Power play

Holmes’ big shot helps Woodstown beat Schalick for second time this season; Salem Tech just about seals up division title

TUESDAY FIELD HOCKEY
Pennsville 3, Salem 0
Salem Tech 3, Gloucester Catholic 1
Woodstown 3, Schalick 1

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

WOODSTOWN – Lux Holmes couldn’t say she was surprised by the first question in her post-game interview. Woodstown had just scored a huge TCC Diamond Division win over archrival Schalick 3-1 with Holmes scoring the final goal, but instead asking about the impact of the game the inquisitor wanted to know the impact she had on the ball.

How hard do you hit that field hockey slap shot?

Holmes hit a rocket from the top of the circle with 10:33 left in the third quarter that would make Alex Ovechkin feel proud. The ball made a loud bang in the back of the cage after it whizzed past Schalick goalie Jayonna Johnson’s left shoulder in a blur.

“It’s probably like 90 percent of the things they say about hockey; it’s always about my hits,” the junior back said. “It’s pretty much everything they bring up. They usually ask how I do it and if I can pass it down. Usually they wonder how I do it and I couldn’t tell you.”

They can’t argue with the results.

Counting the one she got Tuesday, Holmes has scored four goals in her high school career and they’ve all come off big hits, usually with somebody getting it to her off a corner. “I’ve never been one of the ones to tap it in,” she said.

She’s never had her shot measured and Wolverines coach Gloria Byard never thought to do it. “That’s a good idea, though; I think I should figure it out,” Holmes said. Suffice to say you don’t want to stand in front of it without goalie pads, and even then it doesn’t tickle.

“I’ve always said when we do corners I want the ball to go to Lux,” Byard said. “Lux, Brooke (Dillon) too at times, Shyann (Higinbotham), because they’re very difficult to see. With a hit like that, I have no guess as to miles per hour or anything, but it’s very strong very powerful, very accurate.

“But they’ve gotta feel they can do it. It’s hard to convince kids today you’re in control. At times they panic, I wouldn’t ask you take the shot or do what I’m asking you to do if I didn’t have trust in you or think you can do it. They want to do a lot of these fancy plays. Get a shot off. I’m old school – get the ball to the top of the circle, get a shot off, and I think that happened twice for us.”

There was a lot on the line in the game. Schalick was riding a seven-game winning streak after a balky start and one game behind the Wolverines in the loss column in the division standings. Woodstown was looking to snap a two-game losing streak and complete a season sweep of their rival, getting a bit of payback after the Cougars beat them twice the year before. The teams started the day 6-7 in the South Jersey Group 1 power points standings.

“We just wanted to pay them back from last year; they beat us twice last year,” Byard said. “I know they lost a few key players, so did we, but it was a little rivalry thing here and paybacks. I told them they beat us twice last year, so let’s return the favor.”

The Wolverines scored twice in the first quarter and never looked back. Talia Guardascione scored five minutes into the game and Joey Foote scored off a corner as time was expiring. Paisley Warner got Schalick within 2-1 when she made a spin move in front of an open net and scored 2:46 before halftime.

SALEM TECH 3, GLOUCESTER CATHOLIC 1: The Chargers all but locked up their first TCC Classic Division title in their first year eligible. Their seventh straight win left them 6-0 in the division, two games ahead of each Pennsville and the Rams and they handed those teams both their division losses.

“I didn’t think it was going to be a long time (before they won a division title), but I didn’t think it was going to be as short as the time was,” junior forward Gina LaRosa said Monday. “I think we really came together as a team and made it happen.”

Getting out fast has been a key element for the Chargers (8-2) during their seven-game winning streak, but it was the Rams (2-4) who struck quickly in this one as Alana Bellan found the back of the goal 20 seconds into the game.

Abby Beals got the equalizer and Hayden Crispin made it 2-1 before the first quarter ended. Araya DiGregorio scored the final goal in the third quarter.

PENNSVILLE 3, SALEM 0: Laura Tamberella, Toni Tobin and Polina Wright all scored goals as the Eagles (3-7) snapped a six-game losing streak. Kendall Hoyt had two assists.

Top photo: Schalick’s Genevieve Smith (R) tries to turn the ball away from Woodstown’s Margaux Lipovsky during Tuesday’s field hockey game.

**Woodstown field hockey coach Gloria Byard gives a little advice to senior Talia Guardascione during Tuesday’s game against Schalick.**

Charging ahead

Salem Tech field hockey on cusp of winning a division title in only second year of existence

MONDAY’S SCORES
FIELD HOCKEY
Salem Tech 6, Pennsville 1
BOYS SOCCER
Salem at Gloucester Catholic
GIRLS SOCCER
Gloucester Catholic at Salem
Pennsville 6, Penns Grove 0
GIRLS TENNIS
Moorestown Friends 5, Woodstown 0
Cumberland 4, Salem 1
Vineland 5, Schalick 0
VOLLEYBALL
Triton 2, Salem Tech 0 (25-14, 25-16)
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Cecil 3, Salem CC 0 (25-8, 25-3, 25-80

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

WOODSTOWN – When Salem Tech decided to start a field hockey program last year, the Chargers didn’t think it would take them long to be a competitive program. For that matter, they didn’t think it would take them long to win a division championship, either.

The Chargers proved they were competitive last year, winning nine games against a soft-ish regular season schedule designed to get their feet wet as a Group 2 independent. Now, they are on the cusp of winning their first division title in their first year eligible.

The Chargers moved a step closer to raising a banner Monday with a wind-swept 6-1 win over Pennsville. They can clinch no worse than a tie for the TCC Classic Division crown if they beat Gloucester Catholic Tuesday. A win in that game would leave them undefeated in the division with two winnable games remaining. The two teams chasing them would each have two division losses and the Chargers would have given both of the them both of them.

The nine games they won last year were as many as Classic co-champs Pennsville and Gloucester Catholic won overall, and they had a better won-loss record. They weren’t included in the division mix because they had come on board in the middle of a scheduling cycle.

“I think we were really competitive from the get-go because we were just really competitive girls coming into this and everyone wanted it,” junior forward Gina LaRosa said. “Everyone worked really hard and it became a vision.”

“I didn’t think it would take very long,” sophomore forward Hazel Eachus added. “We have a very skillful group of girls and we all work together very well.”

The Chargers (7-2, 5-0) took control of this one early. Eachus scored the first of her two first-quarter goals less than two minutes into the game. LaRosa scored two goals in the fourth quarter. In between, Hayden Crispin and Jessilyn Chambers found the back of the net.

To show their dominance in the game, the Chargers sent 20 shots in on Pennsville goalie Avery Manguez and had 16 corners. The win extended their school-record streak to six games.

“I think they played well,” Tech coach Maureen Lewis said. “They’ve been going out strong and I think that’s the key for our team.”

The Eagles had maybe three attacks in Salem Tech’s end. They scored their goal with five seconds left in the game when Laura Tamberella collected a loose ball at the top of the circle and broke in on Chargers keeper Caroline Tighe.

Top photo: Salem Tech’s Gina LaRosa shoots through traffic to score her first goal in the fourth quarter against Pennsville.

Pennsville (2-7)	0	0	0	1-	1
Salem Tech (7-2)	2	1	1	2-	6

GOALS: Hazel Eachus (ST) 2, Gina LaRosa (ST) 2, Hayden Crispin (ST), Jessilyn Chambers (ST), Laura Tamberella (P).

GIRLS TENNIS
VINELAND 5, SCHALICK 0
Kaitlyn Jones (V) def. Olivia Lunemann, 6-1, 6-0
Angelina Apel (V) def. Sebrina Bradford, 6-1, 6-4
Cassidy Keller (V) def. Jasmine Hunt, 6-4, 6-1
Liliana Beni-Alla Kobys (V) def. River Wojcik-Janae White, 6-2, 6-2
Ivy Eldridge-Lily Carr (V) def. Brooke Brown-Abigail Sotela Hernandez, 6-3, 6-4
Records: Vineland 5-7, Schalick 8-6

MOORESTOWN FRIENDS 5, WOODSTOWN 0
Erika Capella (MF) def. Madison LaPalomento, 6-1, 6-2
Kari Rotter (MF) def. Emma West, 6-1, 6-4
Bryn Fullerton (MF) def. Angelina Lindenmuth, 6-1, 6-2
Peyton Zauber-Diem Still (MF) def. Elliana Norman-Emilee Kehr, 6-0, 6-3
Emmie Huynh-Anika Vasisth (MF) def. Isabella Lindenmuth-Eleanore Lawson, 6-2, 6-3
Records: Moorestown Friends 10-2, Woodstown 8-6

CUMBERLAND 4, SALEM 1
Heaven Jones-McCullough (S) def. Emma Kelly, 7-6 (7-5), def.
Hannah Gray (CR) def. JaNye Hubbard, 6-0, 6-2
Mollie Willis (CR) def. Eric Brewer, 6-0, 6-0
Gabryella Keener-Madison (CR) def. Aleena Allen-Aniya Lyles-Clark, 6-0, 6-0
Dalila McDowell-Kami Anderson (CR) won by forfeitRecords: Cumberland 9-4, Salem 0-8.

Standings

Here are the WJFL Diamond/Independence and TCC Diamond/Classic division standings through Oct. 3

WJFL Football

DIAMOND	ALL	DIV	INDEPENDENCE	ALL	DIV
Schalick	6-0	3-0	Woodstown	3-3	3-0
Paulsboro	4-2	1-`	Penns Grove	4-1	2-0
Overbrook	2-4	2-1	Clayton	4-1	1-1
Burlington City	2-4	1-2	Woodbury	2-4	1-2
Salem	3-3	1-2	Pitman	2-3	0-2
Pennsville	3-3	0-3	Buena	2-4	0-3

TCC Boys Soccer

CLASSIC	ALL	DIV	DIAMOND	ALL	DIV
Clayton	5-5	4-0	Schalick	6-2	5-0
Pennsville	3-5	2-1	Overbrook	5-4	3-2
Salem Tech	6-4	2-2	Penns Grove	6-2-1	2-2-1
Salem	0-5	0-2	Woodstown	5-5-1	2-3
Glou Cath	0-8	0-3	Glassboro	4-4-1	1-3-1
			Pitman	3-6-1	1-4

TCC Girls Soccer

CLASSIC	ALL	DIV	DIAMOND	ALL	DIV
Pitman	5-4	5-0	Schalick	7-2	4-0
Glou Cath	4-3	3-1	Woodstown	8-2-1	3-1
Pennsville	5-4	3-2	Overbrook	4-5	2-2
Clayton	5-4	2-3	Penns Grove	2-5	0-3
Salem Tech	1-6	1-4	Glassboro	0-8	0-3
Salem	0-8	0-4

TCC Field Hockey

CLASSIC	ALL	DIV	DIAMOND	ALL	DIV
Salem Tech	6-2	4-0	Woodstown	6-3	4-0
Pennsville	2-6	2-1	Schalick	7-2	2-1
Glou Cath	2-3	1-1	Overbrook	5-3	2-1
Salem	1-8	1-3	Glass/Pit	2-4	1-3
Clayton	0-4	0-3	Deptford	4-7	0-4

TCC Girls Tennis

CLASSIC	ALL	DIV	DIAMOND	ALL	DIV
Pitman	11-4	4-0	Woodstown	8-5	5-0
Pennsville	9-4	2-2	Schalick	8-5	4-1
Glassboro	6-5	2-2	Timber Cr	4-6	2-2
Glou Cath	0-0	0-0	Overbrook	2-7	1-4
Salem	0-7	0-5	Penns Grove	0-8	0-5

This week’s schedule

Here is this week’s Salem County sports calendar for the week of Oct. 5-10

MONDAY, OCT. 5
BOYS SOCCER
Salem at Gloucester Catholic
GIRLS SOCCER
Gloucester Catholic at Salem
Penns Grove at Pennsville, 6 p.m.
FIELD HOCKEY
Pennsville at Salem Tech
GIRLS TENNIS
Woodstown at Moorestown Friends, 3:45 p.m.
Salem at Cumberland
Schalick at Vineland
VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at Triton, 5:15 p.m.
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Salem CC at Cecil, 6 p.m.
COLLEGE SOFTBALL
Bucks County at Salem CC, 3:30 p.m.

TUESDAY, OCT. 6
FIELD HOCKEY
Pennsville at Salem
Schalick at Woodstown
Gloucester Catholic at Salem Tech, 4:15 p.m.
BOYS SOCCER
Clayton at Pennsville
Penns Grove at Schalick
Woodstown at Overbrook
GIRLS SOCCER
Overbrook at Woodstown
Pennsville at Clayton
Salem at Salem Tech
Schalick at Penns Grove
GIRLS TENNIS
Regular season
Salem at Triton
SJ Group 1 Quarterfinals
Roselle Park at Pitman
Gateway at Haddon Twp.
Metuchen at Woodstown
Woodbridge Magnet at New Providence

WEDNESDAY, OCT. 7
BOYS SOCCER
Camden Academy Charter at Salem
VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at Highland, 5:15 p.m.
CROSS COUNTRY
Salem County Championship, Salem Tech, 3:45 p.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
West Deptford at Schalick
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
RCSJ-Gloucester at Salem CC, 7 p.m.

THURSDAY, OCT. 8
WJFL FOOTBALL
Robbinsville at Bordentown, 6 p.m.
Mainland at Millville, 6 p.m.
FIELD HOCKEY
Burlington City at Salem Tech
Deptford at Woodstown
Pennsville at Clayton
Salem at Gloucester Catholic
Schalick at Haddon Heights
BOYS SOCCER
Clayton at Salem Tech
Glassboro at Woodstown
Pennsville at Gloucester Catholic
Pitman at Penns Grove
Schalick at Overbrook, 4:15 p.m.
GIRLS SOCCER
Gloucester Catholic at Pennsville
Overbrook at Schalick
Salem at Pitman
Salem Tech at Clayton
Woodstown at Glassboro
GIRLS TENNIS
Regular season
Penns Grove at Timber Creek
Woodstown at Schalick
SJ Group 1 Semifinals
(at higher seed)
Roselle Park-Pitman winner vs. Gateway-Haddon Twp. winner
Metuchen-Woodstown winner vs. Woodbridge Magnet-New Providence winner
VOLLEYBALL
LEAP at Salem Tech, 5:30 p.m.

FRIDAY, OCT. 9
WJFL FOOTBALL
Overbrook at Woodstown, 6 p.m.
Pennsville at St. Joseph (Hamm.), 6:30 p.m.
Salem at Clayton, 6 p.m.
Penns Grove at Schalick, 6 p.m.
Pitman at KIPP, 6 p.m.
Lindenwold at Buena, 6 p.m.
Woodbury at Collingswood, 6 p.m.
Burlington City at Riverside, 5:30 p.m.
Paulsboro at Haddonfield
Cherry Hill East vs. Cherry Hill West, 6 p.m.
Ewing at Delran, 6 p.m.
Washington Twp. at Cherokee, 6 p.m.
Pleasantville at Lower Cape May, 6 p.m.
Eastern at Rancocas Valley, 6 p.m.
Triton at Highland, 6 p.m.
Allentown at Sterling, 6 p.m.
Gateway at Deptford, 6 p.m.
Mastern Camden at Wildwood, 6 p.m.
Vineland at Oakcrest, 6 p.m.
Lenape at Trenton, 6 p.m.
Camden Eastside at Cedar Creek, 6 p.m.
Seneca at Hammonton, 6 p.m.
Kingsway at Camden, 6 p.m.
Steinert at Hopewell Valley, 6 p.m.
Maple Shade at Palmyra, 6 p.m.
St. Augustine at Shawnee, 6 p.m.
Northern Burlington at Notre Dame, 6 p.m.
Middle Twp. at Ocean City, 6 p.m.
Nottingham at Timber Creek, 6 p.m.
Cumberland at Egg Harbor, 6 p.m.
Lawrence at Hightstown, 6 p.m.
Bishop Eustace at Holy Cross, 7 p.m.
Williamstown at Delsea, 7 p.m.
Moorestown at Clearview, 7 p.m.
FIELD HOCKEY
Salem at Absegami
Salem Tech at Maple Shade
BOYS SOCCER
NJTAC Tournament
Salem Tech at Penn Tech, 3:45 p.m.

SATURDAY, OCT. 10
WJFL FOOTBALL
Haddonfield at Paulsboro, 11 a.m.
Princeton at Hamilton West, 11 a.m.
Gloucester at Haddon Heights, 11:30 a.m.
Absegami at Pemberton noon
Cinnaminson at Willingboro, noon
Florence at Gloucester Catholic, 1 p.m.
Bridgeton at Pennsauken, 1 p.m.
Glassboro at Burlington Twp., 1:30 p.m.
West Deptford at West. Nassau (Fla.), 6 p.m.
GIRLS SOCCER
Mainland at Schalick, 10 a.m.
FIELD HOCKEY
Pennsville at Nottingham, 11 a.m.
CROSS COUNTRY
South Jersey Open, Dream Park, 10 a.m.
COLLEGE SOFTBALL
Salem CC Jamboree, 10 a.m.
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Salem CC at Felician

WJFL Scoreboard

Here are the scores from the West Jersey Football League schedule for the week of Oct. 1-3

SATURDAY, OCT. 3
Salem 40, Woodstown 7
Paulsboro 50, Woodbury 24
Pitman 48, Gloucester Catholic 8
Mastern Camden at Audubon
Bridgeton 35, Atlantic Tech 0
Pennsauken 17, Trenton 8
Ewing 44, Cherry Hill West 27
Pemberton at Hamilton West
Steinert 15, Hammonton 14
Winslow at Red Bank Catholic
Ocean City 26, Oakcrest 18
Lower Cape May 40, Middle Twp. 8

FRIDAY, OCT. 2
Pennsville 14, Penns Grove 12
Buena 28, Wildwood 14
West Deptford 59, Overbrook 8
Clayton 40, Gateway 0
WW-Plainsboro at Lindenwold
Paul VI 35, Eastern 7
KIPP at Lawrence
Holy Cross 14, Florence 6
Seneca 27, Hopewell Valley 13
Nottingham at Delran
Williamstown 15, Kingsway 14
Delsea 41, Triton 27
Notre Dame 20, Allentown 8
Shawnee 24, Lenape 23
Timber Creek 43, Absegami 0
Rancocas Valley 21, Millville 20
Maple Shade at Sterling
Lower Cape May at Middle Twp.
St. Augustine 49, Burlington Twp. 0
Atlantic City 49, Mainland 13
Holy Spirit 27, Pleasantville 22
Glassboro 43, Willingboro 19
Cedar Creek 20, Cherokee 14
Bordentown 58, Hightstown 20
Cinnaminson 20, Camden Catholic 0
Gloucester 42, Riverside 7
Bishop Eustace 34, Haddon Twp. 0
Moorestown 20, Robbinsville 14

THURSDAY, OCT. 1
Schalick 41, Cumberland 15
Northern Burlington 31, Princeton 7
Clearview 14, Highland 6
Deptford 34, Collingswood 0
Burlington City 44, Palmyra 12
Oakcrest at Ocean City
Washington Twp. 42, Cherry Hill East 13
St. Joe (Hamm.) 35, Egg Harbor 14
Permian (Tex.) 28, Camden 13

Eagles retain The Boot

Pennsville wins annual rivalry game with Penns Grove 14-12, surviving a serious threat from the Red Devils in the fourth quarter

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE — No football team likes leaving their fortunes to chance, but you could say fate was on Pennsville’s side in its annual rivalry game with Penns Grove Friday night.

Sometime during pregame warm-ups Pennsville seniors Danny Knight and Aiden Clark found a quarter in the grass around the 40-yard-line near the Penns Grove sideline. Just for fun, Clark suggested they flip the coin to determine who was going to win The Boot. Heads, the Eagles win; tails, they lose. (Somehow you got the feeling they were going to flip it until it came out correctly.)

They flipped it once and the usually sure-handed Knight tried to catch the coin on the way down, but it bounced out of his hands and landed on the ground tails. The pair took a do-over and this time it came up heads. They did it again for good measure (more like best 2-of-3 the way it started) and it came up favorably heads again.

As fate would have it, the Eagles went on to win the game, 14-12, to retain the Wildman Willey Boot for the third straight year.

“I wish fate was a little nicer to me and wouldn’t give me a heart attack,” said Pennsville coach Mike Healy, now 3-7 in the series as head coach.

Actually, the Eagles (3-3) needed someone or something looking out for them. They already had lost three games in the fourth quarter this season and needed to survive a furious Penns Grove rally in this one to avoid another that would’ve spoiled Homecoming. And in that comeback bid, freshman Ayden Epstein stopped a potential game-tying two-point conversion and Grady Sanders shut down a reverse on fourth down deep in Pennsville territory that ended the Red Devils’ bid for the winning touchdown.

Pennsville’s Grady Sanders (7) closes in on Penns Grove’s Savior Allah to make the tackle that sealed the Eagles’ Homecoming Night victory and retain the Wildman Willey Boot trophy that goes with it. (Photo by Lucky Shots)

The game began in a steady rain that limited both teams’ offensive production in the first half. Penns Grove scored first when Jaivon Thomas broke free for a 26-yard touchdown run, but the Red Devils dropped the two-point conversion. The Eagles took a 7-6 lead 92 seconds before halftime when Jake Layfield threw the first of his two touchdown passes to C.J. Johnson and Dante Cummings hit the extra point.

Beyond the touchdown run, the Eagles held Penns Grove’s Thomas tandem to 154 combined yards rushing. Terrell Thomas had 35 yards on 13 carries and Jaivon Thomas had 119 yards on 22 carries. The touchdown run was the Red Devils’ longest offensive play of the game.

“They’re a good duo over there, probably Sonic and Knuckles, that’s what I would call them,” Sanders said referring to the classic video game characters who combine speed and glide to thwart their opponents. “They run very hard.”

The Eagles had a hard runner of their own. Tristan Horner rushed for a career-high 114 yards to give the Eagles their first 100-yard rusher of the season. He should have had their go-ahead touchdown, but fumbled at the goal line in the second quarter.

“It was good to see him that type of day,” Healy said. “He runs tough, so I was really happy to see that from him.”

“Overall I’ve just been feeling like the season hasn’t gone my way,” Horner said. “Starting off against Woodstown I think I had like 20 yards. It’s gotta click at some point. You’ve gotta get it moving. Coming into this game I was hyped. I was ready. It’s Penns Grove Week. It’s rivalry week. You’ve got to turn it up.”

**Tristan Horner (14) became Pennsville’s first running back to rush for 100 yards or more in a game this season. (Photo by Lucky Shots)**

Layfield’s second touchdown pass to Johnson, a 44-yarder early in the third quarter, extended the Eagles lead to 14-6. It stayed that way until Jaivon Thomas picked off Layfield and returned it 30 yards for a touchdown. The Red Devils went for 2 looking to tie, but Epstein caught Thomas from behind to keep Pennsville in front. Thomas got banged up on the play, eventually leaving him unavailable for the team’s final drive.

“These are the type of game that we live for,” Penns Grove coach Damian Ware said. “We live for these games where it’s a tight game, where it’s a one score game – not even a one-score game, a two-point game. It came down to extra points in this game. We didn’t get either extra point, they got two extra points, they win the game. It’s tough because it comes down to extra points and that’s something we been working on. But we played tough though, we battled, we grinded, so I’m not mad at these guys.”

Despite the two touchdown passes, it was an off night for Layfield. The Pennsville quarterback had thrown for more than 1150 yards and been intercepted just four times in 158 pass attempts in the first five games of the season, but on this rainy night he was just 6-of-12 for 94 yards and was intercepted four times. Jaivon Thomas and Jerry Wooten both picked him twice. He was, however, crowned Homecoming King at halftime.

The Red Devils had one last shot to get the game-winner and remain undefeated and they took up almost all of the final 7:28 to complete the task. They eventually got it to the Pennsville 12 with 2:08 to play. Terrell Thomas was stopped for no gain on second down and then the Red Devils threw an incomplete pass along the sideline on third.

They had a play lined up on the do-or-die fourth down Ware was confident was going to work, but they never got to run it because they were hit with a false start. On the restart they ran a reverse to Savior Allah that was supposed to turn into a pass, but Allah never got it off as Sanders met him head-on near the right sideline to kill the threat with one minute to go.

“The last drive we were getting some things that we were looking for all game, we just started executing them,” Ware said. “We had a play called that I though was going to be very successful before we got the false start and that kind of pushed us back behind the sticks. We tried to run a little something (on the last play) and it just didn’t work out.”

“I’ve played football my whole entire life, I know Penns Grove runs it,” Sanders said. “I saw the reverse coming. I told my teammates, but just a lot of years of football and knowing the situation and going down there and making a play. I don’t really think (it was for The Boot) in the moment; it’s just another football play. You’ve got to take every play as the most important play and as it turns out it was the most important play.”

It wasn’t the first time in the game Sanders thwarted a Penns Grove threat. He recovered a fumble to end a drive in the first quarter.

After Sanders’ stop in the fourth quarter Layfield took two knees to run out the clock and touch off a celebration that was equal parts joy and relief.

“I’m so proud of how (they played) defensively on that drive,” Healy said. “We gave up a few yards today but every time they got near the end zone for the most part we buckled down and did our job. Couldn’t be happier, but we’ve gpt to stop putting ourselves in situations where games are so close. We need to get to that point we’re not making mistakes and we’re taking advantage of opportunities.”

Pennsville 14, Penns Grove 12

PG		PV
13	1st Downs	13
39-151	Rushing	27-104
5-11-1	Passes	6-12-4
43	Passing	94
3-1	Fum-Lost	2-1
2-27.0	Punts-Avg	0-0
10-115	Penalties	8-60

Penns Grove (4-1)	6	0	0	6-	12
Pennsville (3-3)	0	7	7	0-	14

SCORING SUMMARY
PG-Jaivon Thomas 26 run (pass failed), 7:30 1Q
PV-C.J. Johnson 14 pass from Jake Layfield (Dante Cummings kick), 1:32 2Q
PV-C.J. Johnson 44 pass from Jake Layfield (Dante Cummings kick), 10:03 3Q
PG-Jaivon Thomas 30 interception return (run failed), 10:59 4Q

Pennsville freshman Ayden Epstein (44) moves in to stop Penns Grove’s Jaivon Thomas on a failed fourth-quarter two-point conversion that prevented the Red Devils from tying the game. (Photo by Lucky Shots)

Charging to the top

Salem Tech field hockey routs Pennsville, takes upper hand in TCC Classic; includes scores and highlights from Thursday’s Salem County sports calendar

THURSDAY’S SCORES
FIELD HOCKEY
Salem Tech 10, Pennsville 0
BOYS SOCCER
Schalick 1, Clearview 0
GIRLS SOCCER
Salem at Pennsville
GIRLS TENNIS
SJ Group 1 Tournament
Pitman 4, Bernards 1
Roselle Park at Middlesex
Gateway 5, South River 0
Haddon Twp. 4, Schalick 1
Woodstown 3, Lower Cape May 2
Metuchen 5, Edison Magnet 0
Woodbridge Magnet 5, Pennsville 0
New Providence 3, Shore 2
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Chesapeake 3, Salem CC 0

By Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE – Abigail Beals, Hazel Eachus and Adessa Plum scored two goals apiece and the two-year-old Salem Tech field hockey program took the upper hand in the Tri-County Classic Division with a school-record 10-0 rout of Pennsville Thursday.

The Chargers (6-2, 4-0) are the last remaining undefeated team in Classic Division play. They hold a 1½ game lead over Pennsville in the standings. Last year, in their inaugural season, they played as a TCC independent while they awaited the new scheduling cycle.

Jessilyn Chambers, Hayden Crispin, Avery Dalton and Gina LaRosa scored their other goals. Crispin was credited with three assists.

The Chargers have won their last three games by scores of 10-0, 9-0 and 6-0. They have now won five in a row, matching their longest winning streak in program history.

The teams play again Monday.

BOYS SOCCER
SCHALICK 1, CLEARVIEW 0: Nolan O’Toole converted a penalty kick in the 81st minute for the game’s only goal and Nick Latona made eight saves in his fourth shutout of the season. According to reports, Marco Spinnato was sent in on net and taken down from behind in the box to set up the PK. The Cougars (6-2) have won four in a row, outscoring their opponents 13-1.

GIRLS TENNIS
WOODSTOWN 3, LOWER CAPE MAY 2
Mia Gilbert (L) def. Madison LaPalomento, 6-1, 6-1
Emma West (WO) def. Casey Fitzpatrick, 6-3, 6-3
Angelina Lindenmuth (WO) def. Reilly Fitzpatrick, 6-2, 6-4
Emilee Kehr-Elliana Norman (WO) def. Mia Teng-Gia Guzzi, 4-6, 6-2, 10-3
Aubrey Gamble-Kaleigh Griser (L) def. Isabella Lindenmuth-Eleanore Lawson, 6-2, 6-4
Records: Woodstown 8-4, Lower Cape May 8-5.

HADDON TWP. 4, SCHALICK 1
Leighton Thoder (HT) def. Olivia Lunemann, 6-2, 6-4
Olivia Fleming (HT) def. Sebrina Bradford, 2-6, 6-4, 10-6
Jasmine Hunt (S) def. Hadleigh Holcomb, 7-5, 7-5
Riley Kennedy-Sujin Marchese (HT) def. River Wojcik-Janae White, 6-1, 6-1
Ariana Turkot-Julianne McGary (HT) def. Brooke Brown-Abigail Sotela Hernandez, 6-2, 6-4
Records: Haddon Twp. 10-5, Schalick 8-4

WOODBRIDGE MAGNET 5, PENNSVILLE 0
Chelsea Zhang (WM) def. Graillyn Weber, 6-1, 6-0
Kasshvi Garge (WM) def. Naomi Hess, 6-3, 6-0
Mahi Patel (WM) def. Jaisley Weber, 6-1, 6-2
Anugraha Nithyaprakash-Nehal Ambulkar (WM) def. Aubrey Hall-Juliana Thomas, 6-3, 6-3
Vinthua Vemuri-Deveshi Bhardwaj (WM) def. Yasary Clemente Brito-Mariangela Rangel, 6-0, 6-2
Records: Woodbridge Magnet 7-4, Pennsville 9-4.

SJ Group 1 Quarterfinals
Tuesday’s Matches
Roselle Park-Middlesex winner at Pitman
Gateway at Haddon Twp.
Metuchen at Woodstown
Woodbridge Magnet at New Providence

It’s trophy time

All five teams in Salem County will be playing for special trophies this week; includes Salem County football leaders through games of Sept. 28

THIS WEEK’S GAMES
Tonight: Schalick at Cumberland, 6 p.m.
Friday: Penns Grove at Pennsville, 7 p.m.
Saturday: Woodstown at Salem, noon

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

It’s Trophy Week in Salem County.

There’s a rivalry game of some kind somewhere every week, and all three games involving teams from Salem County are this week.

Tonight, Schalick, the No. 1 team in the South Jersey Group 1 power points standings, travels the six miles up Centerton Road to take on Cumberland for the Hars-Lake Trophy. Surprising Penns Grove plays at Pennsville Friday for the Wildman Willey Boot. And Saturday, surging Salem hosts Woodstown for the Rivalry Week Trophy that used to be the Thanksgiving Day Classic.

**The Woodstown-Salem Thanksgiving Day Classic trophy, now called the Rivalry Week trophy.**

“I think it means more to the kids from the simple fact you get to engrave your name on something and say you won something that particular year,” said Salem coach Kemp Carr, who has coached for and held high both The Boot and the Rivalry Week trophies in his career. “Anytime you get an opportunity to play for something no matter what it is you want to play your hardest and your best.”

The Salem-Woodstown series began in 1911 and has been played continuously since 1924; Salem leads it 64-40-10. Since they don’t play it on Thanksgiving Day anymore it has been decreed to be the home team’s homecoming game every year, and since they’re not in the same WJFL division at this time they’ve been designated opponents. Salem wrestled the trophy back last year – and had it hand delivered to the school — after it had been in Woodstown’s hands since 2021.

The trophy they’re playing for in Pennsville 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.

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

Penns Grove leads the series 37-29-4 and is 11-6 since 2010, but Pennsville has won the last two in a row.

“It’s always one of the most anticipated games of the season, especially when it’s our homecoming,” Eagles coach Mike Healy said. “The school and the community get really into this game and can’t wait for Friday night.”

The Schalick-Cumberland series 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 when the Hars-Lake Memorial Trophy was established. It is 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.

Schalick leads the series 16-9, but Cumberland won last year and will be looking to win back-to-back for the first time since 2008. Adding to the intrigue is the fact it will be played for the first time on a Thursday night.

They don’t call this one “The Neighborhood Game” for nothing. 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.

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,” former Schalick head coach Mike Wilson said back in 2023. “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.”

**Pennsville players raise The Boot last year after retaining the trophy in the series with Penns Grove. Top photo: The Wildman Willey Boot and the Hars-Lake Trophy.**

Salem County leaders

Rushing

PLAYER	CAR.	YARDS	TD
Kenny Bartee, Schalick	65	632	9
Jaivon Thomas, Penns Grove	44	614	9
Cole Ware, Woodstown	64	431	2
Cashmir Parsley, Salem	58	411	4
Terrell Thomas, Penns Grove	46	357	8
David Stewart, Schalick	35	289	4
Ayden Jenkins, Schalick	44	229	1
Aidan Collazo, Pennsville	18	181	2
Mason Middlemiss, Woodstown	29	160	5
Tristan Horner, Pennsville	37	142	4
TyRell West, Woodstown	20	86	3
Kyvion Parsons, Salem	14	81	2
Adrian Alleyne, Salem	11	81	0
Savior Allah, Penns Grove	6	79	1
Zavier Reeder, Penns Grove	4	71	0
Desmund Thomas, Salem	9	63	1
Freddie Allen, Schalick	12	60	1
Isiah Santiago, Salem	18	59	0
DezYon Purnell, Schalick	8	49	0

Passing

PLAYER	C-A-I	YARDS	TD
Jake Layfield, Pennsville	100-158-4	1156	10
Desmund Thomas, Salem	7-7-0	141	2
Mason Middlemiss, Woodstown	15-26-3	274	4
Kenny Bartee, Schalick	6-21-0	125	1
Owen McDonald, Salem	10-22-2	105	1
Damien Robinson, Penns Grove	13-17-0	105	2
Gabriel McFarland, Schalick	3-4-0	49	1
Kyvion Parsons, Salem	3-11-2	41	1

Receiving

PLAYER	NO.	YARDS	TD
Chase Johnson, Pennsville	38	539	5
Lucas Thomas, Pennsville	16	138	2
Aidan Collazo, Pennsville	11	144	0
Jacob Kimani, Pennsville	10	126	1
Tristan Horner, Pennsville	10	126	1
Danny Knight, Pennsville	8	118	0
Jerry Wooton, Penns Grove	7	128	2
KaiSiere Muhammad, Salem	6	98	0
Andrew White, Woodstown	5	157	4
Ahmad Tucker, Salem	4	51	1
Cole Ware, Woodstown	4	35	0
Quemere Bergen, Salem	3	59	2
Gio Alicea, Schalick	3	56	1
Nehemiah Carter, Woodstown	3	53	0
Isiah Santiago, Salem	3	29	0
Savior Allah, Penns Grove	3	25	0
Dante Cummings, Pennsville	3	13	1
Noah Chiu, Woodstown	2	31	0
Omari Robinson, Penns Grove	2	26	1
Evan Elliott, Schalick	2	10	1

Defense

SACKS — 6.5: JaKai Ingram, Penns Grove; Omari Robinson, Penns Grove; 6: Omari Robinson, Penns Grove; 5.5: Myshion Barnes, Salem; 4.5: Tony Merendino, Salem; 4: Mahkye Murray, Salem; Bradley Snitcher, Woodstown; 3: Evan Elliott, Schalick; Nick Lopergolo, Schalick; 2.5: Rex Hannah, Woodstown; 2: Kamal Chatum, Salem; Xavier Csaszar, Woodstown; Dillon Garrity, Woodstown; Maliq Reddick, Penns Grove; Terrell Thomas, Penns Grove; Jerry Wooton, Penns Grove

INTERCEPTIONS — 4: Jacob Kimani, Pennsville; 3: Grady Sanders, Pennsville; David Stewart, Schalick; 2: Gio Alicea, Schalick; Jaivon Thomas, Penns Grove; Danny Knight, Pennsville

Team Leaders

TEAM	RUSH	C-A-I	PASS	PF	PA
PENNS GROVE (4-0)	1243	14-19-0	170	157	38
PENNSVILLE (2-3)	288	100-158-4	1156	117	85
SALEM (2-3)	750	20-40-4	287	98	98
SCHALICK (5-0)	1126	12-30-0	208	163	34
WOODSTOWN (3-2)	721	15-26-3	274	104	91

Instant connection

Pennsville takes down Dayton in play-in round of the South Jersey Group 1 girls tennis tournament; Eagles take long ride to Woodbridge Thursday for next round

GIRLS TENNIS
SJ Group 1 Tournament
Pennsville 4, Dayton 1

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE — They’ve only known each other since the start of tennis season. They’ve only been paired as Pennsville’s No. 2 doubles team for about a week. But Mariangela Rangel and Yasary Clemente Brito have found the formula to create some tennis magic together.

The recently paired tandem won a straight set victory Wednesday to clinch the Eagles’ 4-1 victory over Dayton in the play-in round of the South Jersey Group 1 Tournament. They defeated Nilaja Awogboro-Clark and Payten Santiago, 6-4, 6-4.

It was only the tandem’s fifth match together; they’re 4-1. They’ve played together at No. 2 doubles in four straight matches since Sept. 22, winning three of them.

“We’ve been trying to mix our doubles combinations up looking for chemistry between the girls,” Pennsville head coach Brynn Buechler said after claiming her first sectional tournament victory as a head coach. “We’ve had a few practices where we have the girls rotating and noticed that Yas and Mariangela communicate with each other and their personalties really gel.

“They feed off each other’s energy and it was great to see them get the win today to clinch the match for us.”

**Yasary Clemente Brito (L) and Mariangela Rangel walk back to rejoin their teammates after winning the match that clinched Pennsville’s victory.**

The two partners credit their culture and style of play as the secrets to their success.

“I feel it works because we both speak Spanish and we understand,” said Rangel, a sophomore playing her first year of tennis. “And she’s really good in the back and I’m really good up at the net, so I’m not surprised how good we’ve been playing together.”

“They have such an energy between them,” Eagles assistant coach Dallas Dilks said. “Really upbeat. Picking each other up. And then it was just can we get their games better from the time they started playing together and they both stepped up. Today was great. They hustled around, they put extra balls in, their confidence was so high. This is what we’ve been wanting all year and they stepped up to the plate.”

Both of their sets on the far end of the courts were tight. Once they got the lead in the second set they never lost it. The Dayton duo tied the set at 2-2 and 4-4. The Pennsville pair held serve to take the lead 5-4, then broke the Bulldogs’ serve to send the 10th-seeded Eagles (9-3) to the next round.

They now travel to seventh-seeded Woodbridge Magnet Thursday for the Round of 16. This year’s tournament was compressed into North and South sectionals with 24 teams in each. The top eight seeds drew byes.

“I think we did a really good job,” said Clemente Brito, a junior. “We started off really strong. We got a little down, but we didn’t give up. We just kept going and we won. We came in with positive minds and we knew if we wanted to win we can’t get mad if we lose a point. We just came to win and we just had to get the job done.”

The Eagles swept the three singles matches for their other points. Naomi Hess and Jaisley Weber won in straight sets in advance of Rangel and Clemente Brito’s clinching win, then No. 1 singles Graillyn Weber won a 10-5 third-set tiebreaker for the final margin.

PENNSVILLE 4, DAYTON 1
Graillyn Weber (PV) def. Natasha Perianayagam, 6-3, 2-6, 10-5
Naomi Hess (PV) def. Yve Lieberman, 6-0, 6-0
Jaisley Weber (PV) def. Sharlyn Dubey, 6-1, 6-0
Jaclyn Wang-Gwenyth Pachtman (D) def. Aubrey Hall-Juliana Thomas, 6-1, 6-3
Mariangela Rangel-Yasary Clemente Brito (PV) def. Payten Santiago-Nilaja Awogboro-Clark, 6-4, 6-4
Records: Pennsville 9-3, Dayton 1-9.

SOUTH JERSEY GROUP 1 TOURNAMENT
Thursday’s first-round matchups
Bernards at Pitman, 3:30 p.m.
Roselle Park at Middlesex, 3:30 p.m.
South River at Gateway, 3:30 p.m.
Schalick at Haddon Twp., 3 p.m.
Lower Cape May at Woodstown, 3 p.m.
Edison Magnet at Metuchen, 3:30 p.m.
Pennsville at Woodbridge Magnet, 3:30 p.m.
Shore at New Providence, 3 p.m.

Running on empty

Wednesday roundup:Salem Tech harriers win first SJ Tech title one day after winning TCC division crown; Pennsville soccer beats Pitman for first time since 2017, and more

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

WESTAMPTON – Every bit of conventional wisdom would tell you the Salem Tech cross country runners should have been spent. Like sending a relief pitcher out to the mound for a third day in a row, there shouldn’t have been anything left. But the Chargers saw a unique opportunity and literally found another gear.

Levi Seals and Anthony Morano went 3-4, respectively and the Chargers placed all five counters in the top 10, to win their first ever South Jersey Vo-Tech Championship at Westampton Tech Wednesday – one day after clinching its fifth straight TCC Classic Division title.

The Chargers finished with 29 points. GCIT and Camden Vo-Tech both scored 66 points. Medford Tech was fourth with 67 points.

“I was impressed with the guys,” Chargers coach Matt DiTizio said. “(Defending race champion) GCIT on a normal day, they would’ve had us for sure, but they were in a tough race yesterday, too.

“We saw an opportunity we don’t normally have, so we went for it. I figured it might be tight with some of the teams there, but there was just too much of an opportunity there and the guys really wanted to go for it. I gave them the green light and they took advantage of it.”

Seals hit the finish in 17:57.21; he’s run faster before, but his time here was six seconds faster than he ran in Tuesday’s TCC Batch Meet. Morano finished in 18:45.16. Jean-Pierre Pozo (19:02.69), Joseph MacNeil (19:11.23) and Chase Pompper (19:32.05) all finished in the top 10, with Pozo and MacNeil both posting faster times than the day before. Medford Tech’s Chris Davis won the race in 17:42.00.

“It’s a lot on a runner to have them push like that two days in a row,” DiTizio said. “I felt this group had what it took to win it and push through a back-to-back race. They showed how tough they are and I am super proud of how they performed. They all ran a solid race”

The Salem Tech girls finished third in their race, behind winner GCIT and Medford Tech. Sophomore Paityn Harrington (26:21.34) and Abigail Vanaman (26:41.51) finished fourth and fifth, respectively, for the Chargers. Medford Tech’s Hailey Fedezko won the race in 24:48.15.

Boys soccer

PENNSVILLE — Sam Hassler scored off an indirect free kick from Lucas Cooksey in the 35th minute to give his team a two-goal lead and Pennsville “held on like crazy” in the second half to end a long losing streak against Pitman, 2-1.

It was the Eagles’ first win over the Panthers since 2017, ending a 12-game winless streak. The Eagles last win over Pitman came in the first meeting of the 2017 season, 4-3 at Alcyon Park. The teams played to a scoreless tie last year.

Justin Michaca scored Pennsville’s first goal on a penalty kick in the 20th minute. Pitman’s goal also came on a PK, by Jonas Drum, with 20 minutes left in regulation. Lochlann Hooks kept the out the rest of the game, making 15 saves total.

“I respect coach (Matt) Newcomb and the Pitman program a lot, so to get a first win against them feels like a big accomplishment,” Pennsville coach Derek Foglein said. “We’ve had a lot of firsts for our program recently. Just goes to show how far we’ve come.”

Girls soccer

SCHALICK 7, GLOUCESTER CATHOLIC 0: Karlie Bakley, Nicolette Bloomer and Olivia Vanacker all scored twice and Izzy Desantis tallied once as the Cougars (7-1) erupted for seven goals in the first half. The shutout was the Cougars’ sixth of the season and second in as many days

WOODSTOWN 2, PITMAN 0: Korynn Hernandez and Mariah Hyman scored goals in the first half as the Wolverines bounced back from a tough loss to arch-rival Schalick a day before. Hernandez now has 13 goals in her freshman season.

Field hockey

SCHALICK 10, SALEM 0: Luci Virga scored two goals and eight other players scored once as the Cougars won their seventh straight and second in a row by a 10-0 score. After being shutout in their first two games of the season, the Cougars have outscored their opponents 41-4.

“After adjusting our formation a few times, we finally found what works for us,” Cougars coach Heather Cheesman said.

HAMMONTON 2, WOODSTOWN 0: Lucia Donio scored two goals in the fourth quarter to help the Blue Devils extend their unbeaten streak to six games and snap Woodstown’s six-game winning streak.

OVERBROOK 2, PENNSVILLE 0: The Rams applied relentless pressure on Pennsville goalie Kelsey Cook, but only Lucylaine Bannan and Cadence Burr could get it past the junior keeper.

Girls tennis

PENNSVILLE 4, DAYTON 1: The recently paired tandem of Mariangela Rangel and Yasary Clemente Brito won a straight set victory at second doubles to clinch the Eagles’ victory in the play-in round of the South Jersey Group 1 Tournament.

The 10th-seeded Eagles (9-3) now travel to seventh-seeded Woodbridge Magnet Thursday for a first-round match.

The Eagles swept the three singles matches for their other points. Naomi Hess and Jaisley Weber won in straight sets, while No. 1 singles Graillyn Weber won a 10-5 third-set tiebreaker.

A more detailed account will be posted to Riverview Sports News soon.