On the MAPS

Accorsi putting Salem CC football ‘on the MAPS’ with Friday’s game with Army Prep at West Point

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

CARNEYS POINT – Every game means something to someone, but this week’s game has special meaning to Salem CC football coach Jay Accorsi.

Not only are the Mighty Oaks coming off their first win in program history, Accorsi is preparing his players to enter “a whole different world.”

**SALEM CC at** **USMAPS**
Michie Stadium, West Point Friday, 6:30 p.m.

The Mighty Oaks hit the road in the regular season for the first time as a program, but that’s not exactly what makes it special. It’s the venue. They take on Army Prep at Michie Stadium on the grounds of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point Friday at 6:30 p.m.

Actually, it’s the first of two games the fledgling program will play against the service academy prep schools. They play Navy Prep at the Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis on Oct. 23, giving them the distinction of being the only junior college team in the country playing both Army and Navy prep schools

“That’s why I did it in my previous experience coaching, for the players to understand there’s other student-athletes who do a lot of other things,” Accorsi said. “To go to a service academy and play a service academy team is pretty special. If you look at all the other JUCOs, nobody else is playing Army and Navy Prep. It’s something I wanted to do and it kind of worked out.

“Don’t get me wrong, they’re really good. They beat Nassau 39-19 and it probably could’ve been 60-7, but that wasn’t part of what I wanted to create. I wanted to create an experience where they could go and be exposed to others who are doing a lot more than the normal student-athlete.

“It’s a pretty special place. It’s a historic place. So to be able to be there and be on that campus I think is pretty special. It’s just a different atmosphere, so that’s really what I wanted to bring – and legitimacy to our program. If you’re playing two service academy teams that’s really special, no other JUCO program in the country is doing that, so that’s the part I wanted to legitimize our program early on, we’re doing something nobody else is doing.”

Accorsi, whose brother-in-law, a retired Army colonel, is a West Point grad, had played the Army JV team at Fort Monmouth when he was at Rowan and been to West Point before. When the academy decided to build a prep campus at the north end of West Point, he put it on the bucket list to play there. MAPS already has agreed to play in Salem County next season.

Unlike the trip to Annapolis where the stadium is located outside of the U.S. Naval Academy gates, Michie Stadium is on the U.S. Military Academy campus and as such the travel party has been filling out paperwork for access to the grounds. Accorsi said most of the 60-65 players expected to make the trip have obtained the proper documentation. Player parents and others not part of the official travel party must report to the USMA Visitor Control Center at the opposite end of the campus for clearance..

Of course, there are other internal logistical considerations that go with taking such a large group of the road regardless of the game site. That’s the reason Accorsi scheduled the Mighty Oaks’ preseason scrimmage at Montclair and he said he was “very happy” with how they traveled that day.

Friday’s opponent will be different than any team the Mighty Oaks will play this season, with the exception, of course, of Navy Prep. They’re extremely disciplined, as you might expect, and play a style of football that has the Mighty Oaks installing a new defensive scheme in this short work week. Accorsi expects there will be some players the Mighty Oaks will be seeing on TV suiting up for the Black Knights in the next couple years.

“I told the team you’re excited about (last week’s) win, happy for everybody, everything’s great … but now we’re entering a whole different world and they are so opposite of the junior college programs,” Accorsi said. “That’s why I scheduled these games, so they could understand there are teams that are completely opposite of what junior college football is like but still very successful.”

Speaking of special, the special teams played a big part in the Mighty Oaks’ win over Thaddeus Stevens. They had over 200 yards in returns and both of their go-ahead touchdowns in the second half were set up by huge returns by Demetris Williams (68 yards on a kickoff) and DJ Binck (46 yards on a punt). Three quarterbacks moved the offense fluidly in the second half and won the game with the ball in their hands. The defense held Stevens to less than 90 yards rushing, allowed just one touchdown and came up big several times on third and fourth down.

“The advantage we have is our athletic ability and speed,” Accorsi said. “We’re going to have to use that to our advantage in certain areas and try to create some mismatches and things we’re going to have to do.

“We didn’t have a lot of personal fouls, (in the win), we didn’t have a lot of real bad penalties. I told them we need to do that and even more against this type of team to put ourselves in a position to stay in the game so hopefully at the end of the game we have a chance. That’s what our goal is.”

Salem CC Leaders

PASSING: Aidan Hill 9-28-2, 205 yards, 2 TDs; Malakhai McKenzie 7-16-0, 52 yards; Cam Wright 3-7-1, 19 yards.

RUSHING: Aidan Hill 20-106, Kahmaj Kearney 20-66, Jamar Smith 12-59-1, Jon Pettigrew7-47, Tre McLeod 6-42.

RECEIVING: Jeremiah Russell 3-92-1, Darion Joyner 3-41, Kahmaj Kearney 3-31, Jahfarri Payne 2-46-1, Lamar McCoy 2-29, Jon Pettigrew 2-12

TACKLES: Charlie Shute 13, Zariah Poutre 11, Mark Moore 8, Aidan Alexander 7.

INTERCEPTIONS: Mark Moore 2, Jarrell Burks 2.

Buena to join TCC

Chiefs, already a popular scheduling partner of league teams, to come aboard Tri-County Conference in 2028-29 school year.

By Riverview Sports News

Buena Regional High School has announced it plans to leave the Cape-Atlantic League to join the Tri-County Conference starting in the 2028-2029 school year.

One of the prime factors, the school said in a news release, is enrollment alignment. The Tri-County Conference currently includes eight Group I high schools, compared with two in the Cape-Atlantic League, providing the Chiefs with more opportunities to compete against schools of similar size.

Travel was also reviewed and is expected to be relatively comparable to their current Cape-Atlantic League schedule.

There are currently 22 schools in the TCC. Buena played 43 regular-season games against TCC teams the previous school year.

All six Salem County high schools play in the TCC. Buena’s athletics director, Doug Foglein, is the brother of Pennsville boys soccer coach Derek Foglein.

The league recently lost Wildwood back to the CAL. The Warriors moved back for similar reasons to Buena jumping to the TCC.

All of Buena’s athletic programs will remain in place, the school said. Football will continue in the West Jersey Football League, and Buena Regional Middle School athletics will continue to operate independently.

Buena’s expected final date in the Cape-Atlantic League would be June 30, 2028, with anticipated membership in the Tri-County Conference beginning July 1

“They will be a great fit for us; have wanted them to join us for a while,” Pennsville athletics director Jamy Thomas said. “(They are a) nice fit with our small division. We need to push to get to 24; four divisions of six would be ideal. The few sports we have now with four or five teams in a division is just not good for anyone.

“We already play them in a ton of sports, so I am looking forward to working with them even more.”

Top photo: Buena has been a popular non-conference opponent for Pennsville over the years. In this photo, the Eagles play Buena in its holiday basketball tournament a few years back.

Breathe it all in

Penns Grove players come out of their comfort zone to learn a valuable lesson about teamwork

SALEM COUNTY FOOTBALL
Thursday Games
Overbrook at Pennsville, 6 p.m.
Woodstown at Clayton, 6 p.m.
Friday Games
Burlington City at Schalick, 6 p.m.
Penns Grove at Buena, 6 p.m.
Saturday Game
Paulsboro at Salem, noon

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

CARNEYS POINT – The players sat around the drivers ed room in a big circle. Some were tapping sticks. Some were banging bongos. Others were shaking an egg.

It might seem like odd exercises for a football team heading towards its season opener, but it carried some valuable lessons Penns Grove coach Damian Ware wanted his players to experience.

It was all about rhythm, timing and knowing how important your role was to the collective good.

“It was good for them boys,” Ware said. “We need all the outside voices that talk about the same thing we preach every day.”

This time the voice was of Cee Truth, a 34-year-old Brooklyn-born former Division I conference champion sprinter who goes by many names and titles depending on the platform and the audience. Ware connected with him through Steve Brown, a former Penns Grove state champion and Truth college teammate, on one of his salsa dancing trips to Puerto Rico.

Truth has taken his non-profit Momentum Music ministry of holistic cultural healing to groups around the United States for about five years and has gotten sports teams involved in the last two. He’s worked with teams from Florida Gulf Coast University, Wagner University and the University of Albany as well as the Santeros de Aguada, a top-tier pro basketball team in Puerto Rico. He recently returned from a campus visit to Clark Atlanta. Penns Grove was his first interaction with a high school team.

He hopes to one day extend his reach into the schools and youth organizations.

“We share holistic cultural healing practices that take the form of nervous system regulation, using breathing and rhythm to achieve that,” he said. “Our intention is to plant a seed in young people that we hope grows into a lifestyle, (that) they’ll be able to take what we teach them that day and for the rest of their life be better equipped to deal with conflict and uncertainty and all of those things that life brings.”

**Cee Truth guides the Penns Grove football team through exercise about rhythm.**

Ware has been coming up with novel ways to engage his players since becoming their head football coach last winter. Earlier this summer he brought former Eagles receiver and fellow salsa aficionado Jason Avant to impart some wisdom on the players. He may invite another special guest who worked with his Penns Grove basketball team a couple years ago later in the season.

It’s all part of his continuing mission to change the culture of a program that went winless last season and won only two games the last two years.

“Part of that program was something to get them out of their comfort zone because it’s something they would normally not do, and as far as the mental aspect of the game sometimes you’re going to be out of your comfort zone,” Ware said. “How do you handle that situation, can you still thrive and can you still overcome that? So, getting kids out of their comfort zone is something I wanted to do with that program.

“With the instruments, that’s all part of being one, being unified. If you can do that together and have different people playing different parts, that kind of goes along with football. They had the instruments and had to kind of do everything at the same time but make it sound like they were together. That’s how football works. Everybody has to do their job in order for us to have success and that’s kind of the message behind the whole thing there.”

To that end, the players didn’t know what to expect as they watched Truth set up eight sets of drums in the middle of the floor and his assistant Shadura Lee set a relaxing mood carrying a smoldering stick of incense around the room. Junior linebacker-receiver Isaac Wright harkened back to his Jamaican heritage and thought they were going to participate in a ritual of some sort. But they quickly got with the program as Truth took them through a series of breathing exercises to evoke calmness and then incorporated the instruments into his message of working together.

“I was wondering how that was going to help,” receiver-linebacker Jerry Wooten said, “but I figured out breathing is really a key to sports because it helps you maintain focus. When they brought out the drums I felt we were going to start dancing, but that had us working together and that coming together is going to help us on the field. It’s going to help us be in sync with each other, knowing what people are going to do, how they’re going to do it, when they’re going to do it. Now that we’ve done that, everybody has been together and we’ve been doing better.”

It may have been a non-traditional lesson for a group of football players, but by the end of the session they really came around. At least one player said he’d take one of the approaches into Friday’s game at Buena.

“Me, personally, I will be using that breathing method to calm my brain down and my nervous system, (to) think straight so I don’t mess up on the field and actually hear the plays that my QB is telling me,” Wright said.

That, was music to Truth and Ware’s ears.

Shadura Lee keeps a watchful eye on Penns Grove lineman Dairol DeLaCruz DeLosSantos as he works the drum during an exercise on timing and rhythm. Red Devils coach Damian Ware (top photo) looks on approvingly as Isaac Wright participates in the same exercise.

Hall moves to January

Salem County Sports Hall of Fame moving ceremonies to January, opens meeting to discuss new class later this month

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

The Salem County Sports Hall of Fame induction ceremony traditionally has been a late summer fixture on the county sports calendar, but going forward it will be an event for the first month of the year. The next Hall of Fame class will be enshrined on Jan. 15, 2027.

Last year’s induction ceremony took place in August, while the late Matthew Gaudreau was enshrined on Jan. 17 of this year.

“We did do it in the late summer last year, but we also had an additional event in January,” said Melissa Daly, the executive director of the Salem Community College Foundation and point person for the Hall of Fame. “So, we had just done it already this year and with all the football activities we have in late summer, it just felt like maybe we should stick with that January date.

“That actually worked out pretty well for us and gives us more time towards the end of the summer to deal with some other things that are happening at the college. It’s a busy time of year so it would give us more time for planning.”

Daly assumed directorship of the Foundation in December 2024 from Ceil Smith, who was enshrined in last year’s class as one of the founders of the Hall and her and service to it.

“It’s been a great opportunity,” Daly said. “I get to meet a lot of people in the community who made a mark on Salem County. I feel honored to be able to recognize their achievements.”

The Hall of Fame committee will meet for the first time on this year’s class later this month. More than 100 local sports luminaries are currently enshrined in the Hall, which is housed in Salem CC’s Dupont Field House and can now be accessed online. The induction ceremony, which is free and open to the public, is held in the college’s Davidow Theater.

2026 Fall Schedule

Here is the master schedule for the 2026 fall high school and college season in Salem County; weekday events start at 4 p.m. unless noted; football games listed for WJFL; x-scrimmage

MONDAY, AUG. 17
FOOTBALL
x-Clearview at Woodstown, 9 a.m.
x-Haddon Twp. at Penns Grove, 9 a.m.
x-Salem at Absegami, 10 a.m.
x-Triton at Pennsville, 10 a.m.

TUESDAY, AUG. 18
FOOTBALL
x-Delsea at Schalick, 10 a.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
x-Pennsville at Middle Twp., 10 a.m.

WEDNESDAY, AUG. 19
GIRLS TENNIS
x-Clearview at Schalick, 10 a.m.
Woodstown at Sterling, 10 a.m.

THURSDAY, AUG. 20
FOOTBALL
x-Wildwood at Penns Grove, 10 a.m.
x-Audubon at Woodstown, 6 p.m.

FRIDAY, AUG. 21
FOOTBALL
x-Salem at Camden, 10 a.m.
x-Schalick at Buena, 9 a.m.
x-Poly Tech (Del.) at Pennsville, 6 p.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
x-Schalick at Cumberland, 9:30 a.m.
x-Millville at Pennsville, 10 a.m.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
x-Salem CC at Montclair, 5 p.m.

MONDAY, AUG. 24
BOYS SOCCER
x-Penns Grove at Deptford, 10 a.m.
GIRLS SOCCER
x-Deptford at Penns Grove, 10 a.m.
Woodstown at Lower Cape May, 10 a.m.

TUESDAY, AUG. 25
FIELD HOCKEY
x-Audubon at Schalick, 10 a.m.
x-Highland at Salem Tech, 10 a.m.
x-Salem at West Deptford, 10 a.m.
BOYS SOCCER
x-Vineland at Schalick, 9:30 a.m.
GIRLS SOCCER
x-Salem at Cumberland, 10 a.m.
x-Schalick at Vineland, 10 a.m.
VOLLEYBALL
Schalick at Buena

WEDNESDAY, AUG. 26
BOYS SOCCER
x-Medford Tech at Woodstown, 10 a.m.
x-Camden Academy Charter at Salem Tech
GIRLS SOCCER
Woodstown at Haddon Twp., 9 a.m.
x-Bridgeton at Salem, 10 a.m.
FIELD HOCKEY
x-Williamstown at Pennsville, 10 a.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
x-Pennsville at Vineland, 10 a.m.
Woodstown at Ocean City, 11 a.m.
Schalick at Middle Twp.
VOLLEYBALL
x-Lindenwold at Salem Tech, 10:30 a.m.

THURSDAY, AUG. 27
FOOTBALL
Pitman at Wildwood, 11 a.m.
Woodstown at Pennsville, 6 p.m.
Riverside at Clayton, 6 p.m.
Overbrook at Haddonfield, 7 p.m.
BOYS SOCCER
x-KIPP at Pennsville, 10 a.m.
GIRLS SOCCER
x-Millville at Schalick, 10 a.m.
x-Pennsville at Palmyra, 10 a.m.
x-Penns Grove at Highland, 10 a.m.
FIELD HOCKEY
x-Friends Central at Woodstown, 10 a.m.
x-Salem, Bridgeton, Nottingham at Cumberland, 10 a.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
x-Bridgeton at Salem, 10 a.m.

FRIDAY, AUG. 28
FOOTBALL
Maple Shade at Schalick, 6 p.m.
New Egypt at Buena, 6 p.m.
BOYS SOCCER
x-Salem at Camden Academy Charter, 3:45 p.m.
GIRLS SOCCER
x-Pennsville at Gloucester, 9 a.m.
x-Woodstown at Deptford, 9 a.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
Cedar Creek at Schalick, 10 a.m.
Woodstown at Audubon, 10 a.m.

SATURDAY, AUG. 29
FOOTBALL
Salem at Ironton (Ohio), 1 p.m.
BOYS SOCCER
x-Woodstown at Williamstown, 9 a.m.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Hudson Valley CC vs. Salem CC, Pennsville H.S., 1 p.m.

MONDAY, AUG. 31
BOYS SOCCER
Absegami at Woodstown, 9 a.m.
x-Pennsville at Penn Tech
GIRLS SOCCER
x-Penn Tech at Pennsville
GIRLS TENNIS
Pennsville at West Deptford, 3:45 p.m.

TUESDAY, SEPT. 1
FIELD HOCKEY
Schalick at Gateway, 9 a.m.
x-Woodstown at Gloucester, 3:45 p.m.
GIRLS SOCCER
x-Salem Tech at Paulsboro
Woodstown at Vineland

WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 2
BOYS SOCCER
Cape May Tech at Salem Tech (NJTAC Tournament)
FIELD HOCKEY
x-Woodstown at Washington Twp.
VOLLEYBALL
Buena at Salem Tech, 5:30 p.m.
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Salem CC at Middlesex, 6 p.m.

THURSDAY, SEPT. 3
FOOTBALL
Overbrook at Pennsville, 6 p.m.
Woodstown at Clayton, 6 p.m.
Paul VI at Delran, 6 p.m.
Wildwood at Lindenwold, 6 p.m.
Egg Harbor at Lower Cape May, 6 p.m.
Hunterdone Central at Hillsborough, 6 p.m.
Cherry Hill East at Eastern, 6 p.m.
Camden Eastside at Gloucester, 6 p.m.
Moorestown at Cinnaminson, 6 p.m.
Hopewell Valley at Trenton, 6 p.m.
Bishop Eustace at Gateway, 6 p.m.
Haddon Twp. at Palmyra, 6 p.m.
Timber Creek at Vineland, 6 p.m.
Williamstown at Pennsauken, 6 p.m.
Cedar Creek at Ocean City, 6 p.m.
Pleasantville at Shawnee, 6 p.m.
Seneca at Haddonfield, 7 p.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
Penns Grove at Woodstown, 3:45 p.m.
Overbrook at Schalick
Pennsville at Pitman
Salem at Glassboro
BOYS SOCCER
Woodstown at Pennsville
GIRLS SOCCER
Pennsville at Woodstown

FRIDAY, SEPT. 4
FOOTBALL
Burlington City at Schalick, 6 p.m.
Penns Grove at Buena, 6 p.m.
Woodbury at Pitman, 7 p.m.
Cherokee at Burlington Twp., 5 p.m.
Ewing at Hightstown, 6 p.m.
Glassboro at Mainland, 6 p.m.
Millville at Washington Twp., 6 p.m.
Florence at Bordentown, 6 p.m.
Belmont Charter (Pa.) at Southern, 6 p.m.
Northern Burlington at Lenape, 6 p.m.
Princeton at Allentown, 6 p.m.
Audubon at Sterling, 6 p.m.
Delsea at Rancocas Valley, 6 p.m.
Holy Spirit at Camden, 6 p.m.
St. Joe (Hamm.) at Cumberland, 6 p.m.
Bridgeton at Highland, 6 p.m.
Atlantic Tech at Hammonton, 6 p.m.
Absegami at Oakcrest, 6 p.m.
Nottingham at Notre Dame, 6 p.m.
Clearview at WW-Plainsboro, 6 p.m.
Hamilton West at Lawrence, 6 p.m.
Triton at Cherry Hill West, 6 p.m.
Kingsway at Winslow, 6 p.m.
Steinert at Robbinsville, 6 p.m.
Gloucester Catholic at Middle Twp., 6 p.m.
Willingboro at West Deptford, 7 p.m.
Riverside at Camden Catholic, 7 p.m.
GIRLS SOCCER
Paulsboro at Salem
FIELD HOCKEY
Salem at Paulsboro
Schalick at Delran
COLLEGE CROSS COUNTRY
Salem CC in West Chester Open
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Salem CC at Harcum, 6 p.m.

SATURDAY, SEPT. 5
FOOTBALL
Paulsboro at Salem, noon
Collingswood at Haddon Heights, 11:30 a.m.
Maple Shade at KIPP, noon
Holy Cross at Pemberton, noon
St. Augustine vs. Atlantic City, 4 p.m.

TUESDAY, SEPT. 8
BOYS SOCCER
Schalick at Delran
Woodstown at Gateway
GIRLS SOCCER
Deptford at Schalick
GCIT at Woodstown
FIELD HOCKEY
Pennsville at Audubon
St. Joe (Hamm.) at Woodstown
GIRLS TENNIS
Glassboro at Schalick
Woodstown at Timber Creek
CROSS COUNTRY
TCC Batch Meet at Kingsway, 3:30 p.m.

WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 9
VOLLEYBALL
Triton at Salem Tech, 5:15 p.m.
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Delaware Tech at Salem CC, 6 p.m.

THURSDAY, SEPT. 10
FOOTBALL
Clayton at Haddon Twp., 6 p.m.
Atlantic City at Eastern, 6 p.m.
Williamstown at Washington Twp., 6 p.m.
Vineland at Pennsauken, 6 p.m.
Hopewell Valley at Burlington City, 6 p.m.
Lenape at Cherokee, 6 p.m.
Trenton at Northern Burlington, 6 p.m.
Delran at Cinnaminson, 6 p.m.
Gloucester Catholic at WW-Plainsboro, 6 p.m.
Woodbury at Gateway, 6 p.m.
Hightstown at Moorestown, 6 p.m.
Shawnee at Cherry Hill East, 6:30 p.m.
Egge Harbor at Clearview, 7 p.m.
Princeton at Robbinville, 7 p.m.
Mainland at Seneca, 7 p.m.
FIELD HOCKEY
Gloucester Catholic at Salem Tech
Salem at Pennsville
Woodstown at Schalick
BOYS SOCCER
Overbrook at Woodstown
Pennsville at Clayton
Salem at Salem Tech
Schalick at Penns Grove
GIRLS SOCCER
Clayton at Pennsville
Penns Grove at Schalick
Salem Tech at Salem
GIRLS TENNIS
Woodstown at Pennsville, 3:45 p.m.
Schalick at Salem

FRIDAY, SEPT. 11
FOOTBALL
Schalick at Woodstown, 6 p.m.
Pennsville at Pitman, 7 p.m.
Buena at Mastery Camden, 6 p.m.
Paulsboro at West Deptford, 7 p.m.
Highland at Overbrook, 7 p.m.
Bordentown at Steinert, 3:45 p.m.
Timber Creek at Triton, 6 p.m.
Deptford at Oakcrest, 6 p.m.
Burlington Twp. at Willingboro, 6 p.m.
Lower Cape May Cumberland, 6 p.m.
Cherry Hill West at Lawrence, 6 p..
Allentown at Collingswood, 6 p.m.
Palmyra at Florence, 6 p.m.
Riverside at Holy Cross, 6 p.m.
Notre Dame at Ewing, 6 p.m.
Cedar Creek at Pleasantville, 6 p.m.
Rancocas Valley at Kingsway, 6 p.m.
Atlantic Tech at Middle Twp., 6 p.m.
Haddon Heights at Maple Shade, 6 p.m.
Hammonton at Bridgeton, 6 p.m.
Holy Spirit at St. Augustine, 6 p.m.
Winslow at Glassboro, 6 p.m.
Camden Catholic at Bishop Eustace, 6:30 p.m.
Sterling at Gloucester, 7 p.m.
St. Joe (Hamm.) at Paul VI, 7 p.m.
Haddonfield at Delsea, 7 p.m.
FIELD HOCKEY
Bridgeton at Salem
BOYS SOCCER
Gloucester at Salem
Salem Tech at Camden Academy Charter
GIRLS TENNIS
Haddon Heights at Pennsville, 3:45 p.m.
VOLLEYBALL
Highland at Salem Tech, 5:15 p.m.
COLLEGE CROSS COUNTRY
Salem CC in Bill Fritz Open, Dream Park

SATURDAY, SEPT. 12
FOOTBALL
Audubon at Salem, noon
Lindenwold at Penns Grove, noon
KIPP at Wildwood, noon
Pemberton at Nottingham, noon
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Nassau CC vs. Salem CC, Schalick H.S., noon

MONDAY, SEPT. 14
FIELD HOCKEY
Clayton at Pennsville
Gloucester Catholic at Salem
Schalick at Salem Tech
BOYS SOCCER
Gloucester Catholic at Pennsville
Overbrook at Schalick
Penns Grove at Pitman
Salem Tech at Clayton
GIRLS SOCCER
Clayton at Salem Tech
Glassboro at Woodstown
Pennsville at Gloucester Catholic
Pitman at Salem
Schalick at Overbrook
Woodbury at Penns Grove, 6 p.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
Schalick at Woodstown, 3:45 p.m.
Salem at Bridgeton
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Salem CC at Atlantic Cape, 6 p.m.

TUESDAY, SEPT. 15
VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at GCIT, 3:45 p.m.

WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 16
FIELD HOCKEY
Gateway at Woodstown
Pennsville at Schalick
Salem Tech at Overbrook
BOYS SOCCER
Gloucester Catholic at Woodstown
Pennsville at Glassboro
Salem Tech at Penns Grove
Schalick at Cumberland
GIRLS SOCCER
Glassboro at Pennsville
Penns Grove at Salem Tech
GIRLS TENNIS
Pennsville at Glassboro, 3:45 p.m.
Pitman at Woodstown, 3:45 p.m.
Penns Grove at Schalick

THURSDAY, SEPT. 17
FOOTBALL
Buena at Clayton, 6 p.m.
Pleasantville at Cherokee, 6 p.m.
Cumberland at Vineland, 6 p.m.
Gateway at Sterling, 6 p.m.
Bridgeton at St. Joe (Hamm.), 6:30 p.m.
Lindenwold at Haddon Twp., 7 p.m.
West Deptford at Paul VI, 7 p.m.
FIELD HOCKEY
Schalick at Delsea
GIRLS SOCCER
Cumberland at Salem
Penns Grove at Gloucester Catholic
Schalick at Cherry Hill West
GIRLS TENNIS
Pennsville at Millville
VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at Gloucester Catholic, 5:15 p.m.
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Salem CC at Morris, 6 p.m.

FRIDAY, SEPT. 18
FOOTBALL
Salem at Schalick, 6 p.m.
Pitman at Penns Grove, 6:30 p.m.
Burlington City at Overbrook, 7 p.m.
Shawnee at Rancocas Valley, 6 p.m.
Eastern at Northern Burlington, 6 p.m.
Allentown at Trenton, 6 p.m.
Atlantic Tech at Lower Cape May, 6 p.m.
Absegami at Hammonton, 6 p.m.
Gloucester at Triton, 6 p.m.
Lenape at Williamstown, 6 p.m.
Mainland at Holy Spirit, 6 p.m.
Millville at Kingsway, 6 p.m.
Washington Twp. at Atlantic City, 6 p.m.
Pennsauken at Cherry Hill East, 6 p.m.
Lawrence at Notre Dame, 6 p.m.
Highland at Timber Creek, 6 p.m.
Maple Shade at Bordentown, 6 p.m.
Seneca at Willingboro, 6 p.m.
Camden at Ocean City, 6 p.m.
Oakcrest at Egg Harbor, 6 p.m.
Clearview at Deptford, 6 p.m.
Cinnaminson at Cherry Hill West, 6 p.m.
Middle Twp. at Wildwood, 6 p.m.
Collingswood at Bishop Eustace, 6:30 p.m.
Ewing at Hopewell Valley, 7 p.m.
Florence at Camden Catholic, 7 p.m.
Camden Eastside at Moorestown, 7 p.m.
Delran at Haddonfield, 7 p.m.
Burlington Twp. at Delsea, 7 p.m.
BOYS SOCCER
Salem at Woodstown
GIRLS SOCCER
Bridgeton at Pennsville
FIELD HOCKEY
Absegami at Salem Tech
Pennsville at Bridgeton
Salem at Winslow
GIRLS TENNIS
Pennsville at Penns Grove
Pitman at Salem
Schalick at Timber Creek
Woodstown at Overbrook

SATURDAY, SEPT. 19
FOOTBALL
Woodstown at Woodbury, 11 a.m.
Pennsville at Paulsboro, 11 a.m.
Hightstown at Princeton, 11 a.m.
Mastern Camden at Holy Cross, 11 a.m.
Palmyra at Gloucester Catholic, 11 a.m.
Haddon Heights at Audubon, 11 a.m.
Nottingham at Steinert, 11 a.m.
Riverside at KIPP, noon
WW-Plainsboro at Pemberton, noon
Glassboro at Cedar Creek, 1:30 p.m.
Robbinsville at Hamilton West, 2 p.m.
Buena at Clayton, 3 p.m.
Winslow at St. Augustine, 6 p.m.
FIELD HOCKEY
Haddon Twp. at Schalick
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Thaddeus Stevens vs. Salem CC, Penns Grove H.S., noon

MONDAY, SEPT. 21
BOYS SOCCER
Woodstown at Audubon
GIRLS SOCCER
Audubon at Woodstown
Millville at Pennsville
FIELD HOCKEY
Salem at Clayton
GIRLS TENNIS
Schalick at Kingsway
VOLLEYBALL
Timber Creek at Salem Tech, 5:15 p.m.
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Atlantic Cape at Salem CC, 6 p.m.

TUESDAY, SEPT. 22
(Power points cutoff for girls tennis)
FIELD HOCKEY
Glassboro at Schalick
Gloucester Catholic at Woodstown
Pennsville at Salem Tech
BOYS SOCCER
Glassboro at Schalick
Pennsville at Salem
Penns Grove at Overbrook
Pitman at Woodstown
GIRLS SOCCER
Overbrook at Penns Grove
Salem at Pennsville
Salem Tech at Pitman
GIRLS TENNIS
Mainland at Woodstown, 3:45 p.m.
Pitman at Schalick
Salem at Timber Creek
CROSS COUNTRY
TCC Batch Meet at Salem Tech, 3:30 p.m.

THURSDAY, SEPT. 24
FOOTBALL
Camden Catholic at Maple Shade, 6 p.m.
Haddon Twp. at Middle Twp., 6 p.m.
Hopewell Valley at Allentown, 6 p.m.
Riverside at Florence, 6 p.m.
Gloucester at Cinnaminson, 6 p.m.
Williamstown at Cherry Hill East, 6:30 p.m.
Delran at Seneca, 7 p.m.
FIELD HOCKEY
Glassboro at Pennsville
Overbrook at Woodstown
Salem at Salem Tech
Schalick at Deptford
BOYS SOCCER
Clayton at Salem
Gloucester Catholic at Salem Tech
Woodstown at Penns Grove
GIRLS SOCCER
Penns Grove at Woodstown
Pitman at Pennsville
Salem at Clayton
Salem Tech at Gloucester Catholic
GIRLS TENNIS
Woodstown at Penns Grove, 3:45 p.m.
Glassboro at Salem
Pitman at Pennville
Schalick at Overbrook
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Anne Arundel at Salem CC, 6 p.m.

FRIDAY, SEPT. 25
FOOTBALL
Buena at Woodstown, 6 p.m.
Burlington City at Pennsville, 7 p.m.
Cedar Creek at Camden, 6 p.m.
Mastery Camden at WW-Plainsboro, 6 p.m.
Pleasantville at Burlington Twp., 6 p.m.
Lower Cape May at Absegami, 6 p.m.
Vineland at Bridgeton, 6 p.m.
Atlantic City at Winslow, 6 p.m.
Gloucester Catholic at Wildwood, 6 p.m.
Glassboro at Holy Spirit, 6 p.m.
Delsea at Shawnee, 6 p.m.
Lindenwold at Palmyra, 6 p.m.
Rancocas Valley at Cherokee, 6 p.m.
St. Joe (Hamm.) at Highland, 6 p.m.
Sterling at Collingswood, 6 p.m.
Washington Twp. at Kingsway, 6 p.m.
Ocean City at Mainland, 6 p.m.
Paul VI at Willingboro, 6 p.m.
Hammonton at Oakcrest, 6 p.m.
St. Augustine at Millville, 6 p.m.
Eastern at Lenape, 6 p.m.
Northern Burlington at Pennsauken, 6 p.m.
Trenton at Hightstown, 6 p.m.
Pemberton at Clearview, 7 p.m.
Atlantic Tech at Egg Harbor, 7 p.m.
Notre Dame at Robbinsville, 7 p.m.
Haddonfield at West Deptford, 7 p.m.
Cherry Hill West at Moorestown, 7 p.m.
Audubon at Gateway, 7 p.m.
GIRLS SOCCER
Camden Catholic at Schalick
FIELD HOCKEY
Oakcrest at Pennsville
GIRLS TENNIS
Salem at St. Joe (Hamm.)
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Salem CC at Army Prep, 6:30 p.m.

SATURDAY, SEPT. 26
FOOTBALL
Penns Grove at Woodbury, 11 a.m.
Schalick at Paulsboro, 11 a.m.
Overbrook at Salem, noon
Bishop Eustace at Haddon Heights, 11:30 a.m.
Bordentown at KIPP, noon
Lawrence at Nottingham, noon
Ewing at Princeton, noon
BOYS SOCCER
Schalick at Shore, 10 a.m.
COLLEGE SOFTBALL
Salem CC at Chestnut Hill, noon

SUNDAY, SEPT. 27
COLLEGE CROSS COUNTRY
Salem CC at Brookdale

MONDAY, SEPT. 28
BOYS SOCCER
Penns Grove at Glassboro
Salem at Gloucester Catholic
Salem Tech at Pennsville
GIRLS SOCCER
Glassboro at Penns Grove
Gloucester Catholic at Salem
Pennsville at Salem Tech
Schalick at Woodstown
FIELD HOCKEY
Gloucester Catholic at Pennsville
Salem Tech at Clayton
Salem at Deptford, 6 p.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
Salem at Pennsville
Timber Creek at Woodstown

TUESDAY, SEPT. 29
BOYS SOCCER
Woodstown at Schalick
GIRLS TENNIS
Delsea at Schalick
First-round Group I playoffs
CROSS COUNTRY
TCC Batch Meet at Cumberland
VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at Williamstown, 5:15 p.m.

WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 30
BOYS SOCCER
Glassboro at Salem Tech
Penns Grove at Salem
Pitman at Pennsville
GIRLS SOCCER
Pitman at Woodstown
Salem at Penns Grove
Salem Tech at Glassboro
FIELD HOCKEY
Cumberland at Salem Tech
Overbrook at Pennsville
Schalick at Salem
Woodstown at Hammonton
GIRLS TENNIS
West Deptford at Woodstown, 3:45 p.m.

THURSDAY, OCT. 1
FOOTBALL
Princeton at Northern Burlington, 6 p.m.
Clearview at Highland, 6 p.m.
Collingswood at Deptford, 6 p.m.
Palmyra at Burlington City, 6 p.m.
Oakcrest at Ocean City, 6 p.m.
Cherry Hill East at Washington Twp., 6 p.m.
Egg Harbor at St. Joe (Hamm.), 6:30 p.m.
Camden at Permian (Tex.), 7 p.m.
BOYS SOCCER
Clearview at Schalick
GIRLS TENNIS
Second-round Group I playoffs
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Salem CC at Chesapeake, 6 p.m.

FRIDAY, OCT. 2
FOOTBALL
Schalick at Cumberland, 6 p.m.
Penns Grove at Pennsville, 7 p.m.
Wildwood at Buena, 6 p.m.
West Deptford at Overbrook, 7 p.m.
Gateway at Clayton, 7 p.m.
WW-Plainsboro at Lindenwold, 6 p.m.
Paul VI at Eastern, 6 p.m.
KIPP at Lawrence, 6 p.m.
Holy Cross at Florence, 6 p.m.
Seneca at Hopewell Valley, 6 p.m.
Nottingham at Delran, 6 p.m.
Kingsway at Williamstown, 6 p.m.
Delsea at Triton, 6 p.m.
Notre Dame at Allentown, 6 p.m.
Shawnee at Lenape, 6 p.m.
Timber Creek at Absegami, 6 p.m.
Rancocas Valley at Millville, 6 p.m.
Maple Shade at Sterling, 6 p.m.
Lower Cape May at Middle Twp., 6 p.m.
Burlington Twp. at St. Augustine, 6 p.m.
Atlantic City at Mainland, 6 p.m.
Holy Spirit at Pleasantville, 6 p.m.
Willingboro at Glassboro, 6 p.m.
Cherokee at Cedar Creek, 6 p.m.
Hightstown at Bordentown, 6 p.m.
Cinnaminson at Camden Catholic, 6 p.m.
Riverside at Gloucester, 7 p.m.
Bishop Eustace at Haddon Twp., 7 p.m.
Moorestown at Robbinsville, 7 p.m.
BOYS SOCCER
Salem Tech at Buena
Woodstown at Highland
GIRLS SOCCER
Buena at Salem Tech
Cherry Hill East at Schalick
Cumberland at Woodstown
FIELD HOCKEY
Delran at Woodstown, 4:15 p.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
Woodstown at Kingsway

SATURDAY, OCT. 3
FOOTBALL
Paulsboro at Woodbury, 11 a.m.
Pitman at Gloucester Catholic, 11 a.m.
Woodstown at Salem, noon
Mastern Camden at Audubon, 11 a.m.
Bridgeton at Atlantic Tech, noon
Pennsauken at Trenton, 1 p.m.
Cherry Hill West at Ewing, 2 p.m.
Pemberton at Hamilton West, 2 p.m.
Hammonton at Steinert, 2 p.m.
Winslow at Red Bank Catholic, 6 p.m.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Salem CC at Sussex CC, noon
COLLEGE CROSS COUNTRY
Salem CC at Cairn Highlander Invitational
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Morris at Salem CC, noon
COLLEGE SOFTBALL
Salem CC in Delaware Tournament
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Salem CC at Stockton Tri-Scrimmage

MONDAY, OCT. 5
GIRLS TENNIS
Moorestown Friends at Woodstown, 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
Salem Tech at Gloucester Catholic
Schalick at Woodstown
BOYS SOCCER
Clayton at Pennsville
Penns Grove at Schalick
Salem Tech at Salem
GIRLS SOCCER
Overbrook at Woodstown
Pennsville at Clayton
Salem at Salem Tech
Schalick at Penns Grove
GIRLS TENNIS
Salem at Triton

WEDNESDAY, OCT. 7
BOYS SOCCER
Camden Academy Charter at Salem
GIRLS TENNIS
Third-round Group I playoffs
VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at Highland, 5:15 p.m.
CROSS COUNTRY
Salem County Championship, Schalick
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
RCSJ-Gloucester at Salem CC, 7 p.m.

THURSDAY, OCT. 8
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
GIRLS SOCCER
Gloucester Catholic at Pennsville
Salem at Pitman
Salem Tech at Clayton
GIRLS TENNIS
Woodstown at Schalick

FRIDAY, OCT. 9
FOOTBALL
Overbrook at Woodstown, 6 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
GIRLS TENNIS
Schalick at Pitman

SATURDAY, OCT. 10
FOOTBALL
Pennsville at St. Joseph (Hamm.), noon
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
COLLEGE SOFTBALL
Salem CC Jamboree, 10 a.m.
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Salem CC at Felician

MONDAY, OCT. 12
FIELD HOCKEY
Maple Shade at Schalick
BOYS SOCCER
Glassboro at Salem
Overbrook at Pennsville
Pitman at Salem Tech
Penns Grove at Gloucester Catholic
Schalick at Bordentown
GIRLS SOCCER
Gloucester Catholic at Penns Grove
Pennsville at Overbrook
Salem at Glassboro
Woodstown at Clayton
GIRLS TENNIS
Schalick at Pennsville, 3:45 p.m.
Woodstown at Glassboro, 3:45 p.m.
Penns Grove at Salem
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Salem CC at Delaware Tech, 6 p.m.

TUESDAY, OCT. 13
FIELD HOCKEY
Paulsboro at Salem Tech
Woodstown at Millville
Salem at Bridgeton, 6 p.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
Sectional finals
VOLLEYBALL
Clearview at Salem Tech, 5:15 p.m.

WEDNESDAY, OCT. 14
BOYS SOCCER
Overbrook at Penns Grove
Salem at Pennsville
GIRLS SOCCER
Pennsville at Salem
Penns Grove at Overbrook
Pitman at Salem Tech
FIELD HOCKEY
Deptford at Pennsville
Glassboro at Salem Tech
Overbrook at Salem
GIRLS TENNIS
Glassboro at Pennsville, 3:45 p.m.
Schalick at Penns Grove
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Middlesex at Salem CC, 6 p.m.

THURSDAY, OCT. 15
FOOTBALL
Millville at Atlantic City, 6 p.m.
Florence at Maple Shade, 6 p.m.
Allentown at Ewing, 6 p.m.
Timber Creek at Bridgeton, 6 p.m.
Hopewell Valley at Hightstown, 6 p.m.
Mastern Camden at Clearview, 7 p.m.
BOYS SOCCER
Gloucester at Salem Tech
Salem at Cape May Tech
Schalick at Sterling
West Deptford at Penns Grove
GIRLS SOCCER
Paulsboro at Penns Grove
GIRLS TENNIS
State finals, Mercer County Park

FRIDAY, OCT. 16
FOOTBALL
Pennsville at Schalick, 6 p.m.
Salem at Burlington City, 6 p.m.
Buena at Pitman, 7 p.m.
Northern Burlington at Williamstown, 6 p.m.
Camden Eastside at Cinnaminson, 6 p.m.
Vineland at St. Joe (Hamm.), 6 p.m.
Ocean City at Holy Spirit, 6 p.m.
Pennsauken at Eastern, 6 p.m.
Burlington Twp. at Shawnee, 6 p.m.
St. Augustine at Kingsway, 6 p.m.
Camden at Glassboro, 6 p.m.
Rancocas Valley at Pleasantville, 6 p.m.
Lenape at Cherry Hill East, 6 p.m.
Camden Catholic at KIPP, 6 p.m.
Cedar Creek at Mainland, 6 p.m.
Steinert at Notre Dame, 6 p.m.
Collingswood at Audubon, 6 p.m.
Gloucester at Cherry Hill West, 6 p.m.
Winslow at Washington Twp., 6 p.m.
Middle Twp. at Lindenwold, 6 p.m.
Highland at Cumberland, 6 p.m.
Sterling at Bishop Eustace, 6:30 p.m.
Willingboro at Haddonfield, 7 p.m.
Lawrence at Robbinsville, 7 p.m.
Gloucester Catholic at Haddon Twp., 7 p.m.
WW-Plainsboro at Holy Cross, 7 p.m.
Paul VI at Seneca, 7 p.m.
Haddon Heights at Gateway, 7 p.m.
Delran at West Deptford, 7 p.m.
Cherokee at Delsea, 7 p.m.
FIELD HOCKEY
Clayton at Salem
Salem Tech at Pennsville
BOYS SOCCER
Salem Tech at Overbrook
GIRLS SOCCER
Schalick at Clearview
GIRLS TENNIS
Pennsville at Timber Creek
Salem at Woodstown

SATURDAY, OCT. 17
FOOTBALL
Clayton at Woodbury, 11 a.m.
Woodstown at Penns Grove, 11 a.m.
Overbrook at Paulsboro, 12:30 p.m.
Wildwood at Palmyra, 11 a.m.
Trenton at Princeton, 11 a.m.
Hamilton West at Nottingham, noon
Oakcrest at Atlantic Tech, noon
Lower Cape May at Hammonton, noon
Egg Harbor at Absegami, noon
Triton at Moorestown, 1 p.m.
Bordentown at Riverside, 1:30 p.m.
Deptford at Pemberton, 2 p.m.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Sussex CC vs. Salem CC, Pennsville H.S., 1 p.m.
COLLEGE CROSS COUNTRY
Salem CC in Border Battle, Dream Park

MONDAY, OCT. 19
GIRLS SOCCER
West Deptford at Schalick
FIELD HOCKEY
Pennsville at Absegami, 4:30 p.m.
VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at Timber Creek, 5:15 p.m.
CROSS COUNTRY
NJTAC Championships, Salem Tech
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Union at Salem CC, 6 p.m.

TUESDAY, OCT. 20
BOYS SOCCER
Pennsville at Audubon
Penns Grove at Woodstown
Pitman at Schalick
Salem at Clayton
Salem Tech at Gloucester Catholic
GIRLS SOCCER
Clayton at Salem
Gloucester Catholic at Salem Tech
Pennsville at Pitman
Woodstown at Penns Grove
FIELD HOCKEY
Salem Tech at Salem
GIRLS TENNIS
Overbrook at Woodstown, 3:45 p.m.
Salem at Pitman
Timber Creek at Schalick

WEDNESDAY, OCT. 21
VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at Buena, 5:30 p.m.
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Harcum at Salem CC, 6 p.m.

THURSDAY, OCT. 22
FOOTBALL
Schalick at Overbrook, 7 p.m.
Ocean City at Glassboro, 6 p.m.
Willingboro at Delran, 6 p.m.
St. Joe (Hamm.) at Timber Creek, 6 p.m.
Cherokee at Shawnee, 6 p.m.
Eastern at Williamstown, 6 p.m.
KIPP at Florence, 6 p.m.
Gateway at Collingswood, 6 p.m.
Delsea at Pleasantville, 6 p.m.
Highland at Vineland, 7 p.m.
BOYS SOCCER
Glassboro at Penns Grove
Gloucester Catholic at Salem
Pennsville at Salem Tech
Schalick at Woodstown
GIRLS SOCCER
Penns Grove at Glassboro
Salem at Gloucester Catholic
Salem Tech at Pennsville
Woodstown at Schalick
FIELD HOCKEY
Salem at Glassboro
Salem Tech at Deptford
CROSS COUNTRY
TCC Showcase, Dream Park, 3:30 p.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
Washington Twp. at Woodstown, 3:45 p.m.
Delsea at Schalick
Deptford at Salem
Pennsville at Kingsway

FRIDAY, OCT. 23
FOOTBALL
Salem at Pennsville, 6 p.m.
Pitman at Woodstown, 6:30 p.m.
Paulsboro at Burlington City, 6 p.m.
Cherry Hill East at Northern Burlington, 6 p.m.
Palmyra at Middle Twp., 6 p.m.
Hightstown at Allentown, 6 p.m.
Hammongton at Egg Harbor, 6 p.m.
Washington Twp. at St. Augustine, 6 p.m.
Kingsway at Atlantic City, 6 p.m.
Princeton at Hopewell Valley, 6 p.m.
WW-Plainsboro at Deptford, 6 p.m.
Cinnaminson at Triton, 6 p.m.
Mainland at Camden, 6 p.m.
Pennsauken at Lenape, 6 p.m.
Agsegami at Atlantic Tech, 6 p.m.
Cumberland at Bridgeton, 6 p.m.
Steinert at Lawrence, 6 p.m.
Holy Spirit at Cedar Creek, 6 p.m.
Winslow at Millville, 6 p.m.
Wildwood at Haddon Twp., 7 p.m.
West Deptford at Seneca, 7 p.m.
Bordentown at Camden Catholic, 7 p.m.
Haddonfield at Paul VI, 7 p.m.
Moorestown at Gloucester, 7 p.m.
Holy Cross at Clearview, 7 p.m.
BOYS SOCCER
Penns Grove at Paulsboro
GIRLS SOCCER
Salem Tech at Woodbury
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Salem CC vs. Navy Prep, Annapolis, 11 a.m.

SATURDAY, OCT. 24
(Power points cutoff for football, field hockey, soccer)
FOOTBALL
Clayton at Penns Grove, noon
Woodbury at Buena, 6 p.m.
Lindenwold at Gloucester Catholic, 11 a.m.
Audubon at Bishop Eustace, 11 a.m.
Notre Dame at Hamilton West, 11 a.m.
Riverside at Maple Shade, 11 a.m.
Trenton at Ewing, 11 a.m.
Oakcrest at Lower Cape May, 11 a.m.
Sterling at Haddon Heights, 11:30 a.m.
Robbinsville at Nottingham, noon
Burlington Twp. at Rancocas Valley, noon
Cherry Hill West at Camden Eastside, 1 p.m.
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Raritan Valley at Salem CC, noon
COLLEGE SOFTBALL
Salem CC at Jefferson University, noon
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Salem CC at Chestnut Hill

SUNDAY, OCT. 25
COLLEGE SOFTBALL
Salem CC at Lincoln University, noon

MONDAY, OCT. 26
FIELD HOCKEY
Williamston at Schalick
GIRLS SOCCER
Salem Tech at Gloucester
VOLLEYBALL
Salem Tech at Cape May Tech, 5:15 p.m.

TUESDAY, OCT. 27
FIELD HOCKEY
Clayton at Salem Tech
Glassboro at Woodstown
Pennsville at Gloucester Catholic

WEDNESDAY, OCT. 28
BOYS SOCCER
Clayton at Penns Grove
Pennsville at Schalick
Salem at Overbrook
Salem Tech at Woodstown
GIRLS SOCCER
Overbrook at Salem
Penns Grove at Clayton
Schalick at Pennsville
Woodstown at Salem Tech

FRIDAY, OCT. 30
FOOTBALL
First-round playoffs
BOYS SOCCER
Salem at Paulsboro
Schalick at Audubon
FIELD HOCKEY
Paul VI at Woodstown

SATURDAY, OCT. 31
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Salem CC at Erie CC, noon
FIELD HOCKEY
Woodstown at Bishop Eustace, 11 a.m.
CROSS COUNTRY
NJSIAA Sectionals
COLLEGE CROSS COUNTRY
Salem CC in Region XIX Meet, Lancaster, Pa.
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Salem CC in RCSJ-Cumberland Showcase

MONDAY, NOV. 2
FIELD HOCKEY
Group I first round playoffs

TUESDAY, NOV. 3
FIELD HOCKEY
Group 2 first-round playoffs
GIRLS SOCCER
First-round playoffs

WEDNESDAY, NOV. 4
FIELD HOCKEY
Group 1 second-round playoffs
BOYS SOCCER
First-round playoffs

THURSDAY, NOV. 5
FIELD HOCKEY
Group 2 second-round playoffs

FRIDAY, NOV. 6
FOOTBALL
Second-round playoffs
GIRLS SOCCER
Second-round playoffs

SATURDAY, NOV. 7
BOYS SOCCER
Second-round playoffs
CROSS COUNTRY
State Championship Meet

MONDAY, NOV. 9
FIELD HOCKEY
Third-round playoffs

TUESDAY, NOV. 10
GIRLS SOCCER
Third-round playoffs

WEDNESDAY, NOV. 11
FIELD HOCKEY
Sectional finals
BOYS SOCCER
Third-round playoffs

FRIDAY, NOV. 13
FOOTBALL
Sectional finals
GIRLS SOCCER
Sectional finals

SATURDAY, NOV. 14
FIELD HOCKEY
State finals, Bordentown H.S.
BOYS SOCCER
Sectional finals

MONDAY, NOV. 16
BOYS SOCCER
State semifinals

TUESDAY, NOV. 17
GIRLS SOCCER
State semifinals

SATURDAY, NOV. 21
GIRLS SOCCER
State finals, Franklin H.S.

SUNDAY, NOV. 22
BOYS SOCCER
State finals, Franklin H.S.

THURS., NOV. 26
FOOTBALL
Clayton at Pitman, 10:30 a.m.

District 3 LL tourney

Here is the schedule for the New Jersey District 3 Little League; all 3 Salem County teams in same division; all games 5:45 p.m. unless noted

AMERICAN DIVISION: East Vineland, Elmer, Franklin Twp., Pennsville, Woodstown
NATIONAL DIVISION: Buena, North Vineland, South Cumberland, South Vineland

POOL PLAY SCHEDULE
June 26
Elmer at East Vineland
Woodstown at Franklin Twp.
North Vineland at South Vineland
June 27
Pennsville at Franklin Twp., 7 p.m.
East Vineland at Woodstown, 5 p.m.
Buena at South Cumberland, 7 p.m.
June 29
East Vineland at Pennsville
Elmer at Woodstown
South Cumberland at North Vineland
June 30
East Vineland at Franklin Twp.
Elmer at Pennsville
South Vineland at South Cumberland
North Vineland at Buena
July 1
Franklin Twp. at Elmer
Woodstown at Pennsville
South Cumberland at Buena

DISTRICT 3 FINALS
July 6
at Buena LL
Game 1: American 1 vs. National 2
Game 2: National 1 vs. American 2, 8 p.m.
July 7
at North Vineland LL
Game 3: Winner G1 vs. Winner G2
Game 4: Loser G1 vs. Loser G2, 8 p.m.
July 9
at Pennsville LL
Game 5: Loser G3 vs. Winner G4, 7 p.m.
July 10
at South Vineland LL
Game 6: Winner G3 vs. Winner G5, 7 p.m.
July 11
at South Vineland LL
If necessary, 7 p.m.
Winner advances to Section IV Tournament at Hammonton, July 17

Dante his own inferno

Woodstown left-hander Spina sharp in another May start, Wolverines blank Clayton; most of Wednesday’s schedule washed out to Thursday

WEDNESDAY BASEBALL
South Jersey Group I Tournament
Cape May Tech at Schalick, ppd. (Thurs.)
Gateway at Audubon, ppd. (Thurs.)
Wildwood 10, Paulsboro 0 (Tues.)
Riverside at Maple Shade, ppd. (Thurs.)
LEAP at Haddon Twp., ppd. (Thurs.)
Pitman at Pennsville, ppd. (Thurs.)
Buena 8, Glassboro 2
Woodstown 12, Clayton 0
South Jersey Group II Tournament
Salem Tech at Barnegat, ppd. (Thurs.)

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

WOODSTOWN – Where is it written that it has to be hitter who has a month associated with his name?

Everybody knows Reggie Jackson is Mr. October, but senior southpaw Dante Spina has become Mr. May for the Woodstown baseball team, a moniker the Wolverines no doubt hopes carries on into playoff June.

Pitching in his final start of the month, Spina picked up his fourth win in May, a brilliant five-inning, three-hit shutout, 12-0 over Clayton in one of the rare South Jersey Group 1 playoff games played Wednesday. He walked two and struck out seven.

In his four outings in May, Spina has allowed just one earned run (two total) over 22 2/3 innings, walked seven and struck out 29. He has beaten Gloucester (May 1), Camden Catholic (May 9), Oakcrest (May 15) and Clayton (Wednesday). All four wins have come at home. He hasn’t given up an earned run in his last 21 2/3 innings.

“He’s earned the right to do this,” Woodstown coach Marc DeCastro said. “If you’d have asked me a month ago whether he would’ve pitched in a playoff game, I wouldn’t have been able to say yes. But he’s just continued to work past some of the struggles that he’s had in every step that he’s had between now and then.

“The last time was Haddon Twp., which was not great. And he pitched in relief against Cumberland, was OK. And the next time he started I believe was Gloucester, a little better. And then it just kept going every week until we got to this point. We needed that today. When you have only one day off and a second-round game on Friday you need a pitcher to be able to come out and not have anyone else throw.”

Spina faced the minimum on 43 pitches through the first 3 2/3 innings, thanks in part to a strike-em-out, throw-em-out double play in the first inning. He struck out five in a row at one point. His defense kept the shutout alive when Justin Delaney slipped coming around third on Kevin Mosley’s single to center and was cut down in a rundown between third and home for the final out of the fourth inning.

“I try not to think about it, just keep rolling,” he said of the May success. “(It’s) probably the sharpest I’ve ever been, to be honest. The funny thing is I have stopped thinking about mechanics. I think if it were me I’d stress too much about what my body was doing and trying to do everything perfect. Now I’m just letting it free and throwing the baseball.”

The Wolverines made it easier for their pitcher to let loose by scoring in every inning. They hit three home runs. Eight of the nine starters reached base at least once, six scored at least one run. Three players scored three times.

“We were prepared to play and we just talked about making sure we executed on every pitch and we didn’t take any pitch off today, that’s at the plate, on the mound, defensively, baserunning,” DeCastro said. “We played a well-rounded game.”

Clippers starter Delaney threw just one pitch against the Wolverines when the teams played a 3-1 game on May 11, a ball in the sixth inning that led to a walk and Woodstown’s second run. He threw one pitch too many Wednesday.

Tommy Tucci hit his first over-the-fence home run on any level of baseball, a three-run shot in the first inning off Delaney that gave the Wolverines a 4-0 lead. It came on the junior infielder’s 208^th high school at-bat.

“We had runners at first and second and I was just trying to do some damage here,” Tucci said. “I got a green line, the first pitch I saw something up in the zone and went after it. I didn’t think it was gone off the bat, I was just running, but there was a guy in front of me and then once I saw him slow up I was like oh wow that really got out.

“I always go into a game nowadays thinking I’m going to get one but never really do and then a bunch of guys always mess with me saying I’ve got no juice at practice. They say I don’t even have (warning track power) sometimes.”

DeCastro has seen otherwise.

“The second half of the season Tommy’s turned a corner,” the head coach said. “He’s taken to a situation where he’s becoming a hitter that’s dangerous, not just a hitter who tries to make contact. He hits balls that are close and close and close in practice. He hits the ball really hard in games. I don’t want to say hitting a home run was a matter of time. Whether that’s a home run or a ball off the wall, that ball is something that Tommy’s approaching.”

Chase Harding hit two homers off Clippers reliever David Chapes just a few hours after giving himself a playoff buzzcut. The first one was a solo shot in the third inning that gave the Wolverines a 7-0 lead, and the second was a two-out, two-run shot in the fourth that put them in run-rule territory. The second one went through the windshield of Spina’s grandfather’s car.

The senior designated hitter said there was “no correlation” between the buzz cut and the power surge.

“I just felt good today,” he said. “At the beginning of May I was at Ty (Coblentz’) house and he said we need to buzz our hairs. I said let me wait until after prom. He buzzed his last night. I got home from school today and I thought I had to do it. I thought it was going to look a lot worse (that it did).”

“We have a team group chat and he said in the group chat he had an itch,” Spina said. “I guess he itched it.”

The second-seeded Wolverines (17-8) now host 10th-seeded Buena (13-12) in Friday’s quarterfinals. Woodstown has won six in a row and eight of its last nine, including a 15-6 win over the Chiefs on May 16.

“This team (Clayton), we didn’t play to the best of our ability last time we played them so I think they came into this game a little light thinking they had a chance, but we knew they didn’t have a chance,” Harding said. “And Buena, the last time we played them we played great and I think if we play like that again we’ll move on.”

Clayton	000	00-	0	3	5
Woodstown	422	4x-	12	9	0

WP: Dante Spina. LP: Justin Delaney. 2B: Walker Battavio (WO). HR: Tommy Tucci (WO), Chase Harding 2 (WO).

Merry, Merry Month of May

Here is a log of Woodstown left-hander Dante Spina’s four starts in May (4-0, 0.31 ERA)

GAME	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K
Gloucester (W 9-1)	6	9	1	1	1	8
Camden Catholic (W 5-0)	7	5	0	0	0	6
Oakcrest (W 4-1)	4.2	3	1	0	4	8
Clayton (W 12-0)	5	3	0	0	2	7
TOTALS	22.2	20	2	1	7	29

**Woodstown’s Tommy Tucci prepares to stomp on the plate after hitting his first ever home run, a three-run shot in the first inning of Wednesday’s playoff win over Clayton.**

D’Agostino denies them

Former Schalick standout spins no-hitter to complete a big week for RCSJ-Cumberland; includes ‘Keeping Track,’ an update on the former Salem County high schoolers playing in college

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

Lucas D’Agostino could not have envisioned what was to come later in the day. He was a little tired; the team had gotten back late from the first game of the series in North Jersey. Warming up in the bullpen his arm felt good and he thought maybe he could have another quality start he’d been racking up in recent weeks. But what came next, no way.

The freshman from Schalick went out and fashioned his first career no-hitter and the program’s first in four years as he blanked Bergen 4-0 Saturday to help RCSJ-Cumberland lock down a No. 3 seed in the upcoming Region XIX baseball playoffs.

“I had a good day, got really lucky as well,” the right-hander said. “We had gotten back late the night before, at like 11:30, so we were all pretty tired. I got to the field at like 9 a.m. and thought, you know what, it sure would be a day. It’s always the days you don’t expect it. It’d be nice to do something in my final start of the regular season.”

It was the Dukes’ first no-hitter since Andrew Simone threw one at Suffolk in 2022. D’Agostino threw 89 pitches in the seven-inning game – 63 for strikes — allowed three base runners on a walk and two legitimate errors, and struck out a career-high 10. He faced 23 batters thanks to a third-inning double play and retired the last 12 in a row after a fourth-inning error.

His defense kept the gem alive with two incredible catches in the outfield on back-to-back plays in the fifth inning. Leftfielder Christian Willis laid out for a ball smoked to the gap and on the next pitch centerfielder Kory Jenkins came running in to make a shoestring grab on a sinking liner. D’Agostino struck out six of the last seven batters, including the side in order in the seventh.

“Sometimes to start the game I get into some deeper counts, I’ll have like a 15-, 16-pitch inning,” he said. “I got back in the dugout and I only had thrown nine pitches and I had a strikeout. I came back in I was like hey, you’re efficient right now, feeling good, so that was really it. I didn’t feel like I have wipeout stuff today or everything’s going to go right. The pitch count’s been low, we’re on a good pace, but there wasn’t any mind-shattering revelation.”

He starting sense something special was brewing around fourth inning. His teammates did too and as tradition has it started avoiding the subject in the dugout.

“I was kind of sitting in my corner, sipping my water, just waiting to go back out,” he said. “My spot would came up to hit and I was like I don’t know if I want to move from my spot on the bench right now. Some people came around talking about the Sixers, nothing about the game, just like, ‘hey, how about the Sixers,’ stuff like that.”

He didn’t have a lot of time to celebrate the gem. He had to start at first in the nightcap.

It was his fifth quality start in a row (4-1, 0.80 ERA). In his start before the no-no, he threw a complete-game two-hitter at Ocean CC in a game that helped Salem CC on its journey to secure the last spot in the region playoffs. That’s Pitcher of the Week material. He’s now 5-2 with a team-leading 1.88 ERA (second in the league) and 53 strikeouts over 52 2/3 innings.

“I can’t think of a start so far this year that I really struggled,” he said. “I’ve felt pretty good all year. I’m just excited for the playoffs, really.”

Interestingly, his latest pitching run about corresponds to the time he became a part of the regular lineup playing first base when he wasn’t pitching and hitting. Since April 8 he is batting .259 (15-for-58) with 22 RBIs and his first college homer (off Union) while going 3-1 on the mound with a 0.98 ERA.

“I starting really swinging it well in practice probably around the 20-game mark,” he said. “I’ve been hitting, but I wasn’t really taking it like I’m going to be a hitter on this team. I think I’m here to pitch, but I can help the team on the side. I didn’t think there was any shot, then we had our starting first baseman go down and right at the same time I had started to kind of put it together hitting-wise in practice.

“It’s definitely an adjustment (hitting and pitching); there’s a lot more soreness involved. It’s a lot for the body. I’ve had some pretty good starts since I’ve been hitting. It’s, of course, easier when you’re always on the field to stay locked in mentally, especially when you need to come in and pitch. The Middlesex game, I started the final game of the series and I played the first two games in the field so I had already seen all the trends of the hitters, how they swing and react to different pitches. It’s more of like an intel operation almost being on the field and then being able to pitch later in the series.”

Keeping Track

Baseball

PLAYER	SCHOOL	GP	BA	H	HR	RBI
Elijah Crespo, Penns Grove	RCSJ-Cumb	17	.217	5	1	6
Lucas D’Agostino, Schalick	RCSJ-Cumb	25	.259	15	1	23
Andrew Pedrick, Woodstown	Harford CC	30	.398	35	3	39
Lucas Prendergast, Woodstown	York	41	.403	62	5	28
Jarrett Pokrovsky, Schalick	Penn	38	.297	46	2	21
Terrell Robinson, Salem	Rosemont	27	.260	19	0	9
Jackson Schalick, Schalick	Frostburg	50	.370	61	6	51
Caiden Spinelli, Woodstown	Rosemont	32	.340	35	0	15
Connor Starn, Pennsville	Keystone	10	.154	2	0	2
Rocco String, Woodstown	Salem CC	32	.247	23	3	24
Chase Swain, Woodstown	LaSalle	48	.380	71	9	35
Mike Valente, Woodstown	Salem CC	10	.000	0	0	0
Brent Williams, Woodstown	G-Beacom	33	.295	36	3	24

PITCHER	SCHOOL	GP	W-L	ERA	IP	K
Evan Biddle, Salem	Frostburg	9	1-0	8.10	10.0	7
Lucas D’Agostino, Schalick	RCSJ-Cumb	11	5-2	1.88	52.2	53
Ben Foote, Woodstown	Caldwell	7	1-1	9.82	7.1	5
Jack Holladay, Woodstown	Neumann	8	0-3	9.43	21.1	16
Peyton O’Brien, Pennsville	Harford CC	7	0-0	1.74	10.1	12
Luke Pokrovsky, Schalick	Penn	12	0-1	12.89	14.2	15
Terrell Robinson, Salem	Rosemont	4	0-0	8.10	6.2	2
Caiden Spinelli, Woodstown	Rosemont	2	0-0	27.00	1.1	1
Rocco String, Woodstown	Salem CC	5	0-1	29.08	4.1	5
Mike Valente, Woodstown	Salem CC	9	2-1	5.84	24.2	12
Luke Wood, Pennsville	McDaniel	10	5-1	5.09	46	37

Softball

PLAYER	SCHOOL	GP	BA	H	HR	RBI
Emily Holladay, Woodstown	Hartwick	16	.190	8	0	3
Tulana Mingin, Woodstown	East Stroudsburg	50	.319	53	0	6
Ava Ortiz, Salem	Salem CC	15	.474	9	0	9
Savannah Palverento, Pennsville	Salem CC	43	.398	41	2	37
Lilly Peverelle, Pennsville	Salem CC	46	.489	69	8	60
Bella Rappa, Pennsville	Salem CC	37	.447	42	0	32
Cayla Sbrana, Schalick	RCSJ-Cumb	25	.279	17	0	10
Sawyer Simmons, Pennsville	Salem CC	30	.317	19	1	15

PITCHER	SCHOOL	GP	W-L	ERA	IP	K
Savannah Palverento, Pennsville	Salem CC	16	2-0	6.16	25.0	27
Cayla Sbrana, Schalick	RCSJ-Cumb	13	2-10	9.72	62.2	22
Raegan Wilson, Salem	Salem CC	22	11-6	5.82	85.1	49

Monday sports report

Here are the scores from Monday’s Salem County sports calendar

BOYS GOLF
Woodstown vs. Cumberland, TBA,
Salem Tech vs. Triton, Valleybrook CC,
GIRLS GOLF
Schalick vs. Clearview, Centerton CC
TENNIS
Pennsville 5, Wildwood 0
TRACK
Schalick at Glassboro, 3:45 p.m.
Overbrook at Pennsville
Woodstown 72, Penns Grove 63
Woodstown girls 93, Penns Grove 29
BOYS LACROSSE
Washington Twp. 19, Woodstown 3

Laying the foundation

Their numbers may be few, but the players participating in Salem CC’s first spring football practice are committed to the vision and setting the base for the larger group coming in August

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

CARNEYS POINT – Ben Secouler thought he was done – with football and all that it represented for his future. He tried to make a go of it at a small college in Vermont but it just wasn’t happening for him. Twice he went, twice he came home. The school had a beautiful campus, the academics he wanted and, of course, football. What it didn’t have was proximity to his South Jersey home and he returned to settle into a life as a working man taking on-line college courses wondering what might have been.

Then one day he was scrolling through his social media and came across an item that has the potential to change his life. He saw Salem Community College was starting a junior college football program, the first of its kind for miles around. Suddenly, the fire to play again was rekindled. He was going to be back in the game.

“I saw this and I just had to grab it up,” said Secouler, who last played in 2022 as a senior at Cherry Hill West. “And I was very grateful for it, too, because I thought I was done. I thought I was just being a working man going to school. It gives me another opportunity to play, to do what I love, and also get an education. That’s a big goal of mine. I want to be the first in my family to get a degree. It’s definitely a blessing. It kind of just fell into my lap, so I had to take the opportunity.”

Aiden Alexander thought he was done, too. He went to Kutztown, his only real opportunity after a productive high school career at Kingsway, for the fall 2024 semester, where he redshirted, but he never really felt comfortable and transferred to RCSJ-Gloucester to focus on his academics. He reached out to D-IIIs like Rowan and Montclair for a shot, but got no response. When he saw his high school coach post an item about Salem’s start-up, he jumped at the chance and now has recovered the confidence he lost in his previous experience.

“I know I’ve still got talent,” the defensive back said. “My goal is to go D-I and try to make it to the NFL. My coach posted something on Twitter about Salem starting a new football program. It’s 15 minutes away from me; that’s a God-given shot right there. Why not? I thought it was over until I got an opportunity here. I feel like it’s a God-given opportunity, a second chance to get to the next level.”

Stories like Secouler and Alexander were typical among the six players working out for the hour or so that represented the mid-point of the Mighty Oaks’ inaugural spring practice and will be throughout the 80 or so that will join them in August.

They are exactly the type player retired Rowan head coach Jay Accorsi had in mind when he pitched the idea of having football to president Mike Gorman in the spring, bringing the sport to campus not as some Last Chance University but as a second chance for the many players of the region, some two years or more removed from the game, who fell through the cracks but still had the desire and ability to play. Not only would they get a second chance to play the game they still loved, but also a college education they may have given up on because the game passed them by.

“All of them have a very interesting story and interesting path, and that’s kind of going to be what the program is,” Accorsi said, “trying to help young men figure out what they’re going to do not only academically and socially, but athletically and football wise and help in their journey. They all have a different story that’s pretty unique and interesting. That’s what I’m excited about. I’m excited about all the others who are going to join us that have all those interesting situations as well.”

Sean Ferebee last played in a real football game in 2021, his junior year at West Deptford. He didn’t play his senior high school season after transferring back to Williamstown and had no college ball thereafter. He’s just been working and training and hoping for an opportunity. Because it’s been so long that coaches have had eyes on him, he knows he has to work 10 times harder than the players around him to prove himself, but he’s hoping to show it’s never too late.

“That’s why I’m back here,” he said. “I missed it a lot. Every time football came around I always missed it the most, but when this opportunity came around I felt like it would have been good for a fresh start. To be honest I used to trick myself into thinking it was too late and then I got out of my own head, saw this opportunity and decided to take it and give it 100 percent.”

“I’ve got a chip on my shoulder being as though I didn’t get to play my senior season (in high school). A lot of people doubted me, but I’m here to make a name for myself.”

Brian Pritchett hasn’t been away from it as long as Ferebee – the 2023 high school season was the last year he took snaps – but it wasn’t for a lack of trying. He tried to hook on with Sussex CC, the other junior college in New Jersey offering football, and Lackawanna, and sent feelers to other JUCOs around the country, but found no success.

He kept the faith that something would come along and kept training for when it did, and when Salem CC popped up, he pounced.

“I missed it a lot,” he said. “Every time I went to work it’s the first thing on my mind; I want to play football. I was working night shift and the only thing on my mind was football. I’d rather be in college in a dorm getting my rest for practice in the morning instead of being their working at night.

“This is amazing. I feel like if we do pretty good this will bring a lot of opportunity, a lot of players from Jersey, to come here instead of having to leave.”

That’s what Jermar Jones had to do to play at a level he thought best fit his ability. The West Deptford safety played at Chestnut Hill in 2023, but he was so aggressive in the weight-restricted sprint program they put him at defensive end. He just “didn’t feel like I was supposed to be a part of that” and sought something more. The next year he tried to catch on with D-II Savannah State without success, but he learned something about the process along the way.

“I found out that football can become real political, especially with the NIL and transfer portal, so I just wanted to find somewhere where I would just be able to play the game of football and actually love it for the game of football and not for no money, not for anything outside that can distract me away from the main focus and that was to get better each day I decide to play football.”

And that’s what he sees in his chance with the Mighty Oaks.

“It’s definitely a second chance, not just for me but for JUCO football in Jersey,” he said. “We haven’t had a lot of shine here on the whole JUCO scene in New Jersey so I think this brings a lot of eyes to the guys who don’t get enough attention, especially the guys who go under shown … I feel like this is our time to get those guys an opportunity to showcase our talents and get a second chance at this. High school was the first, but this is now the opportunity we’re given again by God and by the football gods to be able to play the game we love.”

**Salem CC assistant coach Chris Crowley explains a drill to the players participating in the Mighty Oaks’ inaugural spring practice.**

M.J. Hall was a two-sport athlete at Woodstown. He had offers to play basketball out of high school and even thought about going into the military, but still had a yearn to play football. When Accorsi told him he needed a player like Hall in the slot, the idea of a local player playing for the hometown college started to have a lot of appeal. He even talked with the basketball staff about playing both sports, but said basketball would have to wait until after football.

He absolutely gets what having a football program at Salem means in the big picture.

“it means a lot because where I’m from, you’re not really looked at in Woodstown,” he said. “To be here and play at the next level, it’s a good opportunity. Everybody’s dream is to be DI and go to like Alabama or something like that, but JUCO, D-3, D=2, D-1l, you still made it. You can always go from here up higher. It’s just all about opportunity and how you present yourself.

“I feel like this program was needed because out of south jersey we don’t go to like big schools. For us to have an opportunity here and be able to build a brotherhood and get on the same page with Coach Accorsi it’s going to be fun. It’s a blessing and hopefully we can take off this year and be better next year.”

Of course, it all starts with practice. What is serving as the team’s first spring practice for the six or eight players who show up every session is more or less an hour or so of stretching and drill work with Accorsi and his assistants Joe Dougherty, Chris Crowley and Damon Troy. There aren’t enough players available to scrimmage, so the work is mostly individual, but those out there every day are committed to the vision and are building a core for when the larger group arrives in the summer.

The group already has established a tradition uniquely their own, developing a M-I-G-H-T-Y-O-A-K-S jumping jacks routine to start and finish every practice, which Accorsi called “really cool.” After Saturday morning’s Open House in Davidow Hall for prospective players, the Base Eight plans to head out to the bowling alley in Woodstown for some more group bonding.

“They represent the foundation of the program because they’re the ones who are going to help us teach all the new players how to stretch, how to practice, how to do things.,” Accorsi said. “When we start in August with 80, 85, 90, whatever it is, this is going to be that core group that’s going to help us train the new players who come because they are not new players.

“They are the first to ever practice as a Salem Community College football player, the first of the Mighty Oaks football players.”