South Jersey high school football roundup for Week 5
Mason Widman's fourth-quarter touchdown was the difference as the visiting Gloucester High School football team knocked off defending state Group 1 champion Woodbury, 14-8, on Saturday.
Down 8-6 going into the final quarter, Widman rumbled 15 yards for the score and added the two-point conversion to thwart the Thundering Herd, who have lost back-to-back games for the first time since 2020.
Gloucester, winners of four straight, cut an early deficit to 8-6 when Jake Seibert connected with Justin Frazer on a 31-yard scoring strike in the first quarter.
The Lions' defense held its opponents to one score for the third consecutive game. Jake Zearfoss iced Saturday's victory with a pick in the game's final minute of play.
Penns Grove 22, Paulsboro 19: The Red Devils scored 22 unanswered points over the final 16 minutes en route to a home victory while keeping the Raiders winless on the season.
Bryce Wright rushed for a pair of touchdowns as Penns Grove cut the deficit to 19-14 with 2:54 left in the fourth quarter.
Jaden Days caught the decisive touchdown with a leaping grab in the end zone with 1:14 left in regulation.
Paulsboro, which fell to 0-5, appeared to on its way to that elusive first victory early in the game as Keros Cooper ran for two touchdowns and Jeremiah Carr had a pick-6 to close out the first half for a 19-0 lead.
Willingboro 24, Eastside 20: Lamar Best threw for a score and rushed for another as the Chimeras earned an upset win over on the Tigers' home turf.
Willingboro overcame two deficits to earn their third straight win.
Best's 4-yard touchdown run gave the Chimeras a 24-14 lead with eight minutes left, but the Tigers clawed their way back into the game when Marshall Washington Jr. hauled in a touchdown pass from Nazir Flack with three minutes to play.
Willingboro's Ray'Mir Johnson locked the victory up with an interception in the closing minute.
Audubon 13, Overbrook 0: The Green Wave posted their second shutout of the season, silencing the Rams despite a milestone by quarterback DeAngello Conquest.
Jake Holland's interception highlighted Audubon's defensive performance while Luke Hoke rushed for 234 yards and a score.
Conquest finished with 98 yards on 13-of-26 passing for 98 yards, raising his career total to an unofficial 6,049. He has 57 career TD passes.
If he reaches 6,000 and 60, Conquest would become the seventh QB in South Jersey history to achieve the feat, according Langerman. He would join Timber Creek’s Devin Leary, Pennsville’s Dylan Cummings, Cedar Creek’s Jesse Milza, Camden’s Khalil Williams and Eastside’s Devin Kargman and Nick Kargman.
Camden 41, Haddon Heights 0: Junior quarterback Mahki Brunson completed 12-of-14 passes for 245 yards and four touchdowns as the Panthers polished off their fifth straight win. Camden scored all of its points in the first half. Brunson also added 71 rushing yards and a touchdown on seven carries.
Cherry Hill East 41, Palmyra 0: Denzel Lee rushed for three touchdowns, Jaxson Bowman caught a pair of TD passes from Zach Salsbery and Aidan Haddock had a pick-6 on defense to highlight the Cougars' lopsided victory.
Atlantic City 51, Egg Harbor Township 12: Joe Lyons threw for 251 yards and two touchdowns and Dre Brooks rushed for a pair of scores as the Vikings overcame a 7-0 deficit on the game's first play from scrimmage to roll to a road victory.
Gloucester Catholic 7, Wildwood 0
Sunday's game
Wall 20, Middle Township 14: The Panthers’ five-game unbeaten streak came to an end on the road. Remi Rodriguez rushed for 132 yards and a touchdown while Mark Oliver connected with Mike Zarfati for another score to pace Middle, which was trying to go 6-0 for the first time since 1956.
Monday's game
Mainland 58, Bridgeton 0
Friday's games
The Paul VI High School football team kept its winning streak intact while ending Moorestown's Friday night.
Matt Morad returned a fumble 30 yards to the house on the first play of the game and set the tone for the Eagles' 17-10 win at Moorestown in a key West Jersey Football League National Division contest.
Paul VI ran its winning streak to four while Moorestown failed to win for the first time in five weeks.
The Eagles retained sole possession of the National Division penthouse, one game ahead of Seneca, Moorestown and Northern Burlington.
Tyree Roane's 3-yard touchdown run gave the Eagles (4-1) a 14-0 in the opening quarter and they led 17-0 going into the fourth.
The Quakers (4-2) managed to make things interesting late on a Chase Caulder 42-yard TD reception from John Zohlman followed by an Elias Diamantakos 28-yard field goal.
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St. Augustine 24, Shawnee 21: Paris Pratt caught a game-winning 10-yard touchdown pass from Ryan Gambill with 33 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter to help propel St. Augustine (4-2) past Shawnee (3-3). It was the second touchdown pass that Pratt caught from Gambill on the evening.
The game was a back-and-forth battle from start to finish. Shawnee went up early and led 6-0 after the first quarter following a Tyler Nickles 10-yard catch from Joe Papa. St. Augustine then scored 14 unanswered after a Julian Turney 1-yard run and a Pratt 36-yard score from Gambill. The Hermits led 14-6 through three quarters.
Papa opened the fourth with a 1-yard TD run and the game was tied 14-14 following a successful two-point conversion. Hermits’ kicker Antonio Freund then put his team up 17-14 with a 29-yard field goal.
Liam Gilmore answered with a go-ahead 30-yard TD reception from Papa to put the Renegades back on top 21-17 with 1:08 to go, but St. Augustine took the final lead of the game just 35 seconds later.
Millville 26, Lenape 3: Millville High School cut the ribbon on the remodeled John Barbose Stadium at Wheaton Field on Friday night and the Thunderbolts continued the celebration with a triumph over Lenape.
The defense dominated as they had seven sacks, including four by Tayshun Newman, and Kyon Conyers put a punctuation on the victory with a 23-yard pick-6. They allowed just six first downs, and four of those were because of penalties.
Demere White finished with 10 carries for 110 yards and a touchdown, Lotzeir Brooks had 5 receptions for 89 yards, including a 45-yard TD from Ta’Ron Haile, and Shemar Collins added a scoring run.
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Deptford 27, Collingswood 14: CJ Carter threw for two touchdowns, ran for a third score and picked off a pass on defense as the Spartans earned their first win of the season on the road against Collingswood.
Carter's second TD pass came off a fake punt in the second half, connecting with Cayden Roane for a 40-yard score.
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Cherokee 34, Williamstown 0: Ryan Bender ran for a pair of touchdowns and threw for two more – one to Trent Osborn and another to Tommy Pajic – as Cherokee dominated on its home turf. Pajic also kicked two field goals as Cherokee improved to 4-1 while Williamstown fell to 0-6.
Holy Spirit 24, Clearview 0: Christian Surles scored a touchdown in the first half and Jaevien Swain had two second-half TDs as the Spartans improved to 5-1. This was the first time the Pioneers (2-3) were shut out this season.
Kingsway 28, Eastern 21: With the score tied 21-21 late in the fourth quarter, Eastern had a first-and-goal inside the Kingsway 5-yard line, but fumbled the ball and the Dragons recovered. Kingsway appeared to return the fumble for a touchdown, but there was a flag on the play and the score was called back. The Dragons (4-2) went on to score first in overtime and their defense held strong on the ensuing Eastern possession to secure the victory.
Winslow 40, Ocean City 6: Deante Ruffin had a hand in all six of Winslow’s touchdowns – four passing and two rushing – to help the Eagles win their fifth straight and improve to 5-1 on the year. Cam Miller caught two of Ruffin’s touchdown passes while Jaylen Hornsby and Nyqir Helton each caught one. Ocean City’s lone touchdown came in the third quarter when Jon Moyer caught a 38-yarder from Walker Bailey.
Oakcrest 22, Absegami 13: Donovan Linthicum and Jamad Davis each had a rushing touchdown and Asad Hunt caught a 9-yard touchdown pass from Marcus Lee to help the Falcons even their record at 3-3. Absegami (2-4) scored both of its touchdowns on special teams – the first being a 35-yard Sherwood Cross fumble-six on a punt return and the other a Donald Johnson 95-yard kick return. Oakcrest’s defense also forced a safety.
Pennsauken 35, Delran 14: Elijah Jennings had four touchdowns as Pennsauken improved to 4-1 on the season while Delran dropped to 3-3. The game was fairly close throughout as Pennsauken led 21-14 through the three quarters before putting up 14 unanswered in the final frame.
Hammonton 21, Rancocas Valley 6: Kenny Smith had rushing touchdowns of 39, 33 and 20 yards to pace the Blue Devils, who are now 4-2 on the year. The Red Devils' Jameer Bellamy scored the game’s first touchdown on a 42-yard run early in the opening quarter, but it was all Hammonton from that point on.
Glassboro 16, Clayton 8: Amari Sabb ran in both the game-winning touchdown and the two-point conversion with 3:24 to go as the Bulldogs sank the Clippers. Glassboro’s Davon Barr registered the first touchdown of the game on a 17-yard run late in the second quarter. Clayton’s Isaac Taylor recorded his team’s lone touchdown on a 1-yard run with 8:10 to go in the fourth quarter – a TD that temporarily tied the game at 8-8. Both teams are now 3-2.
Haddonfield 35, West Deptford 0: Declan McCarthy ran in two touchdowns and threw one to Patrick Ryan to help the Haddons remain undefeated at 5-0. Charlie Klaus and Dom Hahn both had rushing touchdowns and the Haddonfield defense posted its first shutout this season.
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Riverside 46, Bishop Eustace 8: Justin Mary and John Boston scored two rushing touchdowns apiece as the Rams continued their historic season and improved to 4-1. Anthony Schippnick also scored a TD for Riverside, while Eustace dropped its record to 3-3.
Woodstown 27, Salem 0: Bryce Belinfanti ran in three touchdowns (48, 17 and 16 yards) as Woodstown improved to 4-1. Bobby Donahue capped off the scoring with a 1-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter as the Wolverines defense earned its first shutout of the year. Salem drops to 0-6 with the loss.
Washington Township 28, Vineland 7: Washington Township (4-2) scored 28 unanswered points after falling behind 7-0 to take down Vineland (1-4). The Fighting Clan's Mason Afanador caught a 41-yard touchdown from Tyrell Powell to open the scoring.
Northern Burlington 24, Triton 7: Andrew Reynolds had rushing touchdowns of 42 and 4 yards as the Greyhounds (4-2) ran past Triton (3-3). Jordan Wilkerson added a 7-yard TD grab from Ronnie Borden for the victors and Tim Willever booted a 27-yard field goal. Triton’s lone score came on a Jayden Menk 1-yard run in the third quarter.
Keyport 39, Gateway 6: The Gators (1-4) lost their fourth straight against a tough Shore Conference opponent. Keyport is now 5-1 on the year.
Pennsville 25, Cumberland 12: The Eagles (3-2) got back over .500 while Cumberland fell to 2-4.
Keansburg 27, Haddon Township 7: The Hawks kept it close early and trailed just 10-7 at the half, but it was all Keansburg following the break as the Titans scored 17 unanswered to close out the game.
Delsea 25, Burlington Township 13: Wayne Adair scored two touchdowns and Daniel Russo had one as the Crusaders took down the Falcons. Delsea (4-1) has now won three straight while Burlington Township (2-4) has dropped four in a row.
Cinnaminson 33, Bordentown 6: The Pirates improved to 6-0 in dominating fashion and Bordentown (2-4) lost its second straight game.
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Seneca 34, Cherry Hill West 0: The Golden Eagles posted their second shutout of the season and improved to 5-1 in convincing fashion. Seneca has won its past two games by a combined total of 69-6. Cherry Hill West hasn’t won a game yet this season and is 0-6 on the year.
Camden Catholic 58, Sterling 0: The Irish posted their first shutout of the season and improved to 2-3 on the year. Sterling (1-5) has now lost five in a row since its Week 1 win over Lindenwold.
Burlington City 38, New Egypt 0: Burlington City (4-2) recorded its third shutout of the season with the victory. The Blue Devils have beaten their last two opponents by a total score of 89-0. New Egypt drops to 2-4 with the defeat.
Princeton 29, Holy Cross 0: The Lancers failed to put up points for the first time this year and fell to 2-3 with the loss. Princeton is now 4-2 and has posted two straight shutout victories.
Tom McGurk is a regional sports reporter for the Courier-Post, The Daily Journal and Burlington County Times, covering South Jersey sports for over 30 years. If you have a sports story that needs to be told, contact him at (856) 486-2420 or email tmcgurk@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @McGurkSports. Help support local journalism with a digital subscription.
This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: South Jersey high school football roundup for Week 5
