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Chiefs, Lions, Vikings in blanket charge to title |
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Published in Straus Newspapers week ending October 23 |
| Hopatcong moved into a half game lead in the race for the SCIL gridiron crown while Pope John and Vernon are tied for second. The Chiefs journey to Vernon on Saturday in a crucial clash while the Lions host winless Kittatinny. |
| Hopatcong thumped Jefferson 35-78 as Joe Martinek picked up 228 yards on the ground in 22 attempts, scoring twice on runs of 36 and 70 yards. Ian Evans completed two of five aerial attempts but they were good for TD strikes of 15 yards to Jon Stolarz and 24-yards to Joe Anthes who scored the final six-pointer on an 18 yard run in the fourth quarter. |
| Vernon was impressive in routing a good West Milford team from the Northern Hills Conference by a score of 42-6. Quarterback Dan Lisa was 9 for 16 through the air, throwing TD passes of 63 and 38 yards to Pete Tczap along with two-yard TD strikes to Mike Deutch and Mark Lisa. Tczap picked off a Highlander pass in the third quarter and returned it 52 yards to paydirt. Justin Gannon, who rushed 18 times for 114 yards, scored the final touchdown when he raced 15 yards into the end zone. Lisa and Tczap were chosen the co-SCIL Players of the Week. |
| Jeremy Tucker scored three times on runs of 1, 95 and 79 yards to ignite Pope John to a 28-0 win over Lenape Valley. Tucker carried 33 times, rushing for 341 yards while Eugene McGuire bolted eight yards into the end zone on his only touch of the game. |
| Sparta kept its slim hopes for a share of the SCIL title by defeating High Point 21-0. Ryan Skorupka provided the six-pointers as he took a screen pass from Tyler Reese and scramble 15 yards into the end zone in the second quarter. In the third quarter he padded the Spartan's advantage when he bolted 15 and 10 yards into the end zone. Alex Bortnichak split the uprights with three straight extra point placements. |
| Newton recorded its third "W" in SCIL competition by edging Kittatinny 18-12 in overtime. Steve Zander keyed the victory when he plunged one-yard into the end zone in the third quarter to rally the Braves form 1 12-0 halftime deficit. He deadlocked the contest at 12-12 when he fielded a punt on Newton's 10-yard line and raced 90 yards to paydirt with only 21 seconds remaining in the regulation clock. Scott Paul blasted one-yard into the end zone in overtime to lift the Braves to victory. |
| Wallkill Valley blanked North Warren of the Skyland Conference 17-0 as the Rangers "D" limited the Patriots to a mere 62 yards of total offense. J.J. Conrad, who toted the pigskin 38 times, rushing for 194 yards, put the Rangers in the board in the second quarter when he bolted two yards into the end zone. Conrad was selected the Independent Schools' Player of the Week by the Metropolitan New York Football Writers Association. Tyler Wenz booted the extra point and the split the uprights with a 22-yard field goal as the Rangers exited the field for the halftime break leading 10-0. Jeremy Singleton iced the victory when he recovered a fumble in the end zone in the fourth quarter. |
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SCIL title still up for grabs |
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Published in Straus Newspapers week ending October 16 |
| After three quarters, the scoreboard had no points and then Vernon exploded with 21 straight points to record a 21-7 victory over Sparta and remain in a tie for first place with Hopatcong in the SCIL standings. Dan Lisa tossed a 34-yard strike to Pete Tczap to open the scoring before Anthony Palmisano scooped up a fumble and raced 33 yards into the end zone. Justin Gannon then electrified the crowd with a 70-yard run to daylight while Ryan Anzelone converted all three extra point placements. Sparta got on the board in the waning moments when Tyler Reese connected with Derrick Freligh on a 14-yard TD pass. |
| Hopatcong blanked Kittatinny 20-0 as Joe Martinek toted the pigskin 21 times, churning out 228 yards rushing and scored all the touchdowns on runs of 70, 8 and 16 yards. |
| Junior tailback Jeremy Tucker powered Pope John to a 35-0 win over High point in Sparta as the Lions remained a half game behind Hopatcong and Vernon in the race for the SCIL crown. Tucker only carried 11 times but amassed 294 yards rushing, scoring on runs of 8, 16, 84 and 47 yards plus he returned the second half kickoff 92 yards as was chosen the sussexcountyinterscholasticleague.com/MNYFWA Player of the Week. |
| Newton recorded its second SCIL win of the season blanking Jefferson 21-0. |
| In a non-league confrontation, Joe Farruggia rushed for 112 yards and snapped a 7-7 deadlock when he bolted 46 yards to paydirt in the fourth as Lenape Valley defeated Wallkill Valley 17-7. Robbie Klinck iced the verdict when he split the uprights with a 41-yard field goal as the Patriots upped their overall record to 4-2 while the Rangers dropped to 3-2. Mike Groome opened the scoring for LVR when he blasted four yards into the end zone and J.J. Conrad tied the contest in the second quarter on a three-yard TD run. |
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Martinek propels Chiefs over Patriots |
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Published in Straus Newspapers week ending October 9 |
| With the inclement weather disrupting the schedule, Joe Martinek demonstrated that sloppy conditions do not halt outstanding running attacks as he led Hoaptcong to a 26-7 victory over Lenape Valley on Sunday in Stanhope. Martinek totted the pigskin 31 times, churning out 194 yards while scoring three times on runs of 13, 8 and 48 yards as the Chiefs defeated the Patriots for only the third time. |
| Hopatcong took a giant step in its quest to claim its first-ever SCIL title as Martinek was named the sussexcountyinterscholasticleague.com /MNYFWA Player of the Week. He bolted 13 yards into the end zone in the first quarter but LVR rallied to move in front 7-6 in the second quarter, Martinek's second six-pointer came later in the quarter as the Chiefs regained a 12-7 advantage by the halftime break. In the third quarter, quarterback Ian Evans, who connected on 2 of 3 aerial attempts, tossed a 17-yard TD strike to Scott Brown and Martinek raced three yards into the end zone for a two-point conversion to give the Chiefs a 20-6 lead. Martinek found a seam in the Patriots' defense and sprinted 48 yards to paydirt in the fourth quarter to lock up its fourth victory in five decisions. |
| Justin Gannon kept Vernon in a tie for first place when the senior tailback rushed 37 times for 230 yards, scoring on runs 2, 80 and 4 yards while T.J. Diggles blasted 13 yards into the end zone in the third quarter to open up a 28 point lead. Newton got on the board in the final quarter when Steve Zander found Sam Paul with a seven-yard TD pass to make the final score 28-6. |
| Pope John blanked Jefferson 35-0 to remain a half a game out of first. Junior tailback Jeremy Tucker scored four times on runs of 12, 55, 63 and 34 yards with sophomore fullback Connor McGrath adding a 31-yard TD run early in the second quarter. Linebackers Matt Dowling and Tim Lombreglia fueled the defensive effort with Dowling recording nine and two quarterback sacks. Lombreglia came up with six tackles, blocked a punt and intercepted a pass. |
| Brian Konopka scored from 10 yards out with 10 ticks remaining on the game clock to lift High Point to a 13-7 win over Kittatinny as the Wildcats claimed their first "W" of the campaign while the Cougars remained winless. Mike Collason put the Wildcats on the board in the second quarter when he plunged two yards into the end zone in the second quarter. Kittatinny knotted the score at 7-7 in the third quarter on a four-yard TD run by Chris Guidi. |
| Sparta held on for a 17-14 win over Lakeland in a non-league clash played in Sparta. Trailing 7-0, the Spartans got on the board in the opening quarter when halfback Danny D'Angelo flipped an option pass 35 yards to split end Derrick Freligh. Ryan Skorupka broke loose and raced 65 yards into the end zone in the second quarter before Alex Bortnichak split the upright with a 49-yard field goal that proved to be the winning points. Last year, Lakeland defeated the Spartans, once in the regular and later in the NJSIAA North Jersey, Section 1, Group III playoffs. |
| In the only local game played on Friday evening, Wallkill Valley blanked Hackettstown 7-0 after scoring on a 26-yard option pass from J.J. Conrad to Tyler Wenz in the first quarter. The entire game was played in a heavy downpour with strong winds that turned the playing field into a quagmire. |
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Zander sparks Braves to victory |
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Published in Straus Newspapers week ending October 2 |
| With senior Steve Zander turning in an all-around effort, Newton defeated High Point 28-21 at Palmer Field to experience the thrill of victory for the first time since opening day of the 2004 campaign. A quarterback/safety, Zander excelled on both sides of the ball and has been chosen the sussexcountyinterscholasticleague.com/MNYFWA Player of the Week. On defense, Zander picked off a Wildcat aerial while he sparked the attack, rushing 11 times for 60 yards including TD runs of 5, 17 and 11 yards. He also connected on nine of 23 aerial attempts for 152 yards. Newton surged to a 14-0 lead before High Point got on the board late in the opening quarter when Zander scored his first two six-pointers and Mike Diffen split the uprights with two of his four straight extra point placements. |
| Once again head coach Don Smolyn had his Patriots prepped for a successful showdown as LVR edged Vernon 14-13 to create a four-way tie for first place between Hopatcong, Lenape Valley, Sparta and Vernon with identical 3-1 records while Pope John is at 2-1. Robbie Klinck plunged two yards into the end zone to open the scoring in the second quarter and tossed an eight-yard TD strike to Joe Fritzky in the third quarter followed by a crucial two-point conversion pass to Dan Pregno. T.J. Diggles scored on runs of 1 and 2 yards for the Vikings. |
| Junior Joe Martinek toted the pigskin 21 times, churning out 166 yards rushing as Hopatcong knocked Sparta from the unbeaten ranks by a score of 21-7 in Hopatcong. The Cgiefs burst out to a 21-0 lead in the first quarter when Martienek sandwiched TD runs of 76 and one yard around 51-yard TD aerial from Ian Evans to Jon Stolarz. Ryan Skorupka bolted five yards into the end zone in the second quarter for the Spartans before the defensive stalwarts took over to produce a scoreless second half. Zak Rey recorded 12 tackles, Steve Hynson nine and Carlus Kuskus eight for the Chiefs. |
| Jefferson rallied to defeat Kittatinny 20-13 when quarterback B.J. Stokes blasted one yard into the end zone with 1:23 remaining on the game clock. With 30 ticks left in regulation, Matt Valentini picked off a Cougar aerial to lock up the victory. A four-yard TD strike from Stokes to Velentini opened the scoring in the first quarter and Stokes raced four yards to paydirt in the third quarter. Chris Carr ran nine yards and Chris Guidi busted two yards over the goal line for the Cougars. |
| In a non-league encounter in Union County, Pope John rolled to a 34-6 victory over Rahwah as Jeremy Tucker powered the Lions' attack, rushing for 204 yards on 26 carries as he scored three times on runs of 51, 5 and 77 yards. Quarterback Eugene McGuire hooked up with Bobby Russo on a 55-yard TD pass while Alan Iannacone bolted 24 yards to paydirt in the fourth quarter to complete the rout. |
| Wallkill Valley was no match for the Tornadoes of Orange as the Rangers were blanked 27-0 in another non-league confrontation played in Hardyston. J,J. Conrad picked up 130 yards for the Rangers on 31 carries. |
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Friday night in Vernon is the place to be |
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Published in Straus Newspapers week ending September 25 |
| It was interesting week on the local gridirons and this coming week’s schedule promises more excitement. Pope John’s junior tailback Jeremy Tucker scored six times while junior Joe Martinek became Hopatcong’s all-time leading rusher while Jefferson’s B.J. Stokes broke the SCIL record completions in a game when he connected on 29 of 44 aerial attempts for 366 yards. He also established a new SCIL career passing yardage mark of 2566 yards, erasing the old standard of 3460 set from 1992 to 1994 by Keith Johnson, a Falcon alumnus.In the closest vote ever, Stokes was chosen the sussexcountyinterscholasticleague.com/MNYFWA Player of the Week. |
| Was Vernon looking ahead to Friday night when the Vikings host Lenape Valley as Stokes’ effort left the Falcons one point short in a 20-19 loss to Vernon? |
| Sparta scored nine unanswered points in the fourth quarter to defeat LVR as Ryan Skorupka toted the pigskin 25 times, rushing for a game-high 160 yards including a 55-yard TD run in the first quarter that opened the scoring. |
| Tucker rushed for 329 yards as the Lions belted Newton 46-14. Tucker scored on suns of 17, 60 and 19 yards, hauled in a TD aerial of 48 yards from Eugene McGuire, returned a punt 65 yards to paydirt and scooped up a fumble that he returned 23 yards into the end zone. |
| It was a weekend to be remembered yet one that will be challenged by the events of this coming weekend. |
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Spartans and Patriots prep for "Prime Time" in Sparta on Saturday |
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Published in Straus Newspapers week ending September 18 |
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Vikings fortify favored status |
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Published in Straus Newspapers week ending September 11 |
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Can Anzelone kick Vikings to SCIL title? |
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By Dennis Wilson, President - Metropolitan New York Football Writers Association |
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2005 Straus Newspapers Pre-Season All Stars |
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(Selected by coaches and staff of newjerseyfootball.org) |
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Editor's Note: Wallkill Valley plays an independent schedule in football. |
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