Raiders extend lead in Turkey Day series
By: Rudy Brandl
The Hillsborough High defense had something to prove on Thanksgiving Day.
Coming off a rare poor performance in the 31-21 loss to Freehold in the consolation game, the Raiders needed to make one final statement on the defensive side of the ball. How about five interceptions and the first shutout of the season against a good Montgomery team?
That’s what the Raiders accomplished in the season finale at David A. Noonan Field, a solid 14-0 victory that extended Hillsborough’s lead in the new holiday series to 5-0.
"We knew they were going to throw at us," said HHS senior defensive back Warner Jones, who led the secondary with two picks. "Freehold had a big game against us and they thought they were going to do the same thing. We had to make sure it wasn’t on us."
The Cougars moved the ball but couldn’t finish any drives. The visitors didn’t punt, but five of their nine possessions ended with interceptions. HHS thwarted the other four drives with two incomplete passes, a sack and stopped a receiver short of the first down marker once.
"That’s our defense," Hillsborough senior defensive back Joe Banaciski said. "We just pick it up. They had the ball in the red zone a few times, but we just kept working."
The Raiders (3-7) mixed defenses and confused the Cougars, who like to go for big plays down the field. Montgomery quarterback Kevin Watson completed 15-of-28 passes for 172 yards but only one play went for more than 20 yards.
"We knew they like to throw the ball deep," HHS head coach Vinnie Coviello said. "We tried to cover our zones. It was good we had a while to prepare for them. We disguised some coverages and didn’t give them straight reads."
"They’re a big-play team so we couldn’t let that deep guy get open," Banaciski added. "We kept a deep guy in the middle."
Montgomery opened the game with a long drive and controlled the ball for over five minutes before Jones intercepted Watson at the 3-yard line. Jones made a great pick in the end zone to stop the Cougars midway through the second quarter. Senior linebacker Gio Cintorrino made another interception before the end of a scoreless first half.
Hillsborough had some success moving the ball in the first half but couldn’t get on the board until late in the third period. Sophomore quarterback Mike Daly lofted a beautiful spiral down the right sideline into the hands of senior receiver Adam Mehltretter. The 26-yard connection produced the game’s first points with 2:41 to play in the third quarter.
"Once I broke my route, I saw the ball in the air," Mehltretter said. "It was really good placement by Mike. That made it easier for me to make the play."
"Adam’s one of those kids who always puts himself in the right position at the right time," Coviello added. "He made some big catches this year."
The Raiders employed a little trickery on the extra point, with E.J. Williams taking a direct snap and sprinting around right end for two points and an 8-0 lead.
A big play on defense set up the HHS touchdown. Montgomery went for it on 4th-and-1 but Watson mishandled the snap and retreating to pick up the ball. Cintorrino chased Watson and sacked him for a 26-yard loss.
Hillsborough took over with a short field on the Cougar 3 and needed only five plays to score. Daly hit senior back Pete McGavisk for a big 19-yard gain to move the chains.
Montgomery started to move on the ensuing possession and picked up two first downs. HHS senior Ron Morton, the former starting quarterback, showed his defensive and offensive skills in the same play by intercepting Watson and running 60 yards for a touchdown. The play was called back because of an illegal block, but the interception stood and the Raiders had the football.
The home team didn’t score on the next drive but tacked on an insurance touchdown after Cintorrino made another big stop on fourth down. Montgomery tight end Sean Mahoney made a catch but Cintorrino tackled him two yards short of the marker and the Raiders followed with a seven-play, 78-yard drive.
Daly and McGavisk hooked up for a 55-yard gain on a shovel pass to set up the score. McGavisk plunged in from one yard out for a 14-0 lead with 2:42 remaining.
Appropriately, the game ended with another interception, this one by sophomore Chris Tillotson. The Raiders took over and ran out the clock.
"I’m proud of these guys," Coviello said. "This was a fantastic group of kids to coach. Today was a special day."
"We wanted to make sure we won our last game," Jones added. "It was real big for us."

