Head coach John Tierney was 8 years old and in third grade the last time the Pinelands Regional football program won a division championship.
“I remember going to the Super Bowl earlier that year, because the Giants were playing in it, but I was far from being a football coach,” said Tierney, whose Wildcats knocked off Central Regional, 13-7, on Oct. 9, giving them at least a share of the Shore Conference B South division crown, their first title since 1987. “I hadn’t fallen in love with football yet. I didn’t even start playing travel basketball yet.”
Following three scoreless quarters between the Wildcats and Golden Eagles, Pinelands finally struck first, when junior running back R.J. Clark scored on a 41-yard run and Alex Hickey kicked the extra point for a 7-0 lead.
“It was a combination of relief and satisfaction for me because I was about to fire myself as offensive coordinator after going seven straight quarters in division championship games without us scoring a touchdown,” Tierney joked about the breakthrough against Central. “We knew it would be a slugfest. Central’s a good football program and well coached, so we knew it wouldn’t be easy.”
It wasn’t. The Golden Eagles scored later in the fourth quarter to tie the contest, the first touchdown the Wildcats’ defense had given up since the first game of the season.
“After five straight shutouts, it definitely was frustrating and a shock to our defense,” Tierney said. “But I said to them, ‘You had to realize that you’re going to give up a touchdown at some point. Now you have to respond.’ I got the response I wanted.”
Starting from their 17-yard line, the Wildcats were the recipients of a 15-yard facemask penalty before senior quarterback Jamie Jenkins fired two consecutive passes to senior wide receiver Anthony Bonds – one for 34 yards and the other for 31 yards – to land Pinelands on Central’s 3-yard line. Clark carried the ball into the end zone on the next play, giving the Wildcats a six-point lead with 31 seconds left.
Jenkins completed eight of 14 passes for 100 yards and rushed for 86 yards on 11 carries. Clark totaled 82 yards on 16 carries. Defensively, Montrell Carter had 13 tackles, including three for a loss and two sacks, and forced three fumbles, while Paul Veneri managed 10 tackles. Owen Taylor also had two sacks, while Bordy Rawa, Ralph Kline and Xavier Jones each registered a sack.
With the win, Pinelands improved to 7-0, the first time in program history the Wildcats have started the season with seven straight victories.
Pinelands will look to make it eight straight when it squares off with Barnegat on Friday, Oct. 16. Even though the teams aren’t in the same division, it’s still a rivalry clash, and Tierney expects host Barnegat to be a fierce opponent, especially since the Bengals lost their first game of the season last week and both teams are still in the NJSIAA South Jersey Group 3 playoff hunt.
THE LEADER: Pinelands Regional senior quarterback Jamie Jenkins delivered a pair of big passes to wide receiver Anthony Bonds to set up the winning touchdown on Oct. 9.
“History’s knocking on the door,” Tierney said. “If we can win this one, we have a shot to make the playoffs while being undefeated. But there’s still a ton of juice for this game coming up, even though we’re in different divisions. We have to keep our emotions in check and be disciplined. There’s a fine line between playing with emotion and letting it kill you.”
Beating the Bengals could deliver big power points as the Wildcats look to solidify their playoff position.
“Right now, we’re at the ninth seed. If we could get 31 power points, that may put us in the fifth spot,” Tierney said. “I’d love to have a home game for the playoffs. It would be only the second one in our history, so that would be nice for the kids and our fans.”
For at least the weekend, Tierney and the Wildcats were able to savor the division title, which they could win outright on Oct. 23 with a win over Toms River South.
“This year has been great,” Tierney said. “Saturday, I received an email from Vinnie Casale, welcoming me to ‘The Club of Two.’ He was the head coach in 1987, so for him to go out of his way to send me a message, that was cool and humbling. It’s an honor to be part of that club as the only head coaches to have a Pinelands team that won the division title.”
Southern Squad Gets Past Toms River North
The Southern Regional football team is still undefeated on its new home turf. The Rams erased a six-point deficit after the first quarter on Oct. 9, outscoring Toms River North, 20-6, during the last three quarters to score a 27-19 victory, improving to 6-1 on the season.
After defeating Central the week before, the Rams fell behind, 7-0, before senior quarterback Carson Abbato and senior wide receiver Chris Raub connected for a 78-yard touchdown pass and Levi Foote added the extra point to tie the contest in the first quarter. The Mariners added a touchdown later in the quarter but missed the extra point, giving them a 13-7 advantage.
In the second quarter, junior Niko Iliescu plowed into the end zone from 2 yards away to tie the game at 13-13. During the third quarter, Foote carried the ball into the end zone from 21 yards away, then added his second PAT to make it 20-13.
BIG MAN: Southern Regional senior Levi Foote carried the ball into the end zone twice during the second half against Toms River North on Oct. 9 to give the Rams a 27-19 victory.
North cut the lead to a point with another touchdown in the fourth quarter, but Foote capped the scoring when he first scored on a 19-yard touchdown run, then booted the extra point. Foote finished with 179 yards rushing on 16 carries.
Abbato completed 12 of 17 passes for 219 yards, including 117 to Raub, who snatched a pair of passes. Luke Iorio caught five passes for 59 yards as well. Defensively, Iliescu finished with 11 tackles and Foote delivered nine tackles and two sacks. Sawyer Grose recorded eight tackles, including two for a loss.
With the win, Southern launched into the second position within NJSIAA South Jersey Group 5. The Rams have two big, power-point games coming up during the final two weeks of the regular season: the first against undefeated Middletown North on Friday, Oct. 16; and the second on Oct. 23 against Brick Memorial. Both games are on the road.
Southern Girls Tennis Wins Three of Four
With the end of the season looming, the Southern Regional girls tennis team picked up three victories in four matches last week, including a solid win over Pinelands Regional to start the strong finish.
After getting knocked out of the state tournament the previous week, the Rams knocked off the Wildcats, 4-1, on Oct. 6. Abigail Krill won a 6-2, 6-1 decision over Alayna Ervin at first singles, while Brielle Hartley scored a 7-6 (7-4), 6-4 victory against Brooke Weissenburger to grab Pinelands’ only win of the match at second singles. Ashley Henderson ousted Sibylla Acosta, 6-0, 6-1, at third singles
The first doubles tandem of Sam Ditursi and Ava Sanzari came from behind to edge Emma Schoen and Lexus Crane, 2-6, 6-1, 10-6, and the second doubles duo of Ava Deidudicibus and Adison Parker also came from behind to beat Kelsey Wersinger and Addison Wild, 2-6, 6-4, 10-8.
Following a 3-2 loss to Egg Harbor on Oct. 7, during which both doubles teams won in straight sets, Southern rebounded the next day with a 5-0 drubbing of Howell. Krill won at first singles, 6-3, 6-1, while Weissenburger registered a 6-2, 6-4 win at second singles, and Henderson shut out her opponent at third singles. Sanzari and Ditursi won, 6-3, 6-4, at first doubles, and Parker and Deidudicibus won at second doubles, 6-1, 6-0.
On Oct. 9, the Rams cruised past Lacey, 5-0, as well. Krill ended with a 6-1, 6-1 decision, Weissenburger rolled to a 6-3, 6-0 victory, and Henderson was triumphant at third singles, 6-0, 6-2. Sanzari and Ditursi needed a third set to grab the win, 6-2, 4-6, 10-7, and Parker and Deidudicibus registered a 6-0, 6-3 win.
Barnegat Soccer Squads Bounce Back With Wins
After losing games earlier in the week, the Barnegat boys soccer team bounced back with two straight wins, and the Bengals’ girls squad also rebounded with two victories to finish last week’s action.
CLIMBING HIGHER: Southern Regional junior midfielder Brinley Reynolds scored twice during the Rams’ 5-2 win over Cumberland on Oct. 10, moving her into a tie for the career goals record with former star Megan Lockwood.
Following a 5-2 loss to Point Pleasant Beach to start the week on Oct. 5, the boys won their next three, each by a goal. Against Red Bank Regional on Oct. 7, Nate Scisco scored during the 50th minute to give the Bengals (11-4) a 1-0 win. Against Shore Regional, Scisco and Nelson Argueta-Cedillos each scored once and goalkeeper Ian Soberano made 14 saves for a 2-1 victory.
Meanwhile, the girls lost a 4-3 contest to Long Branch on Oct. 6, but edged New Egypt, 1-0, two days later as Cadence Melillo buried a pass from Avery Jastrzebski and keeper Ella Tortorici managed 11 saves. The next day against Donovan Catholic, Melillo scored twice and Emma Freitas and Jayla Duff each scored once to help lead the Bengals to a 4-2 win. Duff also had three assists, while Tortorici again made 11 saves.
Barnegat Field Hockey Crew Snaps Losing Skid
After going winless through its first 13 games, the Barnegat field hockey team picked up its first two wins of the season last week, getting by Lacey, 2-1, on Oct. 7, followed by a 4-1 win over Monmouth on Oct. 10.
Against the Lions, Natalie Janssen and Tristin Zalewski each scored and assisted on each other’s goals and goaltender Emery Dobbin secured five saves to give Barnegat its first win of the season. The Bengals (2-12-1) fell behind, 1-0 before scoring in the second and fourth quarters.
During the win over the Falcons, Barnegat scored three goals in the second period and added another goal in the third. Dobbin managed three saves, and Janssen scored twice and assisted on goals by Elayna Ordonez and Ella McMahon.
Reynolds Ties Career Goals Mark at Southern
Southern Regional’s Brinley Reynolds didn’t just have a big game with a pair of goals and two assists during a 5-2 victory over Cumberland on Oct. 10. The junior midfielder grabbed hold of the career points lead, while also tying former star Megan Lockwood’s career goals record.
After assisting on both goals by Riley Neyer during the first seven minutes of the contest, Reynolds buried a pass from Juliana Coleman during the 24th minute, then converted on an assist from Gianna Palaschak about five minutes later, giving Reynolds 43 goals for her career.
Brea Wagner scored unassisted three minutes into the second half to cap the Rams’ scoring. Jacklynn Donnelly made three saves in goal, as Southern (7-6-1) outshot Cumberland, 24-5.
