Allentown High School quarterback Nick Palladino looked downfield to made a pass during the Redbirds’ NJSIAA Central Jersey Group III quarterfinal game against Neptune High School. In September the Redbirds will be taking their act out of state, playing in Utah as part of the XFinity Challenge on Sept. 14. JEFF GRANIT staff Allentown
Allentown High School’s football team will be playing a game in Utah this
September.
The school district has approved an invitation for the Redbirds to play a regular-season game against Alta High School at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah, as part of the XFinity Challenge on Sept. 14. Kickoff will be at 2 p.m. in the first game of a doubleheader of New Jersey teams against Utah schools.
Bergen Catholic High School is the other New Jersey team that accepted an invitation and is playing Utah team Jordan High School in the second game of the doubleheader.
“I’m extremely excited,” said Allentown football coach Jay Graber. “It’s a testament to the guys in our program the last few years who worked extremely hard to get the program to where it is now.”
Graber said he received an email from the president of the showcase inviting his team. This is the first year that two New Jersey teams have been invited. Allentown’s team will leave on Sept. 12.
“Being contacted and considered for this game is an awesome reflection of our coaches, players and Pop Warner programs in both Millstone and Allentown,” said Allentown Director of Athletics Brian Irwin. “I am proud that we have been selected and thankful that our principal, superintendent and Board of Education have approved and supported this amazing opportunity.”
The trip is fully financed by XFinity organizers and sponsors, said Graber.
“Alta is an excellent team, one of the best in Utah,” Graber said. “They have their quarterback back and they’re big and physical with some fast guys on offense.”
Allentown will go to Utah with a game already played, opening its season on Sept. 7 at Steinert High School. Graber deflected any notion of the Steinert game helping his team to prepare for its western trip.
“The state (NJSIAA) allows teams to open early, and we were given permission to do that,” Graber said. “From now until the first game, all we will think about is Steinert.”
Graber said the players who are coming back next season are excited and that the team was invited based on its reputation built over the past three seasons. In the first of those three seasons, in 2010, the team finished 6-4, its first winning record since 1968. It also finished 6-4 the following season, earning its first-ever berth in the NJSIAA playoffs, where it lost in overtime to Neptune High School. Last fall, it again made the playoffs, losing again to Neptune, 28-21, and won the West Jersey Football League Valley Division championship in a 9-2 season.
Many players integral to that success are among the 19 seniors graduating this spring, including Nick Palladino, explosive running back Norman Williams, linebackers Frank Juba, Chi Oriji and Mike McGinnis, receivers
Tyler Morales and Mark Duffy and kicker Markus Colin.
“The seniors did a fantastic job for us and I’m excited for them and what they did, but I’m also excited for the younger guys who are working hard in the weight room,” Juba said. “They know they have to step up, and they’re ready. They’re excited about this trip. It’s going to be a great experience. The responsibility now is on these (younger) guys to work hard.”
Wrestling
Allentown finished third out of 16 teams in the Mercer County Tournament on Feb. 2 with eight place-winners, led by championship runner-ups Jack Giglia, who is 19-8 at 132 pounds, Juba, who is 21-4 at 195 pounds, and Tom O’Shaughnessy, who is 16-8 at 220 pounds.
“I’m pleased. To score so high without a champion indicates the whole team was wrestling deep into the tournament,” coach Larry Kimport said. “Some teams have superstars that drive up points, but all of our guys are developing.”
That is good news for the upcoming district tournament and could give the Redbirds, who are 11-5, a berth in the NJSIAA Central Jersey Group III tournament, with pairings announced on Feb. 5. Allentown made the state sectionals two seasons ago. It has three matches this week, all after the cutoff, against Robbinsville High School on Feb. 5, Lawrence High School on Feb. 8 and Steinert on Feb. 9, all at home.
“The main thing now is that we want to finish strong,” Kimport said.
Also placing well in the county tournament were third-place finisher Jake Koch (160 pounds); fourthplace finishers Justin Miller (138 pounds), who is 21-6, and Jordan Rugo (126 pounds), who is 19-9; and fifth-place finishers Brendan Munoz (106 pounds), who is 13-12, and
Drew Schreck, who is 14-8.
Girls basketball
Allentown suffered two tough losses last week, to Ewing High School, 44-42, and
Colonial Valley Conference Patriot Division six-time champion Hopewell Valley High
School, 50-31. Allentown (11-7) came into last week tied for third place in the division with Ewing and two games behind Hopewell Valley with a 10-2 record.
“We had a tough time scoring in the second half against Hopewell and in executing our offense,” coach Linda Weise said, whose team trailed by four points at halftime before Hopewell went on an 18-6 tear in the third quarter. Kathleen Kyle and Bianca Santos led Allentown with 13 points and 11 points, respectively.
Against Ewing, Kali Hartshorn scored 16 points and sank two free throws to put Allentown ahead, 42-40, when Ewing answered with a 3-point play and then a free throw in the closing seconds. Mandy Hornyak scored 15 points and Kirsten Romano sank three 3- point baskets.
Weise said her team’s tough schedule is preparing it for the upcoming Mercer County and NJSIAA tournaments.
“Definitely, right now in the last two or three weeks, this has prepared us,” Weise said.
Boys basketball
Allentown’s boys basketball team continues to show progress in two tough losses last week, to Ewing, 59-55, and Hopewell Valley, 54-40, and will be a dangerous opponent in the Mercer County Tournament next week with a misleading 5-13 record.
Allentown scored nine straight points late in the game against Ewing to close the gap to one point behind the efforts of Zach Duymich before Ewing held on. Hunter Gerling continued to hit double figures, sinking four 3- pointers to finish with 12 points, against Hopewell Valley.
Indoor track and field
Allentown’s boys and girls compete in the NJSIAA Central Jersey Group III sectionals on Feb. 6 at the John Bennett Indoor Athletic Complex in Toms River.
The boys were off last weekend, but the girls set two school records in a nonscoring dual meet at Lawrenceville — Julie Scesney with a 1:02 time in the 400 meters and Carly DuBrosky with an 8.7 time in the 55-meter high hurdles.
DuBrosky’s time of 28.09 in the 200 meters was just .09 of a second off the school record, and Mimi Crawford came close to the school record in the 800 in 2:32.9. All were first-place finishes.
Anna Travers and Alyssa Sargent went 1-2 in the 55 meters, as both timed in at 7.8.