Category: PENNS GROVE

Schalick sweep

Cougars sweep boys and girls titles in Salem County XC Meet; Hadfield blows away girls field, Fuerneisen wins boys race for first time

AROUND THE COUNTY
WEDNESDAY’S SCORES
FIELD HOCKEY
Highland Regional 1, Pennsville 0
BOYS SOCCER
Overbrook 7, Salem 0
Penns Grove 5, Salem Tech 0
Pitman 1, Pennsville 0
Schalick 6, Clayton 0
Woodstown 5, Wildwood 1
GIRLS SOCCER
Overbrook 3, Salem 1
Penns Grove at Salem Tech
Pitman 1, Pennsville 0
Schalick 5, Clayton 0
GIRLS TENNIS
Pennsville 5, Wildwood 0
Woodstown 5, West Deptford 0

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PITTSGROVE – Missy Pine never ceases to be amazed at what she sees every time Jordan Hadfield steps on the cross country course.

A soccer player for most of high school career with some track experience in the spring, Hadfield decided to run cross country this fall and has really taken off. Like best girls runner in the state any classification taken off.

The Schalick junior was especially impressive Wednesday, blowing away the Salem County Meet record while winning the girls race in 18 minutes, 26 seconds on an absolutely perfect day to run on her home course. Amazingly, it came four days – four days – after she broke 19 for the first time at the South Jersey Open.

It was clean sweep for the Cougars. Charles Fuerneisen won the boys race for the first time in a personal best 16:58 and both Schalick teams ran away with team titles.

Hadfield was so dominant, she was more than three and a half minutes ahead of race runner-up Sarah Seiden of Salem Tech.

“She amazes every time that she goes out there,” Pine, the Schalick girls coach, said. “She just wants to better herself and better herself and better herself. I think she’s starting to realize what it takes to push herself and get a little bit better each time and she’s starting to be proud of the runs she puts forward even though I’m proud of her every week.

“It’s really difficult to come out and dominate the way that Jordan has this year. Cross country is a much more difficult sport than I think anybody anticipates or expects, and for her to dominate the way that she has it’s been amazing and inspiring to her teammates and the coaching staff as well.”

It isn’t always as easy as Hadfield sometimes make it – she does have “really bad races” – but there are times even she’s amazed with the immediate success she’s had. She admitted she was with Wednesday’s run.

“Today I was going for the school record,” she said. “I was really just trying to get into the 18s. I’m glad I finally did Saturday and today was just another step closer. It means more (to win) being at home, winning in front of everyone we go to school with. It means a lot.”

Fuerneisen has been chasing the county championship for three years, inching closer each year until finally grabbing the brass ring Wednesday. He was 10th as a sophomore and held on for a second-place finish last year.

“There was a lot of pressure to do it, even carrying over from last season, so to actually do it, I couldn’t be happier,” he said. “As long as the first two numbers were 16 I was going to be happy.”

It was a tight race early. Calling it “a perfect run” and saying it was the best he’s ever felt during a race, he got out to a fast first mile and as the pack came out of the woods he started to pull away. The last half of the race it was him against the clock and he won by a comfortable 44 seconds over Woodstown runner-up Karson Chew. 

“Charles was hungry for it,” Cougars boys coach Justin Franzwa said. “I think this has been one he’s circled on his calendar for a while.”

In the team races, the Schalick boys had four of the seven medalists, going 1-3-5-7 – all under 19 minutes – and placed all five counters in the top 12. The Cougars finished second last year on their course.

“The whole team had a really good day; they’ve been working so hard,” Franzwa said. “As a team effort, we knew it all depended on how fast could Charles get out and how hard he could pull the rest of us. Credit to the other coaches. There were kids we could go against, that we could chase after, that really brought them along.”

The girls finished 1-3, had three in the top seven and placed all five counters in the top 10. Elizabeth Petrunis was third.

Salem County XC Championship

BOYS TEAM SCORES: Schalick 28, Salem Tech 68, Woodstown 73, Pennsville 83, Salem 108, Penns Grove 161.
GIRLS TEAM SCORES: Schalick 27, Woodstown 55, Salem Tech 56.

BOYS TOP 10GIRLS TOP 10
Charles Fuerneisen, Sch16:58Jordan Hadfield, Sch18:26
Karson Chew, Wood17:42Sarah Seiden, Tech21:59
Matthew Tozer, Sch17:54Elizabeth Petrunis, Sch22:19
Jacob Marino, Wood18:21Kayla Ayars, Wood23:13
Sal Longo, Sch18:26Savannah Johnson, Tech23:49
Gary Schwegen, Pv18:37Makayla Butz, Pv24:12
Wyatt Juczak, Sch18:51Aubree McKishen, Sch24:36
David Farrell, Wood19:04Sammy Sterner, Wood24:43
Colton DiRenzo, Tech19:13Jordan Goode, Sch24:50
Dominic Militti, Tech19:14Ava Melnick, Sch25:21
Top 7 receive medals

Cover photo: Schalick’s Charles Fuerneisen (left) and Jordan Hadfield celebrate their respective wins in the Salem County Cross Country Championships.


Playing for something

In a couple riverview rivalries this week, Pennsville-Penns Grove and Schalick-Cumberland both have historic trophies for the winners to claim

THIS WEEK’S GAMES
Friday’s games
Schalick at Cumberland, 6 p.m.
Pennsville at Penns Grove, 6:30 p.m.
Woodstown at Haddonfield, 7 p.m.
Saturday’s game
West Deptford at Salem, noon

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

Mike Healy has never beaten Penns Grove in his tenure as Pennsville’s head football coach. In some circles that lack of success in a storied rivalry might get a coach a change of address. Strangely, even if he pulls it off this week he knows he’s going to get the Boot.

The same holds for Penns Grove coach John Emel. Even if his team wins the game under the temporary lights at home Friday night, he’ll get the Boot as well.

Relax. Nobody’s getting fired. The two schools, 8 miles apart, are just playing for The Boot – the trophy that has gone to the winner of this riverview rivalry for years. It’s such a prized possession, winning coaches have used it as the centerpiece next the turkey on their Thanksgiving table back when the game was played on that day.

“It’s a huge deal,” Healy said. “Our towns border each other. The kids all know each other, do social media and all that stuff, and play against each other. For me, you want to win the rival game, it’s big as a coach, but for the players it means more, the bragging rights and just the ability to pump your chest a little bit and have that for the year.

“It’s a feeling we haven’t had in a while, so it’s something that means a lot to the town. It was a Thanksgiving Day game. Thanksgiving Day games mean a lot in New Jersey. We don’t have them anymore, but still that rivalry is there.”

The trophy awaiting the winner is named in honor of Norm “Wildman” Willey, the three-time Philadelphia Eagles All-Pro defensive lineman of the ’50s who taught PE and drivers ed at Pennsville for 30 years. He still holds the NFL record for sacks in a game – 17 against the New York Giants – at a time before sacks were an officially recognized league stat. He passed away in 2011.

The reason it’s called The Boot is because one of Willey’s football cleats is part of the trophy.

“Nowadays it’s pretty cool for the kids to play for a trophy,” Emel said. “It’s a pretty cool trophy. Adds something to the game.

“To be honest, we don’t spend much time talking about it outside of the one week a year we play Pennsville, but … it’s something we’re excited to currently have and we’re going to play this week with the goal to keep it. I’ve been in this program long enough where we’ve watched the other side walk off with it (and) it’s not a fun feeling.”

Pennsville raises The Boot after winning the game in 2013.

Pennsville is trying to get The Boot back. The Eagles haven’t won it since 2016 and the games have been quite one-sided, too. Penns Grove leads the series 36-27-4 and is 10-4 since 2010.

Both teams are on a roll and have their sights on a playoff berth. Both have won three of their last four and are looking to win their third straight.

The Eagles (4-2) haven’t won three in a row since 2016. Their four wins already are the most in a season since 2017 (4-6) and getting the Boot would guarantee them their first winning regular season since 2016.

The Red Devils (3-4) have steadily eliminated their turnovers in recent weeks and are working on a string of six straight shutout quarters. They haven’t won three in row since 2020. They’ve already matched their win total from last year and keeping the Boot gives them a chance to guarantee a winning regular season when they play for the Diamond Division title against Woodstown next week.

“It’s hard not to be a little more excited for this game than other games,” Healy said. “There’s always the competitive side, but any time it’s a rival, especially when you haven’t been successful against them and just feeling we have a good shot this year, it’s hard not to be a little more juiced up for it.

“That being said we still have to make sure we’re doing what we’re doing. We can’t just rely on adrenaline out there. I felt like today we were more focused at practice. You really don’t have to do anything to get your kids excited when it comes to this week.”

This one’s personal

SCHALICK (7-0) at CUMBERLAND (3-4): Mike Wilson has played and coached in a lot of rivalry games in his day, but the one his undefeated Schalick Cougars play this week is about as intense as they come.

They don’t call this one “The Neighborhood Game” for nothing. The schools are 6 miles apart. The players know each other, they’ve played with and against each other for years. The coaches and administrators overlap. Current Schalick athletics director Doug Volovar’s last game as Cumberland’s head football coach was in this game in 2002, so he has seen it from both sides. 

The Gloucester City game might be the Cougars’ longest-standing football rivalry, but this one is personal.

“It definitely has that kind of taste to it,” Wilson said. “I’ve been on staffs where the people in town only care about one game; this game has that same type of level. Whether both teams are 7-0, 0-7 or whatever it doesn’t matter. 

“This one checks all the boxes. It used to be Schalick and Cumberland’s Super Bowl when Thanksgiving kind of ended your season. I still think it’s a mid-year Super Bowl. It’s a big deal. These kids are going to come out ready to play and you’re going to see the best effort on both sides.”

There is a trophy, the Hars-Lake Memorial Trophy, established last year and named in the memories of longtime Cumberland coach Tom Lake, who oversaw the most successful stretch in Colts history, and former Schalick history teacher Mike Hars, who served as an assistant coach at both schools. Each team names an MVP when it’s over.

For the record, Schalick holds a 14-8 lead in the series, which began in 1977 with the first varsity football games in both schools’ history and then broke until 2002 when the Colts joined the Tri-County Conference. Cumberland won last year’s game in Pittsgrove 21-16 in front of about 1,200 people, snapping Schalick’s six-game winning streak under the weight of more turnovers in one game than the Cougars had to that point all season.

Nobody has won back-to-back since the Cougars won in 2018 and 2019. The Colts’ last won back-to-back games in 2007 and 2008.

The Cougars should be especially amped to play. They’ll be back on the field for the first time since Sept. 22 after getting two forfeit victories that earned the top spot in the South Jersey Group I UPR ratings and a second straight Horizon Division crown. They stand to pick up a lot of ratings points if they can knock off a Group III team with three wins.

“Looking at the big picture our ultimate goal is to secure home field advantage in the playoffs,” Wilson said. “That adds an extra layer in this game for us.”

Cover photo: The Hars-Lake Memorial Trophy (right) and the Norm Willey Boot, the trophies awarded the winner in the Schalick-Cumberland and Pennsville-Penns Grove games.

CURRENT SJ-I UPR
(Updated Oct. 8)
(Top 16 qualify for playoffs)
1. Schalick (7-0) 2.6
2. Woodstown (5-1) 4.2
3. Glassboro (3-3) 4.4
4. South Hunterdon (6-1) 5.2
5. Florence (5-0) 5.8
6. Shore (4-2) 6.0
7. Middlesex (5-1) 8.4
8. Woodbury (3-3) 8.4
9. Audubon (3-2) 9.0
10. Penns Grove (3-4) 9.4
11. Keyport (6-1) 10.6
12. Riverside (5-1) 11.0
13. Burlington City (5-2) 12.8
14. Clayton (3-3) 12.8
15. Pennsville (4-2) 13.6
16. Dunellen (4-2) 16.6
17. Salem (1-6) 17.0
18. Manville (2-5) 19.0
19. Maple Shade (2-5) 20.8
20. Asbury Park (0-5) 21.4

This week’s schedule

Here is the high school sports schedule for Salem County teams for the week of Oct. 9-14; to submit corrections or alterations email al.muskewitz@gmail.com

Oct. 9
FIELD HOCKEY
Gloucester City at Salem, noon
Our Lady of Mercy at Schalick, 4 p.m.

BOYS SOCCER
Gateway at Woodstown, 10 a.m.
Paulsboro at Salem, 4 p.m.
Washington Twp. at Schalick, 4 p.m.

GIRLS SOCCER
Schalick at Washington Twp., 4 p.m.
Woodstown at Audubon, 7 p.m.

GIRLS TENNIS
Schalick at Haddon Heights, 4 p.m.

Oct. 10
FIELD HOCKEY
Schalick at Pennsville, 4 p.m.
Woodstown at Salem, 4 p.m.

GIRLS SOCCER
Pennsville at Overbrook, 4 p.m.

GIRLS TENNIS
Gloucester Catholic at Salem, 4 p.m.

NJSIAA South Jersey Group I Tournament
Quarterfinals
Pennsville at Haddon Twp.
Pitman at Middle Twp.
Gateway at Woodstown
Audubon at Schalick

VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at Washington Twp., 4 p.m.

Oct. 11
FIELD HOCKEY
Pennsville at Highland Regional, 6 p.m.

BOYS SOCCER
Clayton at Schalick, 4 p.m.
Salem at Overbrook, 4 p.m.
Wildwood at Woodstown, 4 p.m.
Salem Tech at Penns Grove, 6:30 p.m.
Pennsville at Pitman, 7 p.m.

GIRLS SOCCER
Overbrook at Salem, 4 p.m.
Penns Grove at Salem Tech, 4 p.m.
Pennsville at Pitman, 5 p.m.
Schalick at Clayton, 4 p.m.

GIRLS TENNIS
Pennsville at Wildwood, 4 p.m.
Woodstown at West Deptford, 4 p.m.

CROSS COUNTY
Salem County Championship at Schalick, 3:30 p.m.

Oct. 12
FIELD HOCKEY
Schalick at Glassboro, 4 p.m.

GIRLS SOCCER
Paulsboro at Penns Grove, 6:30 p.m.

GIRLS TENNIS
Gloucester Catholic at Woodstown, 4 p.m.
Pennsville at Schalick, 4 p.m.
Pitman at Penns Grove, 4 p.m.
Salem at Overbrook, 4 p.m.

VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at Highland Regional, 4 p.m.

Oct. 13
FOOTBALL
Pennsville at Penns Grove, 6:30 p.m.
Schalick at Cumberland, 7 p.m.
Woodstown at Haddonfield, 7 p.m.

FIELD HOCKEY
Salem at Gloucester Co. Tech, 4 p.m.
Schalick at Woodstown, 4 p.m.

BOYS SOCCER
Audubon at Woodstown, 4 p.m.
Clayton at Salem Tech, 4 p.m.
Glassboro at Schalick, 4 p.m.
Salem at Wildwood, 4 p.m.

GIRLS SOCCER
Salem Tech at Clayton, 4 p.m.
Schalick at Glassboro, 4 p.m.

VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at Camden Academy, 4 p.m.

Oct. 14
FOOTBALL
West Deptford at Salem, noon

FIELD HOCKEY
Gloucester City at Woodstown, 1 p.m.

Cover photo of Woodstown’s Anthony Ford Dale looking for running room against Woodbury by Ellen Sickler.



Big road win

Penns Grove plays ‘good, complementary football,’ goes on the road to shut out current SJ No. 1 Glassboro

WJFL DIAMOND DIVISION SCORES
Penns Grove 6, Glassboro 0
Woodstown 27, Woodbury 21 (OT)
Paulsboro at Salem, Saturday

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

GLASSBORO — Given the circumstances, Penns Grove coach John Emel called it his program’s biggest win in four years.

The Red Devils went on the road as an underdog against the current No. 1 team in the South Jersey Group I playoff picture and played perhaps its best game of the year in shutting out Glassboro 6-0.

PENNS GROVE 6, GLASSBORO 0
NEXT: vs. Pennsville,
Friday, 6:30 p.m.

Bryce Wright scored the game’s only touchdown on a 1-yard run on fourth down early in the second quarter and Knowledge Young sealed the victory with an interception late in the fourth quarter. The offense had no turnovers for the first time this season and the defense yielded little extending its string of shutout football to six straight quarters.

“We played really well as a team; good, complementary football,” Emel said. “It’s the biggest win we’ve had in four years. Big win for our program.”

The Red Devils (3-4) now have as many wins as they had all of last season. They have now won back-to-back games for the first time since 2021, when they beat West Deptford and Asbury Park (in the quarterfinals of the South Jersey playoffs).

They entered the weekend No. 13 in the SJ Group I UPR ratings.

With Woodstown knocking off Woodbury in overtime, the Red Devils are now in a position to play for the WJFL Diamond Division title in two weeks. But first they have to get past rival Pennsville next week in the “Battle for the Boot.” They haven’t lost in the series since 2016.

“Our focus has to be on Pennsville; we’re not looking past anybody,” Emel said. “Our kids go one week at a time. We’re getting on the bus and they’re asking who we’ve got next week.”

Penns Grove 6, Glassboro 0

Penns Grove (3-4)0600 –6
Glassboro (3-3)0000 –0

Scoring plays:
PG – Bryce Wright 1 run (PAT failed)

Instant impact

Thursday roundup: Louis Sepers scores a goal in his first game eligible with Schalick soccer team; Schalick’s Romano scores 200th coaching win, and more UPDATED

THURSDAY’S SCORES
BOYS SOCCER
Schalick 3, Pennsville 0
Salem Tech 1, Salem 1
GIRLS SOCCER
Schalick 6, Pennsville 0
Salem 9, Salem Tech 0
Woodstown 4, Penns Grove 0
FIELD HOCKEY
Schalick 7, Cumberland 0
GIRLS TENNIS
South Jersey Group I Tournament
No. 2 Schalick 5, No. 15 Salem 0
No. 3 Woodstown 5, No. 14 Lindenwold 0
No. 4 Middle Twp. vs. No. 13 Penns Grove
No. 8 Pennsville 4, No. 9 Overbrook 1

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE – Louis Sepers has been chomping at the bit to get on the pitch for the Schalick boys soccer team and when he finally did, he made it count.

Sepers scored his first goal in his first game with the Cougars Thursday, a 3-0 Diamond Division road shutout of Pennsville.

The junior center midfielder transferred from Kingsway to play with his brother and cousin and had to sit out the last 31 days to restore his eligibility. He scored the last goal of the game with 5:15 to play.

“Definitely not,” Sepers said when asked if his debut could’ve gone any better. “It was a great game. We played really well. We knew coming in we need commitment, we need more leaders, so I came in here as a leader and started off.

“I’ve been going crazy. Just getting to go on the field and score a goal, just unbelievable. I never could have thought of it being any better.”

Sepers, who didn’t score in his two years with the Dragons, actually started the play that eventually led to his first Schalick goal. He sent a pass in to Luke Price, but Price got it caught on his foot in the box and fed it back to the trailing Sepers who fired point blank into the upper left corner.

“We had a feeling he would get one,” Cougars coach Joe Mannella said. “He’s been chomping at the bit to get out there. He’s a good player. He should have had one in the first half. He’s going to get his chances.”

Louis was one of three Sepers on the field for the Cougars  Brother Anthony was in the game and cousin Evan posted the shutout.

Louis played his first two years at Kingsway. His brother and cousin were already at Schalick when he decided to join them, but enrolled after the Cougars had already started practicing, hence the delay.

He had been practicing with them since his arrival but was relegated to the sidelines while they went 7-3 in their first 10 games. The embargo ended just in time for him to get in a game before the Cougars’ showdown with rival Woodstown on the Wolverines’ football field Saturday night.

He brings them experience, composure and depth, all of which the Cougars will need Saturday already knowing they’ll go into the game without two starters. He spent 18 days this summer with the Spanish fourth tier club CD Numancia in Soria, and decided upon his return to The States he wanted to play with his sophomore siblings.

“They’ve been bugging me for years,” he said. “Since freshman year I was thinking about it, and I just ended up going to Kingsway, but they’ve been bugging me, especially my uncle.”

Steve Chomo scored the Cougars’ first two goals, both assisted by Oscar Hernandez. The first one was a partial breakaway with 22:01 left in the first half and the second came with 22:35 to play.

SALEM TECH 1, SALEM 1: Clinton Bobo’s goal in the second half earned the Crusaders (3-6-1) their tie. The Rams remain winless in 10 games (0-9-1)

GIRLS SOCCER
SCHALICK 6, PENNSVILLE 0: Emily Miller peppered her 25th and 26th goals of the season in between Quinn Berger’s hat trick — all in the first half — as the Cougars (8-2) overran the undermanned Eagles (3-7-2). Jael Winnberg scored the Cougars’ final goal in the the second half. All but one of the Cougars’ wins have been by shutout.

WOODSTOWN 4, PENNS GROVE 0: Talia Battavio scored two goals and Delaney Walker and Sophie Wells each had one for the Wolverines (5-6). Calista Hunt and Emma Perry each had two assists.

SALEM 9, SALEM TECH 0: Karima Davenport-White scored four goals as the Rams (3-6-1) won for the second time in their last three games. Ryann Foote had a goal and two assists, Xin Shen had two assists, and Carlysia Pierce, Lyric Hayes, Ameriyona Hunter and Jayla Turner each scored a goal.

FIELD HOCKEY
SCHALICK 7, CUMBERLAND 0: Ava Scurry scored three goals and dished two assists. Scurry now has six goals on the season. Phoebe Alward scored her 11th goal, while Lucianna Virga, Caylen Taylor and Casey Widdifield also scored. Lydia Gilligan stopped the only shot she faced for the shutout.

GIRLS TENNIS
Schalick and Woodstown postponed their regularly scheduled showdown Thursday in order to help the opening round of the South Jersey Group 1 Tournament avoid projected bad weather on Friday and both made easy work of their opponents.

Schalick, the No. 2 seed, swept No. 15 Salem 5-0, while Woodstown, the No. 3 seed, swept No. 14 Lindenwold, 5-0. No. 8 Pennsville was the third Salem County team advancing, beating No. 9 Overbrook, 4-1.

Schalick (14-2) won all five of its matches in straight sets, losing only two games in the second set of No. 1 singles, and gave coach John Romano his 200th coaching victory. Undefeated Woodstown (13-0) also won all five matches in straight sets.

“Girls, to say ‘thank you’ would be a disservice,” Romano wrote in appreciation of his milestone on the school’s athletics Facebook page. “I cannot begin to tell you how lucky I am to coach such an unbelievable group of young ladies. You’re the true reason why I come back year after year.

“Years from now when I’m old(er) and have (more) white hairs, I will reminisce on the wins and losses, but ultimately I will think about all of the lives I’ve been able to touch and the friendships and relationships I’ve formed with all of you. A true testament of a coach isn’t wins and losses on the court, it’s the success you young ladies have in life.”

Pennsville now travels to top-seeded Haddon Twp. Tuesday for its second-round match. Woodstown will host Gateway and Schalick will host Audubon. Wins by Woodstown and Schalick in Round 2 would set up a sectional semifinals battle between the two county rivals in Pittsgrove.

SCHALICK 5, SALEM 0
Singles: Rachael Irizarry (Sc) def. Mandarin Castellanos, 6-0, 6-2; Grace O’Neill (Sc) def. Cassidy Werkheiser, 6-0, 6-0; Allyson Green (Sc) def. Olivia Woolman, 6-0, 6-0.
Doubles: Emma Adams-Katelyn Little (Sc) def. Gianna Pelura-Tytiana Miller, 6-0, 6-0; Miya Watkins-Rachel Grandson (Sc) def. Angelina Fothergill-Tahirah Davenport-White, 6-0, 6-0.

WOODSTOWN 5, LINDENWOLD 0
Singles: Abby Melle (W) def. Shanik Leiva, 6-1, 6-1; Gabby Kurds (W) def. Chelsea Ortez, 6-0, 6-0; Cara Delia (W) def. Leczy Estupinian, no match.
Doubles: Julianna Lindenmuth-Molly Curtis (W) def. Fatima Arriaza-Giselle Ontiveros, 6-1, 6-0; Kathryn Milligan-Lauren Lippincott (W) def. Tiffany Lopez-Selena Perla, 6-1, 6-0.

PENNSVILLE 4, OVERBROOK 1
Singles: Madison Newbold (O) def. Regan Witt, 7-5, 6-2; Megan Morris (P) def. Keira Riess, 6-2, 6-1; Lily Edwards (P) def. Mia Costantino, 6-1, 6-0.
Doubles: Emma Cornette-Fanta Kone (P) def. Hillary Cao-Jennifer Giovanni, 6-3, 6-0; Isabell Schrenker-Gabi Forino (P) def. Sophia Burgos-Denovia Cameron, 6-1, 6-0.

Cover photo: Schalick soccer newcomer Louis Sepers is marked by Pennsville’s Brody Wiggins (46) Thursday afternoon.


Big games all around

Every team in Salem County, undefeated or winless, has something to play for; story will be updated

SALEM COUNTY FOOTBALL
Friday’s games
Bishop Eustace at Schalick, forfeit
Overbrook at Pennsville, 7 p.m.
Penns Grove at Glassboro, 7 p.m.
Woodbury at Woodstown, 7 p.m.
Saturday’s game
Paulsboro at Salem, noon (Walnut Street)

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

WOODSTOWN – From the first day the Woodstown football team showed up for summer workouts one game has been on its radar.

Ever since the Wolverines put Woodbury on the schedule as a last-minute pick-up during the COVID season, the teams have had a spirited rivalry, whether it be in games, scrimmages of 7-on-7 camp. The intensity took a big turn two years ago when the Thundering Herd scored late in the South Jersey Group I final to dash the Wolverines’ hopes of winning a state championship and it’s been driving them ever since.

Last year, with Woodstown 5-0 and Woodbury 5-1, the Herd took advantage of several Wolverine turnovers and took it to them pretty good on the way to winning the state title. 

Friday night the stakes will be high again with the winner taking over first place in the WJFL Diamond Division. But for all that’s on the line, Woodstown coach John Adams is going about business like any other week because, in their division, it’s like playing in the SEC of Group I where one could put even the weakest team somewhere else and they’d be undefeated.

“We approach every week the same way whether it’s a game people have circled on their schedule or not,” Adams said. “We always make sure we prepare for everybody the same way. We had a good day of practice on Monday with the varsity. We had a good day Tuesday with everybody. We’re just looking to keep having good practices.”

Both teams come into the game with a loss or two on their record. Woodstown (4-1) lost to Glassboro in overtime. Woodbury (3-2) has lost two in a row without injured quarterback Dante Viccharelli. That hasn’t happened since 2020 when the Herd lost three straight in a stretch that included the game picked up by Woodstown.

The Wolverines are preparing as if Viccharelli will play.

“I’m preparing as if he’s playing, but I have no idea,” Adams said. “And I don’t believe anything kids say because last week people were saying Salem had some kids who weren’t playing and then they showed up and played.

“It seems always to be that way. Usually we get everybody’s best shot, so usually it’s a game where if somebody’s out they’re trying to get back for a game like this, so we’re full head of steam preparing for their quarterback to be back there.”

Whether Viccharelli is in there or not, the Herd also has a dynamic running back in Anthony Reagan Jr. The coach’s son, a Howard commitment, has rushed for 794 yards and 13 touchdowns this season, but maybe because opposing defenses know he is the best remaining threat he’s been held to less than 100 rushing in each of their last two losses.

PENNS GROVE (2-4) at GLASSBORO (3-2): The Red Devils certainly will have their eyes on that game. Depending on the outcome, they could be right back in the hunt for a share of the division title even after starting the season 0-3.

For that to happen, they’d need Woodstown to win Friday and then beat the Wolverines in their final regular-season game in two weeks forcing a potential three-way tie. Woodbury holds the head-to-head tiebreaker on them.

“I didn’t even look at that until yesterday and I said the same thing to myself,” Penns Grove coach John Emel said. “In the big picture, the first thing you always tell yourself you want to win your division because that will get you high in the playoffs and I know that’s a couple weeks out but an opportunity to beat Woodstown would go a long way to getting a couple home games in the playoffs.

“At the end of the day you only have opportunities to win so many things and winning the division is part of having a special season. Last year in the division we were winless, so to go into the last game of the season and have an opportunity to win the division, that to me would be a big step in the right direction.”

First, though, they have to get past the Bulldogs, a traditional opponent who beat Woodstown in overtime two weeks ago and are the current No. 1 in the South Jersey Group I UPR ratings. The Red Devils should have a little more pep in their step after playing their best half of the season last week and coming from 19 down at halftime to beat Paulsboro last week for their second win in three games.

Take out the season opener when they were bedeviled by turnovers, the Red Devils have outscored their opponents in the second half 37-29. It was the first quarter that doomed them in the Woodbury game; they were only outscored 8-6 in the second half of that one.

“Sometimes I feel like our team and our younger guys lack a little confidence so hopefully this will be an example we can use not just the rest of this season but next year that when things aren’t going well there’s always an opportunity to turn it around,” Emel said. “I think every game this year except for Woodbury has come down to the second half. We feel we’re competitive and we’re a good enough program that every game will be decided the second half.

“You say that to your guys as a coach and you practice to reinforce that, but until they have success in that type of situation those words probably sometimes ring hollow. Hopefully this will give our young players confidence not just the rest of this season but in the future that the game is never over good or bad. Football’s a long game and things can change really quickly. We’ve got to just keep playing, play hard in the second half and we’ve got to finish games, and we did that last week.”

OVERBROOK (3-2) at PENNSVILLE (3-2): It’s an out-of-division game against a bigger opponent, but it’s another chance for the Eagles to get better, avenge another of last year’s losses and enhance their position for a playoff spot. And it all comes on Homecoming, to boot.

The Eagles remain at No. 17 in the South Jersey Group I UPR ratings, two-tenths of a point out of the last qualifying spot, but stand to pick up a lot of points if they can knock off a Group II team with a winning record and a dynamic quarterback.

Overbrook took it to them pretty good last year and has won three of the last four games in the series, but the Eagles are in a different place this season. They’ve already beaten two teams that took them down last year (Gateway and Cumberland).

“It’s similar to the whole theme of our year, just trying to get back respect,” Eagles coach Mike Healy said. “It’s a situation where we want to go in and show we are a different team this year and we believe we could do it.

“And just like every game right now this is another huge one in terms of playoffs. Right now we’re still stuck at 17, so we’ve got to do some work still. Regardless of that, we’ve got to just keep winning anyway. We’re still fighting and just want a shot in the playoffs.”

A win would give them as many wins as the last two seasons combined and four in a season for the first time 2017 (4-6). They won their fourth game that year in the eighth game.

“We’ve played better in every game this year compared to last year,” Healy said. “In that sense it’s all been positive, but we’re still trying to learn and we have not reached our full potential yet, so we have to keep getting after it and getting better every week, but we’re seeing constant improvement. There’s a ton of positives this year already.”

Signs of that improvement can be found in sophomore quarterback Robbie McDade, who took a big step towards turning into the quarterback the Eagles need him to be with last week’s 300-yard game against Cumberland. McDade threw for 205 yards on 16-of-29 passing – all career highs – and rushed for 102 yards. He accounted for three touchdowns in the 25-12 victory.

“He’s even said he feels a lot more comfortable now,” Healy said. “You can see him taking command of the offense. He’s fixing kids when they make mistakes instead of the coaches having to do it. He’s really taken a leadership role and developed a much better understanding of the offense as a whole.

“As a sophomore that’s really want to see from him. He’s still a young player and he’s going to make mistakes and we expect that, but to see these steps in terms of leadership and just understanding what we’re trying to do is huge and going to pay big dividends for him. Like everyone else he’s getting better, but I definitely think he’s starting to kind of get in a groove.”

SCHALICK vs. BISHOP EUSTACE: http://rb.gy/e58jq

Saturday’s game

PAULSBORO (0-5) at SALEM (0-6): In a game between two storied programs, strangely, somebody’s going to get their first win this week. Paulsboro, which hasn’t been winless this long since 1970, has come close the last two weeks. Last week the Red Raiders blew a 19-0 halftime lead at Penns Grove and scored all three of their touchdowns on big plays

Salem has shown signs of turning the corner, but needs to put four quarters together. The Rams were one big play from being tied with Camden at halftime, threatened Cedar Creek in the second half until a late turnover ended their comeback, and stopped Woodstown at the goal line at the end of a time-consuming opening drive last week.

The game will be played at the Walnut Street Field as the Rams’ on-campus stadium isn’t quite ready for game day. School officials are hopeful it will be ready in time for next week’s Homecoming Game.

Woodstown’s wild week

Wolverines’ girls tennis team edges Pennsville as part of a big week of matches that could be impacted by weather

TUESDAY’S SALEM COUNTY SCORES
GIRLS TENNIS
Schalick 5, Salem 0
Woodstown 3, Pennsville 2
BOYS SOCCER
Overbrook 4, Pennsville 1
Pitman 5, Salem 0
GIRLS SOCCER
Glassboro 7, Penns Grove 1
Gloucester Catholic 10, Salem Tech 0
Pennsville 3, Overbrook 1Pitman 6, Salem 0
Schalick 4, Woodstown 0

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE – Between the county rivals already on the schedule and state tournament opener added just today, this was shaping up to be a big week for the Woodstown girls tennis team. 

Then a phone call to Wolverines coach Jesse Stemberger towards the end of Tuesday’s match with Pennsville informing him of possible inclement weather late in the week threatens to put a (pun intended) damper on it all. But it also has the potential to make for an even bigger week later in the season.

First things first. As for the day’s activities, the Wolverines edged Pennsville 3-2 to remain undefeated. About two hours before the match, the Wolverines were installed as the No. 3 seed in the South Jersey Group I girls tennis tournament that starts Friday.

Because of the predicted bad weather Friday, host teams have been encouraged to move their opening-round tournament games to Thursday, a move towards which both Woodstown and Pennsville are leaning. Woodstown hosts Lindenwold and Pennsville, the No. 8 seed, hosts Overbrook.

Here’s where it gets interesting. The Wolverines have a showdown with Schalick for the Diamond Division lead Thursday and since state tournament games supercede all else, they’d have to move the regular-season match to later in the season, setting up the possibility of playing the Cougars three times in a span of about 10 days.

Why three? Schalick is the No. 2 seed in the SJ-I tournament, setting up the possibility the two county rivals could meet in the sectional semifinals. Schalick opens the tournament against Salem, a team it beat Tuesday 5-0.

“When you look at how the whole schedule’s played out,” Stemberger began, “there are certain weeks where things were a little bit lighter, but when you look at this week you think, wow, this is kind of a tough week.

“You have to live in a cave to not know what’s going on. This is a big match. John (Romano, Schalick’s coach) knows it, we both know what’s going on. And I don’t think either one of us is prolonging it; it’s a series of unfortunate events, but it does make it interesting because if things go according to plan we’ll play them three times in the last two weeks. We’re going to be intimately familiar with them.”

The only match Stemberger had on his mind Tuesday, though, was the one in front of him. The Wolverines (11-0) took control of it by sweeping the doubles points, keeping their doubles teams of Vivian Ward-Camille Osborn and Molly Curtis-Julianna Lindenmuth undefeated on the season.

They clinched their 14th straight regular-season victory – or “secure the bag,” as No. 1 singles Abigail Melle says – when Melle outlasted Regan Witt through two competitive sets.

“She was a consistent player, so it was hard,” Melle said of her match. “She didn’t make any mistakes and I had to be the first not to make a mistake, so we had a lot of good rallies and I struggled to put one in on the court because she got to every ball,. I had to stay out of my head and get the point, stay focused.”

The Eagles (7-5) made it close with junior Megan Morris and sophomore Lily Edwards winning in straight sets at Nos. 2 and 3 singles. Morris’ consistent and calculated victory kept her undefeated (12-0) in her first year in the singles spotlight. She has not lost a set.

“I’m really surprised,” Morris said. “I never thought I’d be able to do it,. When I went against Kingsway and Pitman and Woodstown, they’re just all great schools and I never thought I could do it, but I was able to prove myself that I can do it.”

She didn’t realize she had an undefeated string going until her dad mentioned it at around 9-0. “I had no clue and I’ve been counting from there,” she said.

NOTES: In addition to Schalick, Woodstown, Pennsville and Salem, Penns Grove also made the tournament field – as the No. 13 seed. The Red Devils will travel to Middle Twp. for their tournament opener. “I told the guys in a group chat with coaches I thought the seeds were fair across the board,” Stemberger said.

WOODSTOWN 3, PENNSVILLE 2
Singles
Abigail Melle (W) def. Regan Witt, 6-4, 6-2
Megan Morris (P) def. Gabby Kurpis, 6-1, 6-3
Lily Edwards (P) def. Cara Delia, 6-1, 6-4
Doubles
Vivian Ward-Camilla Osborn (W) def. Fanta Kone-Emma Cornette, 6-3, 6-1
Molly Curtis-Julianna Lindenmuth (W) def. Gabi Forino-Isabell Schrenker, 6-1, 6-1

SCHALICK 5, SALEM 0: The Cougars (12-2) dropped only three games in sweeping the Rams. The teams meet again in the first round of the state tournament later this week. The No. 1 doubles team of Katelyn Little and Emma Adams remained undefeated. 

Girls soccer

PENNSVILLE 3, OVERBROOK 1: Karsen Cooksey scored a pair of goals and Anikka Macalino extended the Eagles’ lead to 3-0. Cooksey has a team-leading seven goals.

WOODSTOWN 4, SCHALICK 0: Each of the Wolverines’ last five victories have been by shutout. Keeper Carly Hayman may have been called to make only four saves in the game, but coach Will Kemp said, she’s “still a general on the field to help the squad.” Emily Miller scored two goals, giving her 24 for the season.

GLASSBORO 7, PENNS GROVE 1: Alana Figueroa and Marianna Dempster scored two goals apiece for Glassboro. A’Mani Taylor scored Penns Grove’s goal.

GLOUCESTER CATHOLIC 10, SALEM TECH 0: Ten players scored goals for the Rams (5-3).

PITMAN 6, SALEM 0: Audrey Duffield scored the first of her two goals less than two minutes into the game to open a four-goal first half. Pitman extended its 3-0 halftime lead with a pair of goals three minutes part in the second half.

Boys soccer

OVERBROOK 4, PENNSVILLE 1: Angel Mejia-Castro had two goals and an assist and David Ayala-Rivas scored his team-leading 13th goal to lead Overbrook to its third straight win.  The Rams (7-4) won only four games last year. Stone Mumink scored Pennsville’s goal, his fifth in the last four games.

PITMAN 5, SALEM 0: Logan Williams scored the first two goals of the game two minutes apart in the first 15 minutes. 

This week’s schedule

Here is the schedule for Salem County high school sports for the week of Oct. 2-7

Oct. 2
FIELD HOCKEY
Pennsville at Gloucester Catholic, 4 p.m.
Salem at Clayton, 4 p.m.
Woodstown at Schalick, 4 p.m.

BOYS SOCCER
Clayton at Penns Grove, 6:30 p.m.

GIRLS TENNIS
Kingsway at Woodstown, 4 p.m.

Oct. 3
BOYS SOCCER
Glassboro at Penns Grove, 4 p.m.
Pennsville at Overbrook, 4 p.m.
Pitman at Salem, 4 p.m.

GIRLS SOCCER
Overbrook at Pennsville, 4 p.m.
Penns Grove at Glassboro, 4 p.m.
Salem at Pitman, 4 p.m.
Woodstown at Schalick, 4 p.m.

GIRLS TENNIS
Penns Grove at Wildwood, 4 p.m.
Schalick at Salem, 4 p.m.
Woodstown at Pennsville, 4 p.m.

Oct. 4
FIELD HOCKEY
Deptford Twp. at Woodstown, 4 p.m.
Salem at Pennsville, 4 p.m.

Oct. 5
FIELD HOCKEY
Cumberland Reg. at Schalick, 4 p.m.

BOYS SOCCER
Salem Tech at Salem, 4 p.m.
Schalick at Pennsville, 4 p.m.
Woodstown at Penns Grove, 4 p.m.

GIRLS SOCCER
Penns Grove at Woodstown, 4 p.m.
Pennsville at Schalick, 4 p.m.
Salem at Salem Tech, 4 p.m.

Oct. 6
FOOTBALL
Overbrook at Pennsville, 7 p.m.
Penns Grove at Glassboro, 7 p.m.
Schalick at Bishop Eustace, 7 p.m.
Woodbury at Woodstown, 7 p.m.

FIELD HOCKEY
Salem at Audubon, 4 p.m.
Schalick at Williamstown, 4 p.m.
Woodstown vs. Delsea at Total Turf, Pitman, 5:45 p.m.

GIRLS TENNIS
Woodstown at Delsea, 4 p.m.

Oct. 7
FOOTBALL
Paulsboro at Salem, noon

BOYS SOCCER
Schalick at Woodstown, 7 p.m.

GIRLS SOCCER
Schalick at Our Lady of Mercy, 4 p.m.

Red Devils rally

Devils make Raiders see red, rallying from 19-0 halftime deficit to beat Paulsboro with TD in final 75 seconds

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNS GROVE — Bryce Wright couldn’t be more proud of his teammates.

Last week, the Penns Grove junior running back stood in the cold rain and muck of a loss at Haddon Heights and as hard as it might have been to hear at the time passionately begged his teammates to play hard in the game all the way until the clock hit zeroes.

PENNS GROVE 22,
PAULSBORO 19
Next: at Glassboro,
Friday, 7 p.m.

That’s exactly what they did Saturday. The Red Devils could have phoned it in down 19 points at halftime against a storied program that hadn’t been winless this late in the season in generations, but instead they buckled down and staged one of their greatest rallies for a 22-19 win over Paulsboro.

It was third time since 2000 Penns Grove has come from three scores down to win a game and its biggest halftime deficit.

“I’m so proud of my team,” Wright said. “My team, they came out, and they did what I asked. I asked them to fight to zero-zero left on the clock. We were down 19-0, but we came back. I told them at half, yo, let’s go, there’s no reason for any heads to be down; we can do this. I told my team that and we came back out here and we executed.

“I think it should have happened when I told it to them in the game the first game. I’m just so proud my team came out here and did what I asked. I love my team.”

The Red Devils (2-4) brought it back in a manner that fit their personality, just pounding it and pounding it on the ground, but they got the go-ahead touchdown on a pass. Wright found freshman Jaden Days in the front right corner of the end zone from 15 yards out with 1:14 to play and then Wright roared in on the two-point conversion to make it 22-19.

It was the only pass they threw in the second half and only the third they completed in the game. It was only the second catch of Days’ career and his first touchdown.
 
Wright didn’t even see the receiver on the play until someone called his name and then he let it fly with Sharif Green challenging in coverage. Days was about two yards in bounds when he came down with it and he wasn’t about to let it go.

“At first I didn’t even see him open; he raised his hand up and I’m like let me get it there,” Wright said. “At practice he works real hard. He goes up and gets it and I gave him his chance and he showed me what he could do.”

“We talk about keeping your head up and waiting for my opportunity,” Days said. “I thought they were going to throw it out of bounds. It was a good ball by Bryce; that was really it. You’ve got to keep on fighting. We came back with a win. Keep on fighting. Keep your head up.”

The Red Devils had three meaningful possessions in the second half and scored on all three. The drives were 52 yards on 14 plays (including penalties) over 6:47, 75 yards on 17 runs (with no penalties) over 8:10 and 39 yards on two plays over 19 seconds.

Wright ran in the first touchdown from the 9. He scored the second on a fourth-and-goal quarterback sweep from the 6 with 2:54 to play, a call Penns Grove coach John Emel called “the play of the game.” He went in standing up.

Bryce Wright (R) and Jaden Days connected on Penns Grove’s game-winning touchdown with 1:14 left in the fourth quarter.

“With our style of play people would say you can’t come back down 19-0, the game’s over,” Emel said. “You’ve got to play a perfect half and we did. I would say we could come back without throwing a pass, but we did save one for the end.

“You’ve got to go with what got you there. We’re not a good passing team, we struggle throwing the ball, everyone can see that. And when they know you’re throwing, that’s even harder. We’re saying we’re going to give the ball to Bryce, we’re gonna run outside and try to make something big happen.

“There was no doubt in my mind we could score on another possession, but if we don’t score there, the game’s over.” 

Penns Grove got the ball back at the Paulsboro 39 with 1:33 left and no time outs after a short punt. The Red Devils ran a reverse with Knowledge Young for 24 yards on the first play to get in the red zone, then went for the go-ahead score.

“What do they always say, you miss 100 percent of the shots you don’t take; you gotta keep playing ‘til the end,” Emel said. “You gotta keep playing or you’ll never make a comeback. You gotta go out there and keep fighting. I was proud of the way we played the second half even if we came up short once we got it to 19-14, but when you get that close and you can taste it you’ve got to finish it.”

Once the Red Devils got the lead, they never gave Paulsboro a chance to break their hearts. On the final threat from midfield, they forced quarterback Roman Onorato into three incompletions and then Dameon Wilson and Nasir Stewart broke in and threw Onorato for a 13-yard loss on fourth down to seal the victory.

The sack left the Red Raiders with minus-8 yards of net offense on 17 plays in the second half. 

“I looked at the clock, I knew it was the last play, it’s what we needed,” Stewart said. “I put my head down and went to go get it for my team to come out on top. It was do or die. It was the easiest play all game to me.”

Paulsboro built its halftime lead on three big plays, but outside of those it didn’t really do anything great.

The Red Devils were happy with running the ball and controlling the clock. They had the ball for nearly 11 of the game’s first 14 minutes, but were down 14-0 because Paulsboro’s Keros (Super Duper) Cooper had touchdown bursts of 56 and 91 yards in the space of three offensive snaps.

Freshman Jeremiah Carr made it 19-0 with a spectacular one-handed interception that he returned 85 yards for a touchdown on the final play of the half.

That sent the Red Devils into the locker room to do a little soul searching.

“I huddled my guys up in the room, all just one-on-ones, told everybody to put our heads down, we can do it,” Stewart said. “We have done this before. It’s time to come back.”

Penns Grove 22, Paulsboro 19

PAULS (19)PGROVE (22)
61st Downs16
25-163Rushing47-176
3-9-0Passes3-7-1
23Passing32
1-0Fum-lost1-0
4-20.0Punts-avg2-41.0
3-15Penalties6-45
Paulsboro (0-5)613 00 –19
Penns Grove (2-4)00814 –22

Scoring plays:
P – Keros Cooper 56 run (kick blocked), 4:16 1Q
P – Keros Cooper 91 run (Saeed Crite kick), 9:58 2Q
P – Jeremiah Carr 85 interception return (run failed), 0:05 2Q
PG – Bryce Wright 9 run (Bryce Wright run), 3:30 3Q
PG – Bryce Wright 6 run (run failed), 2:54 4Q
PG – Jaden Days 15 pass from Bryce Wright (Wright run), 1:14 4Q

Lighting it up

Wednesday roundup: Pennsville, Woodstown boys soccer score big in their first halves, also includes girls soccer and girls tennis

By Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE – When the train comes in, everybody rides.

Pennsville scored seven goals on 10 shots in the first half Wednesday in a 7-2 boys soccer rout of Salem.

Six different players found the back of the net for the Eagles, and one of the goal was particularly special.

Senior Stathis Efelis has been playing with the varsity for the past three years and scored his first goal since his sophomore year in the first-half onslaught. Actually, he had a goal and an assist in the game.

“To get a goal today felt incredible,” he said. “The assist and the build up was very intense and I was so glad to be able to celebrate it with my teammates.”

Stathis assisted on Maddox Efelis’ goal shortly after scoring his own. Shane Puckett got the first two followed by Stone Mumink, then John Thomas and Jake Isaac scored after the two Efelises’ goals.

It was the Eagles’ most prolific half of goalscoring in Derek Foglein’s tenure as head coach.

“To be completely honest, if you asked the team they’d say we started slow,” the coach said. “Once we got those (first) two, they settled down and moved the ball.

“The thing I’m really pleased about today is the fact the team did a great job moving the ball as the first half developed and as the score line showed we got everyone involved.”

Jose Vilalplando scored both Salem goals in the second half. 

WOODSTOWN 9, GLOUCESTER CATHOLIC 0: Bryce Ayars banged home a header 30 seconds into the game and the Wolverines (6-1) went on to pump in nine goals on 16 shots in the first half to win their sixth straight.

Adrian Ibarra scored the first of his two goals 40 seconds after Ayars’ header and the rout was on. They had another flurry later in the half in which they scored four goals in four minutes. Ibarra also recorded three assists.

“We’re not a team that scores a lot of goals traditionally,” Woodstown coach Darren Huck said, “but today things were clicking and we got on them early.”

Freshman Ayden Ellis, sophomore assist machine Blake Bialecki and senior Dalton Berry all scored their first varsity goals, while Ben Lippincott (on the first goal), Dante Mistichelli, Nick DiTeodoro and senior Eddie Whelan all recorded their first varsity assists.

The Wolverines’ final goal of the half was the play that brought Berry and Whelan their first varsity marks and the crowd to its feet.

“That was kind of a nice moment,” Huck said. “They’d been together for four years and been total team players; it’s always been the team first. They were with the JVs last year, but decided to come back and be part of everything and they were able to reap the rewards today, which I was happy about.

“The whole team was cheering for (Berry), the whole place got excited. He does work hard and always gives 100 percent and he was able to put one in today.”

PITMAN 2, PENNS GROVE 1: The Red Devils (1-6) have to be the hardest-luck team in South Jersey. All six of their losses this season have been of the one-loss variety. They fell behind 2-0 nine minutes into the second half, got a goal from Ashton Harris four minutes later and just couldn’t get the equalizer.

“We’re doing the best we can,” Penns Grove coach Mano Massari said. “The guys fought hard today; you can’t ask anymore than that. We’re fighting and taking punches with some really good teams. We just need to be more consistent.”

SCHALICK 3, WILDWOOD 0: Nolan O’Toole, Bradford Foster and Elijah Cummings scored goals and Evan Sepers was a rock in goal as the Cougars (7-2) won their third in a row. 

Pennsville’s Riley Bowman (5) and Reagan Wariwanchik celebrate another Eagles goal in their match with Salem Wednesday. (Photos by Lorraine Jenkins)

Girls soccer

PENNSVILLE 8, SALEM 1: The Eagles found the scoring touch for the second straight game, this time scoring four goals in each half. They have scored 15 goals in their two games this week.

Riley Bowman scored her first hat trick, which included a penalty kick late in the first half. Karsen Cooksey had the first goal of the second half and assisted on the other three goals. Gabby Marandola scored her first career goal 90 seconds into the game, while Molly Gratz, Kallie Morrison and Marley Wood had the other goals. The Eagles had 27 shots and eight corner kicks in the game.

“The girls are distributing the ball well and looking for opportunities for each other to score,” Eagles coach Sam Trapp said. “They are gaining more confidence as a unit each game.”

Ryann Foote scored Salem’s goal on a free kick in the first half.

GLASSBORO 7, SALEM TECH 0: Marianna Dempster and Emma Mattox both scored twice for the Bulldogs (4-2-1).

PITMAN 5, PENNS GROVE 0: Emery Sharpnack had two goals and an assist and Riley Sharpnack had a goal and two assists for Pitman.

Girls tennis

PITTMAN 4, PENNSVILLE 1: Megan Morris won 6-4, 6-1 at No. 2 singles to pick up Pennsville’s only point. Morris is 9-0 this season and has not lost a set.

WOODSTOWN 5, PENNS GROVE 0: The Wolverines went to 5-0, losing only two games the entire match. Noelle Neron and Aubrie Rennie at No. 2 doubles scored their first career win.