Salem Tech blanks Absegami to assure a winning regular season, still in the running for a playoff berth
FIELD HOCKEY
Salem Tech 2, Absegami 0
Gateway 3, Pennsville 0
GIRLS TENNIS
Pennsville 3, Schalick 2
By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News
GALLOWAY – Every first-year athletic program has a set of benchmarks it aspires to meet for a successful start.
They’re pretty easy early in the year – first game, home opener, first win. As the year goes on, they tend to become a little more complicated – winning season, playoff berth, things like that.
Salem Tech’s first-year field hockey program reached a pretty big milestone Tuesday. The Chargers blanked Absegami 2-0 to guarantee a winning regular-season record. They’re now 8-3 with three regular-season games remaining – all on the road.
They have beaten all three of the remaining teams on their regular-season schedule, two by shutout.
“Having a winning record in our first season means a lot,” coach Maureen Lewis said. “To see all their hard work pay off with wins is really rewarding. It shows what’s possible when a team plays together and has fun.”
The Chargers got goals from Hazel Eachus and Jessilyn Chambers and another shutout from Caroline Tighe. Chambers got the assist on Eachus’ team-leading seventh goal of the season with 3:10 left in the second quarter and then scored her fifth goal 4:16 into the third quarter.
The shutout was Tighe’s seventh of the season. After giving up 12 goals in their first four games of the season, Tighe has surrendered only two since.
“We started off a little slow, but once the girls settled in, they found their groove and played really well,” Lewis said. “They moved the ball nicely down the field and communicated well. We are proud of how they adjusted.”
The school started field hockey this year as part of an athletics expansion that includes baseball and softball in the spring. The new teams play as a Tri-County Conference independent until the next conference scheduling cycle, but are eligible for the playoffs.
At 8-3, the Chargers are No. 18 in the South Jersey Group 2 power points standings, less than one point out of the 16th and final qualifying spot for the tournament. All three of their remaining games come before Saturday’s cutoff.
They have the highest winning percentage of any SJ Group 2 team outside of the top five, playing a schedule designed to promote success. They’ve won six of their last seven.
“Being a first-year team it’s hard to say exactly where we’ll end up, but I couldn’t be prouder of the effort and growth we’ve shown,” Lewis said. “If we make the playoffs, that would be great. It would be a nice bonus to an already successful season.
“But no matter what, this is just the beginning. These girls have set the foundation for something special.”
GATEWAY 3, PENNSVILLE 0: Emma Mason had a goal and two assists as the Gators scored three times in the second quarter. Isabella Egenoff and Lucy Matthews had the other goals.
GIRLS TENNIS
PENNSVILLE 3, SCHALICK 2
Lily Edwards (P) def. Miya Watkins, 6-2, 6-1
Annmarie Podehl (S) def. Isabell Schrenker, 6-4, 6-4
Morgan Holt (P) def. Macy Clow, 6-3, 6-0
Naomi Hess-Graillyn Weber (P) def. Olivia Lunemann-Sebrina Bradford, 6-2, 7-5
Sammi Twigg-Jasmine Hunt (S) def. Emma Hankin-Yerlian Charon, 6-1, 6-2
Records: Pennsville 13-7, Schalick 9-8.
Category: PENNSVILLE
Monday sports report
Here are the scores from Monday’s Salem County sports calendar
GIRLS SOCCER
Schalick 6, Penns Grove 0: Quinn Berger had two goals and two assists as the Cougars completed their third straight unbeaten season in the TCC Diamond Division. Berger scored the first and third goals of the game and assisted on Schalick’s two second-half goals.
Pitman 6, Salem 0: Emery Sharpnack scored three goals and assisted on another for the Panthers.
Woodstown at Pennsville
Salem Tech at Gloucester Catholic
FIELD HOCKEY
Schalick 9, Deptford 0: Nine different players scored for the Cougars. Lena Virga and Ava Scurry each had a goal and two assists.
Gloucester Catholic 3, Salem 0: Freshman Alana Bellan scored two second-quarter goals.
Overbrook at Woodstown
GIRLS VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech 2, Buena 0: Tiara Bazemore had 12 aces and seven assists to lead the Chargers. The set scores were 25-8, 25-13.
GIRLS TENNIS
Woodstown 5, Schalick 0
Pitman 5, Salem 0
Pennsville 5, Overbrook 0
WOODSTOWN 5, SCHALICK 0
Nathalie Neron (WO) def. Miya Watkins, 3-6, 7-5, 10-6
Alyssa Berry (WO) def. Annmarie Podehl, 7-6 (7-4), 6-3
Noelle Neron (WO) def. Macy Clow, 6-4, 7-5
Madison LaPalomento-Emilee Kehr (WO) def. Olivia Lunemann-Sebrina Bradford, 6-4, 3-6, 11-9
Emma West-Angelina Lindenmuth (WO) def. Sammi Twigg-Jasmine Hunt, 6-2, 6-2
Records: Woodstown 15-5, Schalick 8-7.
PENNSVILLE 5, OVERBROOK 0
Lily Edwards (P) def. Sophia Burgos, 6-0, 6-0
Isabell Schlenker (P) def. Isabella Sepulveda, 6-2, 6-0
Morgan Holt (P) def. Anna Mason, 6-1, 6-0
Naomi Hess-Graillyn Weber (P) def. Sophia Perticari-Charlotte Gall, 6-0, 6-0
Emma Hankin-Yerlian Charon (P) def. Heaven Williams-Liana Grant-Williams, 6-1, 6-0
Records: Pennsville 12-7, Overbrook 3-17.
Eagles land their title
Pennsville swamps Salem 7-1 to clinch its first boys soccer division title in 32 years and fourth all-time; set sights on a home playoff game
BOYS SOCCER
Woodstown 1, Pitman 1
Schalick 4, Penns Grove 0
Pennsville 7, Salem 1
Gloucester Catholic 6, Salem Tech 4
By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News
PENNSVILLE – It isn’t often Pennsville coach Derek Foglein dresses up in a suit coat and tie for a soccer game, so it had to be a pretty special occasion for him to put on the ritz Monday night.
Usually, he reserves the sartorial splendor for the Foglein Bowl, the annual game between the Eagles and whatever team Foglein’s brother is coaching at the time. Well, the Foglein Bowl is on hold for the time being, so there had to be something else afoot.
Does the prospect of winning your first division championship in 32 years count?
The Eagles don’t have many soccer banners in the gym rafters, but they earned the right to raise another one in an historic Senior Night when they routed Salem 7-1 under the lights of Lou D’Angelo Stadium to win their first Tri-County Classic Division championship since 1993 and just the fourth all-time.
“Today in the circle before we started warmups I said I put on a shirt and tie for two reasons,” Foglein said. “No. 1, to look good for the seniors and No. 2 because we need to be professionals and we need to go to work. They went to work.
“Our seniors got a lot of joy and we get a lot of joy as a team because we did something that hasn’t been done in a long, long time and it feels really good. It was just a really positive night for soccer in Pennsville.”
It had been so long, Foglein wasn’t even born the last time they did it. Assistant coach Joe Mecholsky was a senior on the 1991 team that won it before that.
Luckily, the players didn’t mess up the coach’s outfit, sparing him the traditional water bucket salute as they celebrated the title.
“I asked him in school today because he was looking all spiffy is is the full tuxedo and tie and dress shoes coming out for the game tonight,” senior stopper Steve Fatcher said. “He says we’ll see. So he pulls up and says I have two reasons to be going fancy, Senior Night and to win the division for the first time in 32 years. It got us real hyped up. It was what we needed, especially after the rough week we had.”
The Eagles cut their run to the title close. They were on the cusp of clinching after beating Wildwood 1-0, but the celebration kept getting delayed as they lost to Clayton and then tied Gloucester Catholic. Luckily, all they had to do was get past the winless Rams to claim the crown.
“I will say that that was not the way we intended to finish the season,” Foglein said. “This was a night-and-day performance from what I’d seen from them over the last two games and the performance that we needed to go after Collingswood on Wednesday, because that’s going to be an enormous game to determine if we get a home playoff game or not.”
They haven’t had a home game in the playoffs since the 2020 semifinals and haven’t had a first-round home game since 2017. They haven’t won a tournament game since 2014.
All four field-position seniors scored goals for the Eagles – and in the first 15 minutes of the match. Their fifth senior, goalkeeper Coen Rinnier, came within a penalty kick near the end of the 60-minute game of recording the shutout.
Trevor Hann got them on the board with his second career goal and first since 2023 on a breakaway in the seventh minute. Sophomore J.P. Laughrey made it 2-0 two minutes later, followed in quick succession by seniors Edwin Castaneda-Sanchez, (his career first), Fatcher and Danny Bunay Coronel.
“It’s felt amazing,” Hann said. “Scoring on my Senior Night, winning the division title for the first time in more than 30 years, I feel amazing. I never felt like this before. It feels amazing.”
Freshman Anthony Michaca made it 6-0 before halftime and set the stage for a 60-minute finish. Guy Quintanilha got the Rams inside the mercy threshold with a PK 3:49 before the deadline, but freshman Jhonny Medina made it a six-goal game again with his first career goal in the 59th minute .
Sixty seconds later, the celebration began.
“Coach Foglein wasn’t even born when that (last) happened,” Rinnier said. “Coach Joe was one of the last to do it. We’ve had him just cheering us on the whole way. He still remembers his whole team when he won and I think it’s going to be the same thing for us. He talks about how special it is and we’re going to see how special it is.”
Tie that doesn’t bind
Woodstown battles Pitman to 1-1 tie, but needed a win to share division title with Schalick; draw was the Wolverines’ fourth of the season and third in a row
BOYS SOCCER
Woodstown 1, Pitman 1
Schalick 4, Penns Grove 0
Pennsville 7, Salem 1
Gloucester Catholic 6, Salem Tech 4
By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News
WOODSTOWN – The message to the Woodstown soccer team as it was about to start the second overtime was pretty straightforward: “We cannot tie and we cannot lose.”
The Wolverines just couldn’t get what they needed.
Most teams might accept a tie with a rival as a positive result, but the 1-1 draw the Wolverines got against Pitman Monday was neither the one they wanted nor needed.
It felt like a loss. With Schalick beating Penns Grove 15 miles down the road, Woodstown needed to beat the Panthers to grab a share of their first Tri-County Diamond Division title since 2014.
Instead, the tie – their fourth of the season and third in a row — left the Wolverines (9-1-4) one point behind the Cougars in the final division standings despite posting a winning record against them (1-0-1) during the season. They also had four ties in 2016.
“I feel like it feels more like a loss to this group of guys,” backliner Tommy Tucci said. “We came off the really good game against Schalick, keeping them to zero, and then came out here today really excited to hopefully get the win to keep the division. I think (the tie) feels more like a loss today.”
Both teams had chances, but both goalies and defenses turned them away. The Panthers finally broke through with 4:09 left in the half when Jonas Trum sent Trevor Leach down the right side and Leach shot it across into his left side of the net.
Landon Gugliemo got the equalizer with 9:11 left in regulation when Bryce Ayars’ shot went towards the left post and Gugliemo came crashing it and rifled back into the right side. But the Wolverines needed more.
While the Wolverines were clearly focused on their game at hand, they had an eye on the events 15 miles down the road and Schalick kept the pressure on from afar.
The Cougars grabbed a 1-0 halftime lead on the strength of Anthony Sepers’ penalty kick, then poured in three goals in the second half that left no doubt what the Wolverines had to do.
Steve Chomo headed home a cross from Mike Nelson to give Schalick a 2-0 lead, he assisted on Connor Jackson’s goal that made it 3-0, then closed the scoring later in the half. Evan Sepers made three saves in goal to record his eighth shutout of the season. The division title was Schalick’s third straight.
Both Pitman and Woodstown had good chances to win their game in the second overtime. With six minutes to go, Ayars got the ball in the box, stepped over a defender to create some separation but the keeper blocked his shot and the Panthers cleared the ensuing corner kick.
Three minutes later, Trum got past a defender down the right side and got in alone on the keeper, but Trey Markward stoned him to keep it tied. Both keepers, Markward and Pitman’s Joey Zubert, were credited with 13 saves.
“I just felt confident in myself and felt confident that God would give me the ability to make the save,” Markward said. “I kind of yelled way too loud basically at Him, then I apologized to Him.”
The match ended with the ball at Ayars’ feet in the Panthers’ box, but the double team on him kept him from controlling it and getting a shot.
“We came up a little short,” Woodstown coach Darren Huck said. “I know the way we play we’re going to keep games close and we did it today. We had the formation we wanted, we had we thought the guys in place to be successful. We just needed that one goal, that one more goal.”
There was a lot on the line for the Wolverines. Besides the division title, the teams were battling for the Orange Cup and it also was Woodstown’s Senior Day. The tie allowed the Wolverines to retain the Cup, having won last year’s designated game, but they no doubt would have preferred the bigger prize. Both Schalick and Woodstown had 15 standings points coming into the day.
“It’s terrible, not only for us, but for our seniors, too,” junior Nick DiTeodoro said. “This was their last chance. We all tried, we really wanted it. Even in the huddle, at halftime, before overtime, we were like this is our last time, this is our one chance. Coming up short just hurts.”
NOTES: It was the sixth tie in the history of the Orange Cup … The Wolverines had four ties in 2016 (6-12-4) … The teams considered an unofficial penalty kick shootout to decide the Cup (it would’ve still gone down as a tie), but dwindling daylight and the Senior Day program prevented it from happening … To show there were no hard feelings over the hard-fought result, Huck noticed the Pitman team still in the parking lot waiting on their bus to return and called them over to share in the Senior Day smorgasbord. “We got to share a little bit of a moment,” Huck said. “It was a little emotional.”
TCC Diamond Division
| TEAM | ALL | DIV |
| Schalick | 12-2-2 | 8-1-1 |
| Woodstown | 9-1-4 | 6-0-4 |
| Pitman | 8-5-2 | 6-3-1 |
| Penns Grove | 6-4-3 | 4-4-2 |
| Overbrook | 7-8-0 | 1-8-0 |
| Glassboro | 5-10-1 | 0-9-0 |
Power points
Here are the current South Jersey Group I top 16 in football, field hockey, boys soccer and girls soccer heading into the week; the cutoff date is Saturday; Salem County teams in bold
| FOOTBALL | UPR | FIELD HOCKEY | PTS. |
| s-Glassboro (8-0) | 1.4 | Shore (15-0-1) | 33.002 |
| c-Burlington City (7-1) | 2.2 | W. Deptford (12-2) | 28.964 |
| s-Paulsboro (7-1) | 2.8 | Haddon Twp. (9-6) | 22.695 |
| c-Shore (5-2) | 3.6 | Schalick (11-6) | 20.238 |
| c-Riverside (6-2) | 6.4 | Gloucester (9-7) | 20.181 |
| s-Pennsville (4-4) | 7.8 | S. Hunterdon (12-3) | 19.716 |
| c-KIPP (5-2) | 8.8 | Audubon (9-5-2) | 18.664 |
| s-Salem (4-4) | 8.8 | Haddon Hts. (8-6-1) | 18.548 |
| c-Asbury Park (4-3) | 9.8 | Gateway (7-5-2) | 15.033 |
| c-Pt. Pleasant Beach (5-2) | 10.2 | Woodstown (7-7-1) | 13.830 |
| s-Woodbury (3-5) | 11.4 | Lower Cape May (6-4-1) | 12.597 |
| c-Manville (8-0) | 12.0 | Florence (5-7) | 11.242 |
| s-Schalick (2-6) | 13.8 | Pennsville (6-7-1) | 10.970 |
| s-Audubon (2-5) | 14.0 | New Egypt (5-8-1) | 10.004 |
| s-Clayton (4-3) | 15.2 | Collingswood (2-11-1) | 9.884 |
| c-Highland Park (2-5) | 15.2 | Bordentown (6-9) | 9.821 |
| Football teams projected out to South Section (s), Central Section (c) |
| BOYS SOCCER | PTS. | GIRLS SOCCER | PTS. |
| Schalick (11-2-2) | 23.686 | Gateway (13-1) | 20.811 |
| Haddon Twp. (10-5-1) | 23.261 | Haddon Twp. (7-9-1) | 18.752 |
| Audubon (11-2-1) | 21.991 | Schalick (9-5-1) | 18.737 |
| Woodstown (9-1-3) | 20.905 | Clayton (10-4-1) | 17.256 |
| Riverside (9-2-2) | 19.096 | Pitman (9-5) | 17.048 |
| Pitman (8-5-1) | 18.760 | Palmyra (8-5-1) | 16.974 |
| Penns Grove (6-3-3) | 16.550 | Woodstown (10-3-1) | 16.085 |
| Pennsville (8-5-2) | 14.188 | Audubon (6-8-1) | 15.285 |
| Gateway (7-5-2) | 13.868 | Pennsville (8-6) | 12.883 |
| Palmyra (7-5-3) | 13.263 | Glassboro (6-7) | 10.316 |
| Maple Shade (7-3-2) | 13.057 | Riverside (5-8) | 9.975 |
| Clayton (10-6) | 12.411 | Maple Shade (2-12-1) | 9.300 |
| Glassboro (5-10-1) | 12.331 | Buena (6-7-2) | 9.131 |
| Wildwood (7-6) | 11.192 | Wildwood (5-6-1) | 8.613 |
| New Egypt (5-11) | 9.245 | Woodbury (4-7-2) | 7.110 |
| Woodbury (5-7-2) | 8.411 | x-Penns Grove (1-12) | 5.872 |
NOTE: Football, which follows a different qualifying formula than the other sports, will be split into South and Central sections based on top 16 and geographic northing numbers; Salem Tech is in Group 2 and currently No. 19 in field hockey, No. 19 in boys soccer; No. 17 in girls soccer; some teams may opt out of playoffs. x-Penns Grove has opted out of girls soccer playoffs.
This week’s schedule
Here is the Salem County sports schedule for the week of Oct. 20-25; the cutoff for fall sports power points is Saturday
MONDAY, OCT. 20
FIELD HOCKEY
Deptford at Schalick, 4 p.m.
Gloucester Catholic at Salem, 4 p.m.
Overbrook at Woodstown, 4 p.m.
BOYS SOCCER
Gloucester Catholic at Salem Tech, 4 p.m.
Penns Grove at Schalick, 4 p.m.
Pitman at Woodstown, 4 p.m.
Salem at Pennsville, 6 p.m.
GIRLS SOCCER
Pitman at Salem, 4 p.m.
Salem Tech at Gloucester Catholic, 4 p.m.
Schalick at Penns Grove, 4 p.m.
Woodstown at Pennsville, 4 p.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
Woodstown at Schalick, 3:45 p.m.
Salem at Pitman, 4 p.m.
Overbrook at Pennsville, 4:15 p.m.
GIRLS VOLLEYBALL
Buena at Salem Tech, 4 p.m.
CROSS COUNTRY
NJTAC at Salem Tech, 1 p.m.
TUESDAY, OCT. 21
FIELD HOCKEY
Overbrook at Salem, 4 p.m.
Pennsville at Gateway, 4 p.m.
Salem Tech at Absegami, 4 p.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
Pennsville at Schalick, 4 p.m.
WEDNESDAY, OCT. 22
FIELD HOCKEY
Salem Tech at Paulsboro, 4 p.m.
BOYS SOCCER
Overbrook at Salem Tech, 4 p.m.
Pennsville at Collingswood, 4 p.m.
Penns Grove at Salem, 4 p.m.
GIRLS SOCCER
Salem at Penns Grove, 4 p.m.
Salem Tech at Overbrook, 4 p.m.
Schalick at Pitman, 4 p.m.
Clayton at Pennsville, 6 p.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
Pennsville at Pitman, 3:45 p.m.
Woodstown at Glassboro, 3:45 p.m.
Overbrook at Salem, 4 p.m.
Penns Grove at Wildwood, 4 p.m.
CROSS COUNTRY
TCC Championship at Cumberland, 3:30 p.m.
THURSDAY, OCT. 23
FIELD HOCKEY
Salem Tech at Burlington City, 3:45 p.m.
Overbrook at Pennsville, 4 p.m.
BOYS SOCCER
Schalick at Sterling, 4 p.m.
Woodstown at Audubon, 7 p.m.
GIRLS SOCCER
Gloucester City at Pennsville, 4 p.m.
Salem at Salem Tech, 4 p.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
Salem at Wildwood, 4 p.m.
Schalick at Woodstown, 4 p.m.
GIRLS VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at Timber Creek, 4 p.m.
WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Penn State-Brandywine at Salem CC, 7 p.m.
FRIDAY, OCT. 24
WJFL FOOTBALL
Pennsville at Collingswood, 6 p.m.
West Deptford at Overbrook, 6 p.m.
Glassboro at Woodstown, 7 p.m.
FIELD HOCKEY
Salem Tech at Overbrook, 3:45 p.m.
Gloucester Catholic at Woodstown, 4 p.m.
BOYS SOCCER
Penns Grove at Wildwood, 4 p.m.
Pennsville at Gloucester City, 4 p.m.
GIRLS SOCCER
Woodstown at Pennsville, 3:30 p.m.
Clayton at Schalick, 4 p.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
Cumberland at Woodstown, 3:45 p.m.
SATURDAY, OCT. 25
WJFL FOOTBALL
Schalick at Woodbury, 11 a.m.
Penns Grove at Salem, noon
Clayton at Paulsboro, 12:30 p.m.
BOYS SOCCER
Highland at Woodstown, 10 a.m.
GIRLS SOCCER
Woodstown at Highland, 10 a.m.
Penns Grove at Salem, noon
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Salem CC at Lincoln (2), noon
Payback is … personal
Salem, Carey take it out on Woodstown after losing to the Wolverines last year and their Homecoming Game last week; Pennsville unloads on Lawrence to enhance its playoff hopes; Schalick falls to Glassboro; includes WJFL standings
By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News
WOODSTOWN — For Troy Carey, this one was personal.
Carey had a monster game against Woodstown last year, passing for an eye-popping 279 yards, but Salem lost to the other quarterback’s big game.
Friday night, the senior got a little payback on a lot of counts, rushing for 125 yards and two touchdowns and making some big plays on defense as the Rams crushed the Wolverines on their Homecoming and Senior Night, 47-0, a week after losing their own Homecoming game.
It was Salem’s first win in the rivalry since the 2020 season finale, its first at Woodstown since 2019 and its first at Clint Ware Field in the regular season since Thanksgiving 2017. There was talk on the sidelines Woodstown hadn’t lost at Homecoming in years.
“I was definitely hungry because last week was a tough game, I didn’t get any carries last week, but this week was definitely personal, for sure,” Carey said. “We lost our Homecoming (to West Deptford), so we had an opportunity to upset somebody else’s, so it was definitely big. It was personal this week, for sure.”
Carey was part of a balanced offense and a dominating defense. He, Cashmir Parsley and Isiah Santiago all scored a pair of touchdowns. Santiago, normally a receiver, played in the backfield for the first time and rushed for 71 yards. Parsley rushed for 68 yards and quarterback Desmund Thomas had 141 total yards and threw for a score on the final play of a 21-point first quarter.
The defense held Woodstown to minus-14 yards of net rushing and 45 yards total. It was the second opponent in three weeks the Rams held to negative rushing yards.
“I thought the defense played really well,” Rams coach Kemp Carr said. “Offense is for being cute and defense is for winning championship. The guys understood the call. For the most part there was good communication throughout. I heard a lot of pointing, a lot of talking, and that’s what it takes every game.”
Carey has played so many positions in his Salem career it’s hard to pigeon-hole him as any specific type player. You might call him a Swiss Army Knife. Carr just calls him “unicorn.”
He went for 34 yards the first time he touched the ball — on the first snap of the game — and scored on a 19-yard run two plays later. He had a 23-yard touchdown run in the final minute of the third quarter.
“He’s a unicorn, whatever we need him to do he’s willing to do and you can’t ask for anything more than that,” Carr said. “He plays wing, he plays quarterback, he plays running back, he plays Mike linebacker, defense and down line. When you have a unicorn like that you try to use him in the best place you can, but we have multiple of those guys.”
It was another tough night for the Wolverines (2-6), who fell out of the top 16 of the South Jersey Group I power points standings for the first time ever this week and are in danger of missing the playoffs for the first time since 2010.
They were held to less than 50 yards of net offense and had four turnovers, three of which Salem (4-4) converted into touchdowns. They did have a big play on their first drive when freshman quarterback Frankie Hoerst connected on a 63-yard bomb to Sincere Cook-Reese, but the sophomore receiver was stopped short of the end zone and they ended up not scoring, missing a 26-yard field goal attempt.
There was a scary moment in the game involving the quarterback later in the quarter. Hoerst lay still on the 30-yard line after getting crushed by the Salem rush and losing a fumble. The game was delayed nearly 15 minutes while trainers and medical staff treated him for an apparent neck injury.
They stabilized his head and neck area before lifting him on a backboard to an awaiting stretcher. Woodstown coach Frank Trautz reported Hoerst was moving and talking as he was being treated. He did not have an update on the player’s condition immediately after the game.
It was just another in a series of injuries that have befallen the Wolverines this season. At one point this year they had nine starters out because of injury. As it was, they had fewer than a half-dozen of their opening day starters on the field against the Rams.
“It’s unfortunate you have a season (like that),” Trautz said. “You keep telling yourself we’ve made it through and we get some guys back and we can’t seem to stay healthy. It’s part of this game, unfortunately.
“We’re not making excuses here. We’re very confident in the guys we have playing, but it’s no doubt it takes a toll on you. As ironic it sounds I do think it’s still going to help us in the long run here with a lot of these kids who were forced to play different positions this year before stepping into roles they were not expected to play in.”
With backup quarterbacks Mason Middlemiss and Lucas Fulmer among those already sidelined, the Wolverines turned to “Q” for the “A” at the position. Noah Chiu, pronounced like the letter Q, plays a hard-nosed style of ball and did what he could despite being under constant pressure.
“Noah is as tough as they come,” Trautz said. “He’s one of those kids that every coach would take 100 of. He’d run through a brick wall for you. He’ll do everything you ask of him. Very tough. We asked a lot of him tonight and he didn’t flinch.”
Salem 47, Woodstown 0
| SAL (47) | WOOD (0) | |
| 11 | 1st Downs | 2 |
| 31-321 | Rushing | 19-(-14) |
| 5-7-0 | Passing | 2-9-1 |
| 88 | Passing yds | 59 |
| 2-0 | Fumbles-lost | 3-3 |
| 3-32.0 | Punts-avg | 4-29.5 |
| 12-101 | Penalties | 2-7 |
| Salem (4-4) | 21 | 6 | 13 | 7- | 47 |
| Woodstown (2-6) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0- | 0 |
SCORING SUMMARY
S-Troy Carey 19 run (kick failed), 10:36 1Q
S-Cashmir Parsley 2 run (Johnathan Bower kick), 1:07 1Q
S-Kaden Robinson 30 pass from Desmund Thomas (Antwuan Rogers pass from Desmund Thomas), 0:00 1Q
S-Cashmir Parsley 4 run (run failed), 4:40 2Q
S-Isiah Santiago 10 run (run failed), 6:42 3Q
S-Troy Carey 23 run (Johnathan Bower kick), 0:38 3Q
S-Isiah Santiago 4 run (Johnathan Bower kick)
Pennsville 44, Lawrence 6
PENNSVILLE — The homestanding Eagles played one of their most complete games of the season, dominating their Mercer County visitors on both sides of the ball on Senior Night.
Rylan Hardy scored three touchdowns, Robbie McDade scored two and Adrian Alleyne scored once. Perry Meranti had three two-point conversions.
The Eagles led 16-0 in the first quarter and 30-6 at halftime.
“We had everything clicking,” Eagles coach Mike Healy said. “You know how we’ve talked about getting to play all four quarters? We did that.”
Glassboro 35, Schalick 7
GLASSBORO — Schalick gave Glassboro all it could handle for the better part of three quarters, but then the Bulldogs remembered who they were.
The Cougars held their own with the defending state champions through the first half and into the third quarter, but Xavier Sabb got loose for two late fourth-quarter touchdowns to close out a 35-7 victory.
Schalick had the Homecoming crowd worried for a while. Glassboro scored first, but the Bulldogs answered with an 82-yard drive after a Jase Volovar interception capped by Gary Simonini’s 30-yard TD pass to Sherrod Jones.
The Bulldogs scored again, and the Cougars nearly got the tying touchdown right before halftime. David Stewart set them up with an interception and they got to the 2 with four seconds left but couldn’t punch it in.
They ran three plays, missed a receiver in the end zone on second down and were stopped on third down. They lined up for a field goal, but it was blocked, so instead of going into the halftime trailing 14-10 they remained down by a touchdown, but not feeling as hurt as the Bulldogs.
“We were right there all through the first half,” Cougars coach Kevin Leamy said. “We had a game plan that the kids executed great and frustrated them on offense. Kids made plays.
“Everything was going good in the first half. We played well in the second half, too, but you give them enough opportunities, those kids are going to make plays.”
The events of the first half must not have sat well with the Bulldogs (8-0) because they didn’t come out for the second half until there were 30 seconds left in the break.
It was a 20-7 game going into the final four minutes of the fourth quarter, but Xavier Sabb, who hadn’t caught a pass to that point, scored twice to put the game out of reach.
“I don’t think it was anything special,” Leamy said of the approach. “I think it was just a mentality that we came into the game with that we were going to force them to earn everything they get. Pressure them, force them to continue to make plays. Force them to run the ball.
“They run the ball really well, but they refuse to commit to it. They’re always going to revert back to throwing the ball because they have those three kids out there that they can get the ball to. I think we knew that going in and were going to say we dare you to run the ball, we’re going to try everything we have to take away that pass.”
Glassboro 35, Schalick 7
| Schalick (2-6) | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0- | 7 |
| Glassboro (8-0) | 14 | 0 | 7 | 14- | 35 |
SCORING SUMMARY
G-Amari Sabb 42 pass from Jack O’Connell (Sal Esgro kick)
S-Sherrod Jones 30 pass from Gary Simonini (Hunter Dragotta kick)
G-JoJo DeLecce 22 run (Sal Esgro kick)
G-Amari Sabb 3 run (Sal Esgro kick)
G-Xavier Sabb 22 pass from Jack O’Connell (pass failed)
G-Xavier Sabb 25 pass from Jack O’Connell (Mekhi Parker run)
WJFL Standings
| DIAMOND | ALL | DIV |
| Glassboro | 8-0 | 4-0 |
| Salem | 4-4 | 3-1 |
| Schalick | 2-6 | 2-2 |
| Woodbury | 2-4 | 1-2 |
| Woodstown | 2-6 | 1-3 |
| Penns Grove | 0-7 | 0-3 |
| PATRIOT | ALL | DIV |
| Paulsboro | 7-0 | 5-0 |
| West Deptford | 6-1 | 4-0 |
| Overbrook | 5-2 | 2-2 |
| Pennsville | 4-4 | 2-3 |
| Collingswood | 5-3 | 2-3 |
| Audubon | 2-4 | 1-3 |
| Camden Catholic | 0-8 | 0-5 |
FRIDAY’S GAMES
Glassboro 35, Schalick 7
Pennsville 44, Lawrence 6
Salem 47, Woodstown 0
Collingswood 28, Camden Catholic 24
SATURDAY’S GAMES
West Deptford at Paulsboro, 11 a.m.
Overbrook at Audubon, 11
Woodbury at Penns Grove, noon
Tie that binds
Woodstown, Schalick battle to scoreless tie to remain tied for division lead; Pennsville also plays to a draw in its quest for a division crown
BOYS SOCCER
Pennsville 1, Gloucester Catholic 1
Penns Grove 4, Overbrook 1
Wildwood 7, Salem 1
Schalick 0, Woodstown 0
By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News
WOODSTOWN — Rivals Woodstown and Schalick played for the upper hand in the TCC Diamond Division, as they always seem to do, but they came out of this one the same way they went into it: Tied for the lead after playing to a scoreless draw.
The game may have been scoreless, but it was an aficionado’s dream.
“It’s a game that those who don’t care for soccer and part of it is because there’s no scoring and there’s no action, this would be that game they would want to use for evidence,” Woodstown coach Darren Huck said. “But if you were there you would have seen it was a good game.”
Another false assumption would be thinking the Wolverines were playing for the tie because they moved leading scorer Bryce Ayars back into a more defensive center mid position. Huck refuted the notion, saying they played the same formation they had the last three games, but had to drop Ayars back because Jake Lewis remained out after getting hurt in the Penns Grove match and that move gave them the best chance to win the game.
“We weren’t playing for the tie, we weren’t,” Huck said. “I looked at some of my options and each one I said who’s going to give us the best opportunity to stay in the game and Bryce was the best, the most logical, choice. When I presented it to my coaching staff every one of them came back and said this is the right call.
“It wasn’t about putting Bryce there to keep a tie. It was about putting Bryce there to keep us in the game to give us a chance to win the game. I wasn’t moving Bryce back there with a healthy team. What I was looking for was someone else step up and score a goal.”
The Cougars, meanwhile, were prepared to play their rivals the way they played in the first meeting, with Ayars up top. The change was a “clear indication,” to Schalick coach Joe Mannella at least, “that you’re going to try to score on a free kick or a counterattack … and they stuck with it the whole time.”
Mannella acknowledged it was frustrating at times and tested the Cougars patience. They created enough chances, he said, they just didn’t score.
Schalick outshot their rivals 14-5, but Woodstown keeper Trey Markward made 11 saves. Schalick keeper Evan Sepers was credited with four saves and wasn’t overly tested, but he did hold his breath in overtime when Ben Lippincott’s shot from just outside the box just missed the post.
The tie left the teams atop the division standings with 15 points — Woodstown at 6-0-3 and Schalick at 7-1-1. They can finish as co-champions in the division with wins Monday (even though Woodstown is 1-0-1 in the season series), and that wouldn’t be a bad thing in Huck’s mind.
Schalick remained No. 1 in the South Jersey Group I power points standings, with a slight lead over Haddon Twp. Woodstown fell to No. 4, just behind Audubon. Schalick and Woodstown came into the week 1-2.
“I look at it as sharing a division championship with a team like Schalick, who routinely, year in and year out, is a division champion, a South Jersey finalist, a state Group I contender, I look at that as an honor and an accomplishment to be in there with them in the same sentence,” Huck said. “I really, honestly feel that way.
“Schalick has been a thorn in our side for a long time. I wouldn’t want it any other way. If given a choice, I wouldn’t want to be in any other division where it’s easy. I take a lot of pride in going ‘us and Schalick, co-champs,’ well deserved by both teams.”
NOTES: The three ties are the most Woodstown has had in a season since 2022 (5-10-3) and with Monday’s draw at Penns Grove it marks the first time the Wolverines have had back-to-back ties since 2016 (Triton, Schalick) … It was Woodstown’s first scoreless tie since 2019 (Glassboro) and Schalick’s first since 2022 (Palmyra) … Schalick hosts Penns Grove Monday, Woodstown hosts Pitman.
Penns Grove 4, Overbrook 1: Prince Ledbetter scored twice and assisted on Michael Schultz’ first career goal in the second half as the Red Devils (6-3-3) extended their unbeaten streak to five games. Erdem Yardim scored their other goal.
Pennsville 1, Gloucester Catholic 1: Not really the result the Eagles were looking for, but they still can clinch their first division title in 32 years with a win over Salem Monday. Right back Brett Land scored the tying goal in the first half, four minutes after the Rams scored, off a long Stevie Fatcher throw-in that hit the crossbar and came straight to him.
Wildwood 7, Salem 1: Michael Blanda had two goals and an assist for the Warriors, who moved within a half-game of Pennsville in the Classic Division race.
Tri-County Conference Standings
| CLASSIC | DIV. | DIAMOND | DIV. |
| Pennsville (8-5-2) | 7-1-1 | Schalick (11-2-2) | 7-1-1 |
| Wildwood (7-6) | 7-2-0 | Woodstown (9-1-3) | 6-0-3 |
| Clayton (9-6) | 6-2-0 | Pitman (8-5-1) | 6-3-0 |
| Gloucester Cath. (5-6-1) | 2-5-1 | Penns Grove (6-3-3) | 4-3-2 |
| Salem Tech (3-11) | 2-6-0 | Overbrook (7-8) | 1-8-0 |
| Salem (0-14) | 0-8-0 | Glassboro (5-10-1) | 0-9-0 |
View from the top
Girls roundup: Schalick edges Woodstown to win sixth straight soccer division title; includes tennis and field hockey
GIRLS SOCCER
Schalick 2, Woodstown 1
Clayton 6, Salem Tech 0
Overbrook 5, Penns Grove 2
Glassboro 2, Pennsville 0
Wildwood 6, Salem 0
By Riverview Sports News
PITTSGROVE – You know you’ve got something special going on when you don’t know what it feels like to finish second.
The Schalick girls soccer team under coach Will Kemp doesn’t know second place.
The Cougars clinched at least a share of their sixth straight TCC Diamond Division title and fourth under Kemp Thursday in a 2-1 victory over rival Woodstown. They can win it outright with a win at Penns Grove Monday or a Woodstown loss at Pennsville.
Since the conference declares co-champions in event of a tie at the top, that means Kemp’s entire class rotation of players – freshmen through seniors – have known nothing but division championships. That’s a closet full of championship jackets.
“It’s the culture,” Kemp said. “It’s a special thing for us to continue to win the division year after year, but it just shows you the standard that has been set in the past and that continues to be inside the actual program itself.
“It’s special for the ladies to win this. When you’re now a senior, such as Cali (Fisler) and Abigail (Willoughby), for them to win it four years in a row it’s just something special. It’s almost starting to become the lone standard when you play at Schalick soccer to win the division.”
The Cougars (9-5-1) have lost only one division game in Kemp’s four years at the helm – to Woodstown in his first year. They’re unbeaten in their last 32 regular-season division games (31-0-1). The teams played to a 1-1 draw earlier this season.
Despite the close score, the Cougars dominated the game, playing most of it in their attacking end. Olivia Vanacker scored in the 34th minute to open the scoring and Karlie Bakley scored in the first 30 seconds of the second half to give them a 2-0 lead.
Kyleigh Cutler, in her first game back from a recovery break, assisted on both Schalick goals.
“Kyleigh Cutler came in a changed the whole dynamic of our team,” Kemp said. “Adding her back to the squad, she’s a very important piece to us.”
Gina Murray made it a one-goal game in the 55th minute when she hit a great shot past keeper Eve Berger after the Cougars failed to clear a free kick.
The win was the Cougars’ fifth in a row since moving into the second phase of their season on Senior Night, Oct. 2. In Kemp’s tenure, they are 30-9-1 after Oct. 1.
“The main timeline I always give my players is six weeks, from preseason all the way into the sixth week,” Kemp said. “That’s when everything starts to roll for them and they start to understand the consistency inside their style of play, the effort that’s needed and, of course, being able to showcase their talents.
“Before the six weeks, lot of mistakes happen, we’re still trying to figure some things out, players are still getting their fitness in, but after six weeks that’s when you start to see exactly what type of team that we are.”
Glassboro 2, Pennsville 0: Amina Brown and Alyssa Mattox scored goals for the Bulldogs.
Clayton 6, Salem Tech 0: Nicole Lemon scored two goals in the second half for the Clippers.
FIELD HOCKEY
Schalick 9, Overbrook 0: The Cougars (11-6) got all their goals from seniors on Senior Night, including two each from Caylen Taylor, Ava Scurry, Lena Virga and Phoebe Alward, to win their third straight and clinch the TCC Diamond Division crown. For Alward, it was her 50th career goal. Natalie May scored their other goal. The shutout was their seventh of the season.
GCIT 4, Woodstown 1: Lexi Taylor scored the Wolverines’ goal in the third quarter.
GIRLS TENNIS
Pennsville 5, Salem 0
Woodstown 5, Wildwood 0
Glassboro at Schalick
WOODSTOWN 5, WILDWOOD 0
Nathalie Neron (WO) def. Cyndee Killian, 6-0, 6-0
Alyssa Berry (WO) def. Kiana D’Antuono, 6-3, 6-3
Noelle Neron (WO) def. Estella Robinson, 6-1, 6-3
Madison LaPalomento-Emilee Kehr (WO) def. Selin Ogden-Antoinette Cooper, 6-0, 6-3
Elliana Norman-Angelina Lindenmuth (WO) def. Emma Contreras-Charlotte Baetz, 6-0, 7-6 (7-5)
Records: Woodstown 14-5, Wildwood 7-9.
PENNSVILLE 5, SALEM 0
Lily Edwards (P) def. Angelina Fothergill, 6-1, 6-0
Isabell Schlenker (P) def. Tahirah Davenport-White, 6-1, 7-5
Morgan Holt (P) def. JaNye Hubbard, 6-0, 6-1
Emma Hankin-Naomi Hess (P) def. Heaven Jones-McCullough-Erica Brewer, 6-1, 6-3
Graillyn Weber-Yerlian Charon (P) def. Evangeline Jimenez Barreto-Phoenix Holland, 6-0, 6-0
Records: Pennsville 11-7, Salem 3-10.
Wednesday roundup
Harris continues her torrid goal-scoring streak in Pennsville’s Senior Day field hockey win, Highland ends Salem Tech streak in OT; plus tennis, volleyball
By Riverview Sports News
PENNSVILLE – Kylie Harris continued her torrid goal-scoring streak Wednesday, scoring three more goals in the Eagles’ dominant 5-1 Senior Day victory over Clayton.
Harris has scored eight goals in the last three games – all wins – with two hat tricks. She had scored only two goals this season and nine in her career prior to the move.
The Eagles were 3-6-1 before Hall of Fame coach Lisa Doran moved Harris and her powerful swing from the top of the defensive diamond to forward, and now they’re at .500. Kendall Hoyt and Elizabeth Fleming scored the Eagles’ other goals Wednesday.
“I do really like being on the front line; it’s a lot of fun,” Harris said. “We just wanted to move people around to see what worked and they told me I would be playing center forward one day and they just kept telling me to stay up there.
“We have been doing great with passing and our strong defense has been super strong, but my favorite thing so far about being up top is being able to be with all the girls after someone scores and get to give them all high fives and laugh after a goal with my best friends. It’s just as awesome feeling.”
Highland 3, Salem Tech 2: Kiersten Heverly scored her third goal of the game – at the 4:50 mark of overtime – to end the Chargers’ five-game shutout winning streak. Hayden Crispin and Peyton Mayhew scored in the final five minutes of the second quarter to give the Chargers a 2-1 halftime lead. Jessilyn Chambers assisted on both goals.
GIRLS TENNIS
PENNSVILLE 3, SCHALICK 2
Lily Edwards (P) def. Miya Watkins, 6-1, 6-0
Annmarie Podehl (S) def. Izzy Schrenker, 6-3, 6-1
Morgan Holt (P) def. Macy Clow, 6-0, 6-0
Naomi Hess-Graillyn Weber (P) def. Sebrina Bradford-Olivia Lunemann, 6-3, 6-2
jasmine Hunt-Sammi Twigg (S) def. Emma Hankin-Yerlian Charon, 6-3, 6-0
Records: Pennsville 10-7, Schalick 7-6.
WILDWOOD 5, PENNS GROVE 0
Cydnee Kilian (WI) def. Ada Lopez, 6-0, 6-0
Estella Robinson (WI) Kavita Pulchard, 6-0, 6-0
Antoinette Cooper (WI) def. Yanet Cruz, 6-0, 6-0
Emma Contreras-Selin Ogden (WI) won by forfeit
Jess Alamein-Charlotte Baetz (WI) won by forfeit
Records: Wildwood 7-8, Penns Grove 0-11.
GIRLS VOLLEYBALL
Triton 2, Salem Tech 0: Abigail Dalbey had four kills, nine service points and seven aces for Triton. The set scores were 25-18, 25-16.
