It was a banner weekend for area high school football teams as Red Bank Regional High School, Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School, Ocean Township High School and Red Bank Catholic (RBC) High School all won.
RED BANK REGIONAL
Following a lengthy lightning delay at Raritan High School, Red Bank Regional remained undefeated, downing the Rockets, 30- 14. The Buccaneers dominated the first half and took a 16-0 lead into the break. Three Jack O’Connor field goals, including a 43- yarder, and a Jack Navitsky’s touchdown pass to Mike Reardon accounted for the scoring.
The Rockets cut the lead to eight points in the third quarter and were driving deep into Buccaneers territory when Sadiq Palmer picked off a pass in his own end zone to halt the drive. Red Bank Regional then drove down the field, and Alim Godsey’s 3-yard scoring run added to the lead. With time running down in the fourth quarter, Palmer scored on a 15-yard run to round out the scoring.
“Our defense came up big again,” Red Bank Regional coach Nick Giglio said. “We had a couple of big interceptions, and our guys made the big stops when we needed them.”
Except for a 62-yard touchdown run early in the third quarter, the Buccaneers kept Raritan’s dynamic back Derek Ernst in check.
The victory gives Red Bank Regional 60 power points, which is tops in the race for the NJSIAA Central Jersey Group III playoffs and one point ahead of Ocean Township. Rumson-Fair Haven is fourth with 46 points but has played one fewer game than the three teams it trails. The Buccaneers will next line up Oct. 18 when undefeated RBC visits.
RED BANK CATHOLIC
The Caseys dominated Colts Neck High School in a 25-0 win Oct. 11, RBC’s fourth shutout of the season. Coach Jim Portela’s defense controlled the line throughout the game, making it difficult for the Cougars to make anything happen.
Quarterback Eddie Hahn opened the scoring with an 11-yard, first-quarter touchdown run. RBC scored twice more in the second quarter on runs of 5 and 8 yards by Dylan Murphy and Mike Wilen, respectively. Zach Bair’s 22–yard run in the fourth quarter closed out the scoring.
RBC, which won the Non-Public Group III title last year, is fourth in the standings with 54 power points.
OCEAN TOWNSHIP
One of the weekend’s most exciting games was played in Ocean Township, where the host team prevailed over Middletown
High School North, 17-14, thanks to a 29-yard field goal by Matt Fisher with 24 seconds remaining. The victory improved the Spartans’ record to 4-1, with the only loss coming against Red Bank Regional.
Tyler Thompson opened the scoring with a 2-yard run to culminate Ocean Township’s first drive. The Lions answered back in the second quarter, and the score remained tied at the half. Thompson’s 1-yard run reclaimed the lead for Ocean Township in the third quarter, but the Lions tied things up again early in the final quarter.
Late in the quarter, Tyler Rossback intercepted a pass from Donald Glenn to give the Spartans the ball at the Middletown North 35-yard line, which led to Fisher’s field goal.
Ocean Township coach Don Klein credited his defense for picking off three passes over the course of the evening and generally limiting the Lions’ chances.
The Spartans return to action Oct. 16 when Long Branch High School visits. The Green Wave is coming off a 28-0 loss at Rumson- Fair Haven in a game that was stopped in the third quarter because of a power failure.
RUMSON-FAIR HAVEN
Rumson-Fair Haven dominated the game, which was also delayed for 90 minutes because of a thunderstorm. Matt Vecchiarelli ran for 125 yards and scored two touchdowns, one on a 59-yard run, for the Bulldogs. Rumson- Fair Haven quarterback Jack O’Connor opened the scoring with a 52-yard run in the first quarter. Bryan Hess closed out the scoring with a 16-yard run in the third quarter.
“We were much better tonight than we were against St. John Vianney [in a 13-6 loss Oct. 2],” Bulldogs coach Bryan Batchler said. “Our offense really got going. The line was solid and Jack O’Connor and Matt Vecchiarelli had strong games.”
Rumson-Fair Haven is set to host Manasquan High School Oct. 16.
“The last four times we’ve played Manasquan, the game was decided in the final minute,” Batchler said. “They won two and we won two. I’m hoping we don’t have to go down to the last minute again this time.”