. “I knew I put the work in, hours in the weight room, practice. It felt good, but I have to stay humble, keep playing.

“I just kept my team up, tried to be a leader as a freshmen. It’s hard, they’re not going to listen to a freshman, but I tried my best.”

If he keeps running like that they’ll listen.

“I feel like he’s ready,” Emel said. “The one thing I will say about him is what he’s going to learn at this level, just like when you move to college and then the NFL, it’s more physically demanding; the game’s harder. Everybody was battling cramps, he was able to fight through. But once he’s able to play at that maximum level for the whole game I think he, just like a lot of guys, can be special.”

Top returning back Bryce Wright rushed for 119 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries, many of them carrying multiple tacklers before being brought down and made several big hits on defense. But he also had two of the fumbles.

“On the offensive side of the ball I think I could have done a lot better,” Wright said. “The No. 1 thing on the board is ball security and I think I lacked that today. We can’t win a game like that. Eight turnovers, that’s unacceptable. Eight-thirty on Monday we’re going to fix that, for sure.”

Burlington City 33, Penns Grove 22

BURL CITY (33)PENNS GROVE (22)
141st Downs17
34-63Rushes-yds48-328
9-20-2Passes2-4-0
188Passing yds41
0-0Fum-Lost7-6
3-31.0Punts-avg0-0
6-40Penalties-yds9-97
Burlington City130146 –33
Penns Grove8806 –22

Scoring plays
BC – Micah Anderson 19 pass from Ayden Shansey (Spencer Ostner kick), 9:53 1Q
BC – Dymear Hill 45 pass from Ayden Shansey (pass failed), 7:55 1Q
PG – KaRon Ceaser 3 (Bryce Wright run), 5:24 1Q
PG – KaRon Ceaser 10 run (Bryce Wright run), 5:06 2Q
BC – Malachi James 32 pass from Ayden Shansey (Spencer Ostner kick), 7:30 3Q
BC – Dymear Hill 71 fumble return (Spencer Ostner kick), 5:29 3Q
PG – Bryce Wright 1 run (run failed), 10:24 4Q
BC – Dymear Hill 44 pass from Ayden Shansey (kick failed), 7:28 4Q

Photo: Penns Grove’s KaRon Ceaser cuts around the corner to score his first varsity touchdown and the Red Devils’ first touchdown of the season.

Final scrimmages

Woodstown, Pennsville see encouraging signs in final scrimmages of camp; both open their seasons Thursday

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

WOODSTOWN – The first thing Woodstown coach John Adams thought when he saw the Delsea team his Wolverines were scrimmaging Thursday night get off the bus was it might be a tough go for his charges.

It didn’t get any easier when the Crusaders stifled Woodstown’s opening possession and then broke off an 87-yard touchdown run on their second play from scrimmage.

But then Adams saw something that bodes well for the Wolverines when their regular season gets underway next week. 

They didn’t back down.

The Wolverines immediately answered two of Delsea’s three touchdowns and their defense stopped the defending South Jersey Group III champions on the final series of the varsity half to keep the margin a respectable 21-13.

“I loved the battle from our kids,” Adams said. “When they walked in, we were like … they were big; they had great size. But I thought we battled. It seemed like we answered against one of the best teams in the state.

“It was good seeing our kids fight from a deficit and still fight and be able to answer back.”

The Wolverines put together a 65-yard drive to answer Delsea’s first score. They went three-and-out after the second, then put together a 70-yard, nine-play drive after the third.

Woodstown’s offensive line has every Delsea lineman covered giving quarterback Max Webb time to find an open receiver. Webb was 8-of-10 for 95 yards and two TDs passing. (Photo by Ellen Sickler)

It was evident with Delsea’s size the Wolverines weren’t going to have much success running the ball, especially with star James Hill still two weeks away from rejoining the offense. So, they went up top and quarterback Max Webb was right on time.

The senior hit his first five throws and finished 8-of-10 for 95 yards with touchdown passes of 13 yards to Garrett Leyman to answer Delsea’s first score and 9 over the middle to Anthony Ford-Dale to answer the third. He also had two nice runs to get out of trouble.

Leyman caught three passes for 30 yards, Ford-Dale caught three for 33 and Zach Bevis had two for 32. The varsity rushed for 58 yards on 16 carries.

“We told the kids we’re not going to be able to run the ball on everybody and I thought we did a fantastic job in the pass game tonight,” Adams said. “Max looked lights out, scrambling for first downs, knowing where his receivers were. The pass blocking was pretty good for him.

“I was really, really pleased with how we executed offensively, because we knew with their size we were going to have trouble running the ball in between the tackles on them. And that’s the goal we wanted this year. We can’t just rely on the run, so being able to come out against a team like that and knowing we do have the passing game and were able to execute it well was phenomenal.”

The Wolverines open the regular season at home Thursday against Haddon Heights.

“It’s game week now,” Adams said. “Now it means something.”

Woodstown’s Anthony Ford-Dale looks to get around the corner. (Photo by Ellen Sickler)

Eagles encouraged going forward

PENNSVILLE – Pennsville scrimmaged the team Woodstown opens its season against next week and although the Eagles came up short in the varsity portion of the exercise 18-14, coach Mike Healy saw “enough good stuff on there to make me happy and give me encouragement.”

The Eagles opened up their passing game with some downfield throws and quarterback Robbie McDade connected twice with Malik Rehmer for long touchdown passes.

They hooked up on a 45-yard pass to open the scoring, then connected on a 70-yarder for another score.

“Malik’s a very good receiver; he’s going to go up and get the ball,” Healy said. “He’s got all the attributes you want and Robbie just has a lot of trust in him to go get the football. That confidence to know he’s going to go get the ball is huge for a young quarterback.

“We were a very young team last year. We’re still young this year, but we’re definitely seeing more chemistry develop between all the players really. We’re starting to see the confidence go up a little bit, too. They’re realizing we can do some things. It’s just a consistency issue more than anything else.”

The Eagles open their season Thursday at Lindenwold, a team they beat 34-26 in last year’s opener for their only victory of the season.

Pennsville’s Daniel Saulin bats down a pass in Thursday’s scrimmage against Haddon Heights. (Photo by Lorraine Jenkins)

Devil of an opener

Penns Grove opens season at home with Burlington City in a game that might loom large at end of the year

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNS GROVE – It might only be the first game of the season, but Penns Grove football coach John Emel is treating it as the most important game of the year.

Because it just might be.

It was last year.

FRIDAY: Burlington City
at Penns Grove, 10:30 AM

The Red Devils open their season Friday with a 10:30 a.m. home game with Burlington City. In a game that, even though early, truly could have end-of-season implications.

Emel is hoping the Red Devils have improved enough that it won’t come down to this again, but this game last year basically was the reason they got in the playoffs and the Blue Devils didn’t. Penns Grove won the head-to-head battle in the opener 48-14 giving them the tiebreaker to grab the last spot in the South Jersey Group I playoffs.

The Red Devils went on to lose to eventual state champion Woodbury in the first round of the South Jersey Group I playoffs, while Burlington City grabbed a 3 seed and won the SJ Group 1 regional invitational tournament.

“With the (WJFL) league we play in, this is a playoff game,” Emel said. “The winner of this game – I think we both feel the same way – whoever wins this game is going to, I don’t want to say qualify right away, but … will get ahead of the other one when it comes to qualifying for the playoffs.”

The game appears evenly matched with Penns Grove opening the season with a 55.82 strength index to Burlington City’s 55.23. The Red Devils were able to separate themselves in last year’s game by taking advantage of Burlington City mistakes and that will be a factor Friday.

“When a team like them is explosive on offense and has a veteran quarterback, you don’t want to give them extra possessions,” Emel said. “It’s going to be who’s going to make those first-game mistakes you see every year.

“I think they’re looking forward to getting a chance to get back at us. Even though we beat them pretty good (last year), the first game of the season you’re not looking past anybody. We’ve been preparing for them all season.”

The Red Devils do have a couple things going for them. They’re playing at home, where they’re 39- 17 in Emel’s nine years (including a 26-2 run from 2017-2020) and they haven’t lost a season opener since 2016. The two openers they’ve lost in Emel’s tenure have been by a combined eight points.

One of the biggest missions in the Red Devils’ camp this summer was determining their starting five on the offensive line. It shook out quickly with center Damani Brice, guards Isaiah Upshur and Tony Cooper, and tackles Wayne Scott and lone senior Misa Nieves.

Bryce Wright returns from a 600-yard rushing season to take over as the lead back, ready for a big year. The Red Devils have several other weapons, including Knowledge Young, Khiry Higgs and Karon Ceasar, the team’s first true freshman skill position opening day starter since 2005. Sophomore Remello Erickson is the quarterback with two previous starts under his belt.

The defense will be the strength of the team with a front seven that projects as good as any team around in Group 1.

The Red Devils have high expectations, but they still have to negotiate the tough WJFL Diamond Division, the SEC West of the league. All five teams from the division made the playoffs last year.

But they have to get past Burlington City first.

“All our scrimmages were away, so this is the first time we’ve been on the game field since last November, so it’s just an opportunity to start the season off on a high note,” Emel said. “You want to play at home. You want to play a good team at home and this is a quality opponent. The Red Devils and Blue Devils are going to get it on Friday.”

Devilish in openers

Penns Grove record in season openers under head coach John Emel
YEAROPPONENTSCORE
2022at Burlington CityW 48-14
2021BernardsW 40-20
2020at WoodstownW 48-7
2019at PennsvilleW 68-7
2018PennsvilleW 63-3
2017at DeptfordW 51-34
2016DeptfordL 27-20
2015at WoodstownW 18-6
2014WoodstownL 21-20

Photo: Penns Grove senior Nasir Stewart picks out the No. 52 jersey he has worn for three seasons as the Red Devils distribute game jerseys in the run up to Friday’s season opener with Burlington City.

Rams mean business

Season opener on a college campus will be a business trip for Salem in new coach Danny Mendoza’s debut

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

The Salem Rams may still have some questions about their second game of the season next week, but there’s no question what their season opener is all about.

Under first-year coach Danny Mendoza, the Rams open the season Friday night in a college stadium some two hours away against a team whose coach runs his program by the major-college principles he learned as a P5 player.

FRIDAY: Salem vs. Executive Education,
at Lafayette College, Easton, Pa., 7 p.m.

With all that as a backdrop, suffice to say the game against Executive Education Academy of Allentown, Pa., in Lafayette College’s Fisher Stadium is no sight-seeing trip.

“For them it’s a great thing because they’re going to understand what a business trip is,” Mendoza said. “Locked in on the way up. When we get there, the atmosphere of the stadium and the locker room. Coming out of the tunnel. Getting that experience now.

“These guys have been at Rutgers, they’ve been at the big stadium, so I think getting that experience early as opposed to later will help us handle certain atmospheres throughout the year.”

The Rams are going to be a lot of places this season as their stadium moves closer to completion, racking up nearly 700 round-trip miles before the regular season ends. It took them weeks to find this Week Zero game and now they’re in a similar search mode to find a venue for next week’s game against Camden after logistics issues within the event forced led to the teams pulling out of the Mid-Atlantic Pigskin Classic in Wilmington. 

The players are looking forward to the adventure.

“It’s a great opportunity to show everybody what we can do,” senior lineman Darius Brooks said. “With a new coach everybody’s doubting us pretty much and it gives us an opportunity to let everybody know we’re still here.”

“It’s time to set a statement for everybody,” added quarterback Ramaji Bundy. “Let them know what we’re going to do, how we’re coming this year.”

And it might be a little different than people remember. Mendoza was approved as the Rams’ head coach in mid-June, charged with keeping the train moving after two straight sectional titles. He’s trying to infuse the flash of his Florida football background with Jersey grit already in place while installing new schemes on offense and defense. It’s catching on.

“It was a little different for me at first, but now we’re just rocking and rolling,” massive lineman Detric Simmons said.

In their only outside scrimmage of camp, the Rams demonstrated an ability to move the ball with decorated receiver Bundy moving to quarterback and an aggression and cover package on defense that isn’t inclined to give up much.

It should be a good test for the secondary. The Raptors, a third-year program coming off its first district title, are a spread team that averaged 354 yards a game last year, 256 through the air. Kris Cruz moves into their starting quarterback slot after backing up a 2,900-yard passer last year. Their top returning receiver, 6-4 Damon Young, had 684 yards receiving and seven touchdowns last season.

Mendoza said his secondary – Omarion Pearce, Terrance Smith, Kaden Robinson and Raymere Jones – has played “very well” in camp as they adjust to the new concepts.

“We’re ready to get up there, test the waters up there in a different state and get our guys in that atmosphere,,” Mendoza said. “It’s going to be a fun deal for them.”

Fun, but all business.