Category: SALEM

Closing ceremonies

Penns Grove wins final high school football game on Salem’s Walnut Street Field, beating the Rams with a former Salem starter at the helm

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

SALEM – Penns Grove football coach and Salem alum John Emel did not pick up a handful of dirt or stick a commemorative clump of turf in his pocket on the way out of Walnut Street Field Saturday. The good feeling of getting the team’s first win of the season would have to be a sufficient enough memento of the historic day.

PENNS GROVE 21
NEXT: Penns Grove
at Haddon Heights,
Saturday, 11 a.m.

Emel’s Red Devils took control of the game early and then closed out the Rams 21-6 in what likely will be the final high school football game played at Walnut Street Field, where Emel played his home games as a Salem starting lineman back in the day.

The Rams are scheduled to move into a new on-campus stadium next month, a project precipitated by the city condemning the decades-old wooden bleachers at The Nut. City officials were working to bring the field back for its youth teams, but ramped up their work for the high school after the Rams ran into a conflict with a Labor Day weekend neutral site game.

SALEM 6
NEXT: Salem
vs. Cedar Creek,
Rumble on the Raritan,
SHI Stadium, Rutgers,
Saturday, 3 p.m.

The facility held up well enough for the Rams to move their Penns Grove game back there with, ironically, Emel providing the opposition for the venue’s final high school game. Salem’s on-campus stadium is schedule to host its first game Oct. 7.

“I did not grab any dirt in the moment,” Emel said. “Like I said before, it’s not something I make a habit of. My AD (Anwar Golden, also a Salem alum) came up to me at halftime and said it’s kind of sad this is the last game here, right. I said yeah, but we want to go out with a win.”

The Rams wanted to lock the gates for the final time with the same reward.

“Unfortunately we couldn’t get it done for the city and our seniors’ last ride there,” first-year Salem coach Danny Mendoza lamented.

Penns Grove took advantage of Salem’s continuing shortcomings on special teams to build a 15-0 halftime lead.

The Red Devils (1-3) blocked two punts. Isaiah Upshur snuffed one on the first series and almost returned it for a touchdown. Bryce Wright caught the second one in midair and he did return it for the game’s first score and then ran in the conversion to make it 8-0.

Wright scored the second touchdown with less than 90 seconds left in the half on a short run that capped a long drive. Anthony Brown kicked the extra point. Freshman Karon Ceaser scored their final touchdown late in the fourth quarter.

Wright finished with 118 yards rushing on 18 Carrie’s. Ceaser had 109 yards on 17 carries.

“Every time we’ve gone there, whether it was a big win or a heartbreaking loss, we always started fast and, really, that’s the key to beating those guys every time, because Salem is known to be a second-half team,” Emel said. “So, you have to really jump out on them and then hang on for dear life. That’s always how we played them.”

The Rams (0-4) made it interesting when Daveon Jackson scored on a short run with 10:01 to play. Jackson also recovered a fourth-down fumble on Penns Grove’s ensuing drive, but the Rams couldn’t take advantage of the turnover.

“Daveon Jackson is probably the heart and soul of our team and we should be inspired by his play,” Mendoza said. Expect to see more of Jackson next Saturday when the Rams play Cedar Creek in the Rumble on the Raritan at Rutgers’ SHI Stadium, he added.

“They’re athletic, they’re dangerous, so keeping those guys out of the red zone is a big key to defending them,” Emel said. “When you’re playing Salem, they’re notorious for big play.”

But the Rams couldn’t turn any on this historic day. They’ve scored only two touchdowns in their last three games. The biggest play they made Saturday was Ramaji Bundy’s run on third-and-9 from the 13 to keep the chains moving on their touchdown drive.

“We’re just so hot and cold,” Mendoza said. “We just haven’t put together four quarters of football. We have to understand it’s an 11-man game; sometimes we do, sometimes we don’t. 

“We’ve just got to keep chomping at the bit. We’ve got to understand it’s a four-quarter game. The fun part of the game is the battling, it’s the fight, and we’ve got to learn to keep fighting. I still think this team has the talent to win some games and beat some teams on our schedule, but we’ve got to do our talking with our pads and play for four quarters. That’ll be the make or break.”

Penns Grove 21, Salem 6

Penns Grove (1-3)01506 –21
Salem (0-4)0006 –6

Scoring plays
PG – Bryce Wright 15 blocked punt return (Bryce Wright run)
PG – Bryce Wright 5 run (Anthony Brown kick)
S – Daveon Jackson 5 run (pass failed)
PG – Karon Ceaser 25 run (kick failed)

One last hurrah

Part of John Emel’s family legacy is playing football on Salem’s Walnut Street Field; Saturday he brings his Penns Grove team to play there in the facility’s final high school game

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

SALEM – John Emel has never taken dirt from another team’s field either as a player or a coach, but this time he might make an exception.

The Penns Grove football coach is genuinely going to miss Walnut Street Field.

After serving as the home field for the Salem High School football team for decades, The Nut will host what likely will be the last high school football game Saturday when, ironically, Emel brings his Red Devils (0-3) to play the Rams (0-3) in what is always a big game for both teams regardless of their records.

“For starters, it’s a great place to play a game,” Emel said. “You know, people get hung up in the facilities and the weight room and the locker room and things like that and that place doesn’t have that, but it’s an awesome place to play and coach a big game. There have been a lot of big games there over the years.”

The field holds a lot of memories for him. Five generations of Emel men have played on it. His great-great grandfather, great grandfather, grandfather and dad all played there. John Emel was a starting lineman for the Rams when he played there from 1998 to 2001. His brothers played there, as well as several cousins and uncles. His uncle Dave, a two-way starting lineman on Salem’s 1983 championship team, is a member of the chain crew there now.

As other long-standing schools have moved their athletics program into more modern facilities on their campuses, facilities like Walnut Street have remained vigilant gatekeepers of bygone days. Sadly, many have fallen into disrepair.

The field has virtually been unchanged since 1962, but there was a time before that when it looked a lot different. It actually ran diagonally to its present configuration to accommodate a baseball field. The current design has the scoreboard, entrance gates and concession stand on the Walnut Street end of the stadium. 

“There are just a lot of memories there,” Emel said. “I haven’t been there since the bleachers came down, but to me what made it so unique was the big old-style home bleachers.

“The field is always in awesome shape. The Salem field playing surface, to be honest, is as good as any around. I’ve played there over the years in wet, sometimes rainy, conditions, all types of conditions, and no one ever complained about the playing surface.”

Some of Emel’s fondest members as a player and a coach have been created on that field.

His two fondest memories as a player were his first-ever start against Glassboro and winning his final home game. 

The start came as a sophomore against one of the best Glassboro teams ever in a game that was forced to a Monday by the arrival of Hurricane Floyd; ironically, he would be blocking for his future Penns Grove athletics director Anwar Golden, then Salem’s senior starting running back and safety, in that game. Glassboro won 33-14, pulling away from a game that was tight for a while and going on to be 12-0, but Emel played one of his better games and it “helped further my love of football.”

His final home game was Senior Day against Pennsville. The Rams won and went on the road for the playoffs the next week. “I felt the year before against them I didn’t play that well and came back and played one of my better games,” he said. “That year I got to play with my brother on the field a little and other guys I was really close with. It was just special.”

Two of his fondest memories as a coach are the last two times he took a team to Salem. In 2016, an 0-2 Red Devils teams trekked down Rt. 49, held future NFL All-Pro Jonathan Taylor out of the end zone and beat the Rams 20-8. In 2018, they were the best two teams in Group I and the Red Devils prevailed again 26-20 and then beat their rivals in the rematch at Penns Grove for the South Jersey championship to cap an undefeated season.

In the interest of full disclosure, Emel admitted a couple of his toughest losses came on Walnut Street as well, including a playoff loss to the Rams his first year as Penns Grove’s coach.

“I want to end up a high note,” he said.

It looked like Walnut Street had seen its final days last season when the city condemned the old wooden bleachers. That decision led Salem school officials to start building an on-campus facility, but with that project on-going it also was going to force the football team with a new coach to play all of its games on the road until October.

The city continued to work to make the field ready for its youth team, but It picked up the pace when logistical issues at Abessinio Stadium in Wilmington forced Salem and Camden to pull its game out of the Mid-Atlantic Classic without a place to go. The city got Walnut Street put together well enough to host the game and it worked so well Salem moved the Penns Grove game back there as well.

The Rams are expected to open their on-campus facility Oct. 7.

Not even some off-the-field drama following the Camden-Salem game that forcing Saturday’s contest to be played without outside fans in attendance due can put a damper on the significance of the day.

“I don’t think I’m crying like (Eagles head coach) Nick Sirianni during the national anthem of the Super Bowl,” Emel said. “But football is an emotional game. You want to play with emotion and coach with emotion.

“I want to win every game, but I really want to win this one because not only is it the next one, but it’s Salem, it’s a rivalry and the fact that it’s the last game on Walnut Street it would make some of these other memories coaching that I mentioned that much sweeter. We want to close it out with a victory.”

Because the field means so much to him, perhaps when no one is looking Saturday, maybe as he walks through the gates for the final time, Emel will reach down and sneak a little souvenir to remember it by.

“I’ve never taken dirt from any other stadium,” he said. “Maybe this one should be the first.”

He’s ba-a-a-ck

County football preview: Woodstown’s Hill eager to play first game; Schalick, Pennsville focused on the details

SALEM COUNTY FOOTBALL
Friday’s games
Riverside at Schalick, 6 p.m.
Woodstown at Deptford, 6 p.m.
Gateway at Pennsville, 7 p.m.
Saturday’s game
Penns Grove at Salem, noon

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

WOODSTOWN – Woodstown running back James Hill has been looking forward to Friday night’s game at Deptford for six months. So has Wolverines’ coach John Adams. The rest of the WJFL, because they know the impact, not so much.

Hill makes his long-awaited season debut against the Spartans, six months removed from the knee injury and surgery during wrestling season.

He was cleared to return for football with limitations in late August and was cleared for full contact last week in time to fulfill his six padded practice embargo in time to play Friday night.

“I’m looking forward to it – a lot,” Hill said. “It’s been the last 6-7 months of rehabbing really strong. Every day I look at the clock and it just inches closer and closer. It’s kind of like Christmas and a birthday put together. No one wants to get older, but everyone wants to get the gifts.”

The plan is to rotate him between inside and outside linebacker this week and ease him into the offense where they need him. Hill has repped at multiple positions this week and, coach John Adams says, “knows the playbook from couple different spots.” Just don’t look for him to be running between the tackles on the Spartans’ artificial turf in his first game back. 

He has rushed for more than 3,000 yards and 31 touchdowns over the last two seasons.

“It’s tremendous (to get him back),” Adams said. “He’s a two-time captain, so getting his athleticism on the field is going to be phenomenal, him getting some of the rust out and stuff like that and get some confidence back in his leg will be big for him, but for us, having that leadership on the field is huge.

“The last two weeks he’s been doing everything he could from the sideline and having that leadership on the field is going to be really, really big for us.”

Hill said he has “no fear in playing football” coming back and is hoping for a big game capped by a victory.

“I just want to individual feel 100 percent confident in everything,” he said. “I don’t want to have any worries about making a cut. I just want to go out there and run around and play a high school football game and not have two thoughts of my ACL was torn seven months ago.”

Schalick’s Reggie Allen (4), coming off a game in which he rushed for 144 yards and three touchdowns, is emerging as the backbone of the Cougars’ offense. (Photo by Heather Popiano)

RIVERSIDE (2-0) at SCHALICK (3-0): In an early-season battle of unbeatens this week is all about details for the Cougars – the I-dotting and T-crossing things that take a good team to great and a great team to special.

It’s things like finishing drives and finishing blocks that lead to bigger runs, winning first down, locking up on tackles and reading keys, and staying focused on extra points.

“That’s what we’ve been preaching all week in practice and that’s what we’re trying to accomplish,” Cougars coach Mike Wilson said. “Getting better at the little things.”

Through three games, junior running back Reggie Allen is emerging as the backbone of the team. He rushed for 144 yards and three touchdowns in last week’s victory at Wildwood and has done most of the heavy lifting on the Cougars’ scoring drives.

He now had 246 yards on 52 carries this season after his 144-yard, three touchdown game last week. He already has half as many touchdowns as he had a year ago, when losing two games to an injury robbed him of a 1,000-yard season.

“Reggie is legitimately our unsung hero,” Wilson said. “I said this his freshman year: Reggie gets lost in the shuffle a little bit, and I don’t know why. Reggie is the backbone of this team. I know a lot of people talk about (quarterback) Kenai (Simmons), but Reggie is the lynchpin of this team, I really believe that.”

Depending on what else happens around the division, this winner could come out of the week in sole possession of first place in the Horizon Division and be its last undefeated team standing.

GATEWAY (1-1) at PENNSVILLE (1-1): The Eagles stand in a bit of a crossroad. A year ago, they won their opener, lost their second game and didn’t win again. They face the same scenario this week after a flat game in their home opener, but this time are confident of flipping the script with the proper approach.

It’s all about players doing their job and trusting the player next to them. Last week’s 28-7 loss to Lower Cape May was about a lot of players trying to do too much that took them out of position. 

This week, back to a regular practice schedule in the first full week of school, it’s all about getting back to basics.

“This whole year is really about getting respect back for the program and we need to show we can consistently play at a high level and go out there and compete like we can as opposed to last week,” Healy said. “We did not show who we really were, I felt like.”

Last year’s Gateway game got away from them and was the turning point in their season. It has the potential to be the springboard for this year as well.

“They’re 1-1 right now, same as us, so we can’t go in there, especially after last week how we played, thinking too much of ourselves,” Healy said. “We’ve got to understand we’re both even going into this game so we’ve got to show up.”

Coming next: Penns Grove’s Emel reflects on Salem’s Walnut Street Field on the eve of its final game

Eagles trio ‘on’

Tuesday roundup: Pennsville boys erupt for three rapid-fire goals to get first W of the season, Penns Grove coach gets first win, Schalick goes to 4-0; Salem, Penns Grove, Salem girls play to draws

WEDNESDAY’S SCOREBOARD
BOYS SOCCER
Pennsville 5, Clayton 0
Penns Grove 6, Salem 2
Schalick 3, Gloucester Catholic 0
Woodstown 7, Salem Tech 0

GIRLS SOCCER
Pennsville 2, Clayton 2
Salem 3, Penns Grove 3
Schalick 4, Gloucester Catholic 1
Woodstown 6, Salem Tech 0

GIRLS TENNIS
Pennsville 5, Salem 0
Schalick 5, Glassboro 0

By Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE – One minute the game is scoreless and the next time Pennsville boys soccer coach Derek Foglein looked his team had a three-goal lead. Things can happen that quickly when you have the kind of strikers the Eagles have.

After a slow opening 10 minutes, the Eagles erupted for three goals in the 10 minutes before the first half water break and went on to beat rebuilding Clayton 5-0 for their first win of the season.

Shane Puckett and Jake Isaac both scored twice in the first half and Dylan Waller scored in the second.

“I felt like I blinked and we were up 3-0; it was like three in a matter of five minutes,” Foglein said. “It’s definitely not typical, but when you look at Stone (Mumink), Shane and Jake, they have the quality, they have the talent and they have the offensive vision from working together for a few years, and they’ve got speed, too. If they’re on, they’re on and just like that a game can really turn positively for us.

“I know we have quality offensive pieces. With those front three, that’s really where our offense is going to be from and they were quality today. They worked hard on the ball. They worked hard off the ball. They connected passes and (when you do that) you find yourself in spaces and they found their spaces and they finished. So that was really awesome.”

Puckett scored his two goals around Isaac’s first counter in that rapid-fire stretch. Isaac notched his second goal shortly after the water break. Puckett, Isaac and Mumink each had two assists.

The Eagles (1-2) already had control of the game, but turned up the defense in the second half and the back line helped keeper Coen Rinnier nail down the shutout.

PENNS GROVE 6, SALEM 2: After two gut-wrenching overtime losses to open the season, the Red Devils got goals from five different players to give new coach Mano Massari his first victory.

Junior Sebastian Hernandez scored twice to lead the charge. Captains Ashton Harris and Joey Schultz, Edward Swank and Jayden Merga had the other goals.

“It was really good to get the win; not for me, but for the guys, they deserve it,” Massari said. “We still have a lot of work to do, but a win is a win and we’ll take it.”

As with any new coach and a new team, it took a little time to adjust the pieces. Massari moved junior Frankie Juarez Reynosa to center midfield and the offense blossomed. The six goals were the most the Red Devils have scored in a game since beating Gloucester 7-1 in their final regular-season game last year. Juarez Reynosa had two assists.

“After the first two losses I needed to move some guys around and it really helped open the offense up; Frankie being a huge reason for that,” Massari said. “He started the first two games as a striker but wasn’t getting the ball enough, so I dropped him to a center midfielder and he really controlled the game. He really excelled in that position.”

Salem scores again

UPDATED
Rams field hockey team has scored 15 goals in two games, Schalick, Woodstown open their seasons with a win; cross country off and running

TUESDAY’S FIELD HOCKEY SCORES
Salem 5, Pennsville 1
Schalick 5, Gloucester Catholic 1
Woodstown 9, Deptford 0

By Riverview Sports News

SALEM – Shanna Scott’s tenure as Salem’s field hockey coach certainly has gotten off to an explosive start.

Scott was elevated to the head coach this year. In her first two games her Rams have presented her with two explosive victories. They beat Pennsville Tuesday 5-0.

The Rams rushed right out of the gate, scoring four goals in the first quarter. Tamya Driver, who assisted on Boggs’ goal that opened the scoring, scored in fourth quarter to make it 5-0.

Isabella Saulin scored Pennsville’s goal.

The Rams peppered Pennsville keeper Kylie Harris with 33 shots. They took 29 shots in their win over Clayton.

“Our goal is to work hard and do our best,” Scott said. “It sounds cliche, but coach Kayla Chapman and I spend a lot of time laying a firm foundation of what is expected on and off the field, how we aim to carry ourselves as a team, together and in unity. In order for us to prosper, we must be united as one and we must respect one another.

“While our aim is to come out aggressive with anticipation of winning, it is also important to do so humbly … We don’t expect to be perfect and we may not always do the best, but how the girls respond to that is what is important to us … We are very proud of them so far and cannot wait to see what the remainder of the season looks like.”

SCHALICK 5, GLOUCESTER CATHOLIC 1: Phoebe Alward had a hat trick, and Ava Scurry and Lucianna Virga had the other goals as the Cougars opened their season with a victory. Caylen Taylor assisted on the Cougars’ first two goals of the game and Ella Shimp had the assists on Alward’s last two goals. Lydia Gilligan made five saves in posting the shutout.

WOODSTOWN 9, DEPTFORD 0: Braeley DiGregorio had a hat trick and Tulana Mingin scored twice as the Wolverines opened their season in a big way.Hannah Hitchner, Kayla Brown, Megan Donelson and Val Treijo had the other Woodstown goals.

Cross country

SEABROOK – Schalick junior Jordan Hadfield and Kingsway freshman Ryan Duffy were first across the line in their respective races in Tuesday’s Tri-County Batch Meet at Cumberland Regional.

Hadfield won the girls race in 19:56.32, eight seconds ahead of Williamstown senior Alyssa Boucher. Woodstown freshman Lillian Norman was ninth in the race (21:19.99).

Duffy won the boys race in 16:25.69. Schalick’s Charles Fuerneisen was ninth (17:44.46).

Chargers on 3

Salem Tech flexes its sports footprint with the first varsity boys soccer game in school history, a 2-0 win over Salem

MONDAY’S COUNTY SOCCER SCORES
Boys Games
Salem Tech 2, Salem 0
Woodstown 3, Penns Grove 2
Schalick 5, Pennsville 0
Girls Games
Salem 5, Salem Tech 0
Schalick 6, Pennsville 0
Woodstown at Penns Grove, ppd.,

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

WOODSTOWN – Salem Tech may have only had a soccer team for two years, but in truth Monday’s match was five years in the making.

When school administrators green-lighted an athletics program five years ago, the plan was to play two major sports in each of the academic year’s three sports seasons.

They steadily put teams on the field and Monday was the first varsity boys game in school history. And it was a strong debut, a 2-0 shutout of Salem.

“I was happy with the way the guys played; they played hard for each other,” Chargers coach Rob Polk said. “I think they had a sense coming in of what this meant for the school. The effort they showed kind of put that all on display that they understood the meaning of today’s game.

“This is definitely a good start. I couldn’t have asked for a better start. Maybe a couple more goals.”

As satisfying as the outcome was for the Chargers, the day ended on a somber note. The game was halted with three minutes to play due to weather issues and was called altogether a few minutes later when a Salem player collapsed coming off the field.

Trainers raced to the aid of midfielder Christian Hymer in the Rams’ bench area. After working on him on the field, they lifted him onto the back of a golf cart and rode off to the school to await an ambulance. He was reported to be alert in a locker room off the gym as Mannington Fire Rescue prepared to transport him from the scene.

Boys and girls soccer are the newest varsity sports at Salem Tech. When they first rolled out the ball, the Chargers offered just cross country and basketball. Today, the school sponsors varsity teams in cross country, volleyball and basketball for boys and girls, bowling and golf. Officials are now exploring the possibility of adding baseball and softball in Spring 2025.

“It wasn’t even rooted in competition, it was rooted more in student involvement,” principal Jason Helder said of the introduction of athletics. “We wanted there to be structured activities that kids could be involved in after school, where they could work with mentors and coaches and teachers and see them in a different capacity.

“I think it’s remarkable this is our first varsity soccer game. It’s significant because it was literally something that even five years ago didn’t exist and the fact now we’re here playing soccer against a county rival on a home field is significant.

“The establishment of sports gave us an identity we didn’t have. There was no Chargers. Sports gave us a reason to solidify our identity.”

The soccer teams debuted on the junior varsity level last year, then jumped right into varsity play. Polk’s boys team was supposed to make its varsity debut last week at Gloucester Catholic, but the game was postponed due to vandalism to the Rams’ field.

The Chargers only had one 11-on-11 varsity game together before Monday, but they dominated on both ends in their regular-season debut. Most of the match was played in the Salem end until the Rams picked up their attack in the second half.

Sophomore Graham Fields scored both goals for the Chargers. He scored the first varsity goal in school history seven minutes into the match when he took a through ball from Travis Hagan and beat Rams keeper Eithan Longo to the upper right corner. He put home an insurance goal right before the game was called.

He scored the first goal for the JV Chargers last year, too.

“I’ve been playing soccer since I was like 2 or 3 and I’m 15 now so it really does mean a lot to me,” Fields said. “The second I got that goal I was so happy. I was really happy.”

Just as Fields was a force up front peppering the Salem goal at regular intervals, Clinton Bobo was just as impressive for the Chargers on the back line. The Rams didn’t mount many attacks, but when they did, Bobo usually was there to break it up and clear it away. He also won a lot of challenge balls.

“He’s the rock on our defense back there; he’s a safety net for us,” Polk said. “You got to see that a lot with his speed and his physicality. He’s really good at reading plays and timing balls. He settled a lot of things down, especially in the second half. When that ball gets played in behind and it’s a footrace with Bobo, I’m pretty confident he’s coming out on top.”

Graham Fields reacts after missing a scoring chance for Salem Tech in the second half of Monday’s first varsity game against Salem. Fields had numerous chances and scored both of the Chargers’ goals.

BOYS GAMES
WOODSTOWN 3, PENNS GROVE 2: Bryce Ayars scored the game-tying goal with five minutes left in regulation and then scored five minutes into overtime to lift Woodstown its first victory of the season and hand Penns Grove its second straight overtime loss.

Ashton Harris and Jayden Murga Santos staked the Red Devils (0-2) to a 2-0 lead early in the second half. Adrian Ibarra got the Wolverines (1-1) on the board 10 minutes into the second half.

SCHALICK 5, PENNSVILLE 0: Bradford Foster scored two goals and Evan Sepers made nine saves as the Cougars won their third straight game. Foster has four goals and shares the team lead with Luke Price, who scored his fourth goal to give the Cougars a 2-0 halftime lead. Steve Chomo and Jaxon Weber had second-half goals for the Cougars.

GIRLS GAMES
SALEM 5, SALEM TECH 0: Ryann Foote scored two goals, Ameriyona Hunter had a goal and two assists and Marcela Villapando made three saves in posting the shutout. Karima Davenport-White and Carlysia Pierce had the Rams’ other goals. It was the season opener for both teams and Salem Tech’s first ever girls varsity game.

SCHALICK 6, PENNSVILLE 0: Cali Fisler and Emily Miller each scored a pair of goals as the Cougars opened their season with a six-goal first-half explosion. Olivia Devoe and Kyleigh Cutler scored their other two goals.

Clinton Bobo was a rock for the Salem Tech defense Monday, disrupting several Salem attacks before they ever got started.


Salem seats (updated)

Rams’ football rivalry with Penns Grove will be played at Walnut Street Field Saturday with crowd limitations

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News 

SALEM – The football rivalry between Penns Grove and Salem will be played as scheduled Saturday at Salem’s Walnut Street Field but with restrictions on the number of fans who can pass through the gates.

The game, which will be the final high school game played on the field before the Rams move into their on-campus stadium in October, is scheduled to kickoff at noon.

“We are able to go ahead and get the game in,” Salem athletics director Darryl Roberts said.

Administrators from both school districts met Monday to talk about tickets, access and operations for the game after reports of a threat surfaced after last week’s Camden-Salem game and recommendations were made by local police.

The schools plan to put out a statement Tuesday regarding the particulars about spectators, but Riverview Sports News has learned students from either school with proper ID will be admitted and the schools will do a Salem-heavy 60/40 split on 500 presale adult tickets. Officials said there is really nothing they can do about spectators lining the fence outside the gate.

The Salem School District’s statement read in part “Due to a set of incidents in the community, the school district is going to limit the number of fans from the general public.”

Tickets for entry will be provided by the Athletic Directors or coaches representing each school. Attendance will be limited to three groups of people: Staff, currently enrolled Salem and Penns Grove High School students, and Parents/Grandparents of players.

No one else from the general public will be permitted on the premises.

The idea of playing the game without fans in attendance Roberts said was “something that was suggested, but just an idea considering some of the concerns that were out there.”

He declined to comment on those concerns.

The police presence at the field is expected to be similar to a normal game day operation.

Because of the Rams’ stadium project, the game – Salem’s home date – was moved to Penns Grove’s stadium, but it was officially moved back to Walnut Street earlier this month after city officials got the facility back into shape. 

Penns Grove football coach John Emel played on the field as a Salem High starter during his high school career, as did most of his football-playing family members.

Both teams will be looking for their first victory of the season. It will be Salem’s Diamond Division opener.

This week’s schedule

Here is the schedule for Salem County high school sports for the week of Sept. 11-16

Sept. 11
BOYS SOCCER
Penns Grove at Woodstown, 4 p.m.
Pennsville at Schalick, 4 p.m.
Salem at Salem Tech, 4 p.m.

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

GIRLS TENNIS
Glassboro at Salem, 4 p.m.
Penns Grove at Pennsville, 4 p.m.
Woodstown at Pitman, 4 p.m.

Sept. 12
FIELD HOCKEY
Pennsville at Salem, 4 p.m.
Schalick at Gloucester Catholic, 4 p.m.
Woodstown at Deptford Twp., 4 p.m.

Sept. 13
BOYS SOCCER
Clayton at Pennsville, 4 p.m.
Penns Grove at Salem, 4 p.m.
Schalick at Gloucester Catholic, 4 p.m.
Woodstown at Salem Tech, 4 p.m.

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

GIRLS TENNIS
Overbook at Penns Grove, 4 p.m.
Pennsville at Salem, 4 p.m.

Sept. 14
FIELD HOCKEY
Pennsville at Glassboro, 3:45 p.m.
Salem at Deptford Twp., 4 p.m.
Schalick at Clearview, 4 p.m.

GIRLS TENNIS
Penns Grove at Palmyra, 4 p.m.

Sept. 15
FOOTBALL
Gateway at Pennsville, 7 p.m.
Riverside at Schalick, 7 p.m.
Woodstown at Deptford Twp., 7 p.m.

FIELD HOCKEY
Cumberland at Woodstown, 4 p.m.

BOYS SOCCER
Buena at Schalick, 4 p.m.
Pitman at Woodstown, 4 p.m.

GIRLS SOCCER
Gateway at Salem, 4 p.m.
Woodstown at Cherry Hill West, 4 p.m.

GIRLS TENNIS
Woodstown at Cumberland, 4 p.m.

Sept. 16
FOOTBALL
Penns Grove at Salem, noon

GIRLS SOCCER
Schalick at Delsea, 10 a.m.

Salem still searching

Rams fall to 0-3 after losing at Pleasantville

DIAMOND DIVISION SCORES
Pleasantville 35, Salem 6
Woodbury 42, Penns Grove 6 (Sat.)
Woodstown 28, Paulsboro 7 (Sat.)

PLEASANTVILLE — Salem’s search for its first victory under coach Danny Mendoza continued Friday night after the Rams fell to Pleasantville 35-6.

The Rams fell to 0-3. The last time they were 0-3 and lost three in a row was 2012.

This story will be updated.

Pleasantville 35, Salem 6

Salem (0-3)6
Pleasantville (2-1)35

Thursday field hockey

Salem wins big, Pennsville falls in their season openers

SALEM COUNTY SCORES
Thursday’s games
Gloucester Catholic 6, Pennsville 1
Salem 10, Clayton 0
Schalick at Woodstown, ppd.

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE – It wasn’t the kind of opener Pennsville field hockey coach Lisa Doran was expecting or the team she was expecting to see.

The Lady Eagles opened their season Thursday with a disheartening 6-1 loss to Gloucester Catholic.

The Lady Rams scored two goals in the first quarter, including one right before the buzzer, to take control and then put it away with three in the fourth quarter.

“I don’t know if it was the first day of school or nerves or what, but we just weren’t the team we saw at the last scrimmage,” Doran said. “Hopefully, the next game is going to be a little better.”

Pennsville scored its only goal with 1:41 left in the third quarter when Kendall Hoyt collected a lead pass from Cara Hoyt, dribbled into the goal area, then crossed it to Sophia Marandola, who banged it in from the left side.

“(Kendall) is a back and she never played that position,” Doran said. “Right before we put her in she was like, ‘I don’t play midfield,’ because she’s new and she got in there and hustled her butt down there and made the cross and that’s what we needed, so it was perfect and Sophia put it in.”

Bridget Taney scored two fourth-quarter goals for Gloucester Catholic. Kenzie Biondi had two assists.

Gloucester Cath. 6, Pennsville 1

Gloucester Cath. (1-0)2013 –6
Pennsville (0-1)0010 –1

GOALS: 1. Julia Calzonetti (Kenzie Biondi), GC, 10:24 1Q; 2. Kate Bonawitz (Casey Green), GC, 15:00 1Q; 3. Sienna Gianotti (unassisted), GC, 3:35 3Q; 4. Sophia Marandola (Kendall Hoyt), P, 13:19 3Q; 5. Bridget Taney (unassisted), GC, 5:09 4Q; 6. Bridget Taney (Kenzie Biondi), GC, 7:01 4Q; 7. Guide Gomez (unassisted), GC, 9:22 4Q.

SALEM 10, CLAYTON 0: Marissa Bower and Julliana Love scored two goals apiece and Autumn Foote had a goal and three assists as the Lady Rams opened the Shanna Scott era in a big way. Scott was the team’s assistant last year before being elevated to the head coaching spot.

The goals came fast and furious for the Lady Rams. Bower scored her two goals four minutes apart in a four-goal first quarter. She also assisted on the first goal of the game less than two minutes into the season. The Lady Rams scored their 10 goals on 29 shots.

The 10 goals were Salem’s most in a game since an 18-0 rout of Penns Grove in 2020. It was the 13th time since 2015 they have shutout Clayton.

Salem 10, Clayton 0

Clayton (0-1)0000 –0
Salem (1-0)4303 –10

GOALS: 1. Rhionna Timmons (Marissa Bower), S, 13:09 1Q; 2. Marissa Bower (Rhionna Timmons), S, 11:27 1Q; 3. Marissa Bower (unassisted), S 7:13 1Q; 4. Julliana Love (Autumn Foote), S, 3:05 1Q; 5. Tanya Driver (unassisted), S, 11:45 2Q; 6. Morgan VanDover (Anna Buzby), S, 11:50 2Q; 7. Kashira Patterson (Autumn Foote), S, 0:05 2Q; 8. Julliana Love (Autumn Foote), S, 14:20 4Q; 9. Autumn Foote (Mary Griffith), S, 8:35 4Q; 10. Morgan Johnson (unassisted), S, 8:28 4Q.