9-19-17 Issue - 17 Volume IX Shore Sports Network Journal

S e p t e mb e r 19, 2 01 7 Vo l um e -I X I s s u e -1 7

The first thing fans, players, coaches & parents want to know after the big game is always,

”Is this going to be on ?”

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n Get Video Highlights of all the important games that Shore Conference fans will be talking about. n Catch up on the action you might have missed n Watch video clips of everything from the action early in the event to the big finish as well as video interviews with various athletes. n www.shoresportsnetwork.com is the most visited sports site in the Shore Conference during the scholastic year n Follow us on Twitter (over 16,000 followers) and Facebook, we keep fans posted on the latest scores and news

n Established leading portal for local high school coverage.

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Call TODAY for more Info 7832-233-4460 VOLUME-IX

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9/19/17

An Amazing Chapter Added to the Ron Brooks Story

By Kevin Willams - Shore Sports Network Director

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he story of Ron Brooks would make for a good book or movie. Here are some of the story lines:

• Born three months premature, weighed just one pound with deformed legs that did not have tibia or femur bones.

• Given up for adoption and raised in an orphanage in Philadelphia that took care of physically and developmentally disabled children.

• At the age of 10 had both his legs amputated.

• While on a summer retreat in Brick met a family who would eventually adopt him. Attended Brick Township High School where he was a member of the wrestling team, chorus and radio station. Went on to earn the distinguished rank of Eagle Scout…the first double amputee in the history of the Boy Scouts to do so.

• Graduated from Brick in 1985 and then went on to Villanova University where he majored in communications and later graduated.

• Invited to the White House where he met President George H.W. Bush.

• Always had a love for music and has sung with many local artists and bands including his childhood idol Stevie Wonder and Bruce Springsteen. His powerful rendition of the National Anthem is a staple at sporting events throughout the state and brings many to tears.

• Has fought his share of health problems along the way which have taken away his once very developed upper body and now confine him to a wheelchair.

mentioned I earlier that Brooks wrestled for the Green Dragons when he was more and mobile wrestling is a sport that not only he loves but loves him back. That was on display September 17 when the 51year old was honored by the New Jersey Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fa m e a t t h e i r h o n o r s b a n q u e t i n P r i n c e t o n .

Brooks received the Medal of Coura ge which will earn him permanent recognition at the Hall of Fame in Still wa ter, Oklahoma. It’s an honor well deser ved and the latest chapter in a truly amazing stor y.

• Works in customer care and communications at Wal-Mart in Brick and also appears as a motivational speaker.

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very week this regular season, Jersey Mike’s and Shore Sports Network will be selecting a Team of the Week based on its performance over the past weekend.

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he Jersey Mike’s Team of the Week for Week 2 is Howell, which defeated Freehold, 55-35, in a wild Class A North game between top-10 teams that featured over 1,100 yards of offense. The Rebels and head coach Luke Sinkhorn were presented with a special game ball and a $500 Jersey Mike’s gift card.

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Howell-55 F r e e h o l d -35

Howell entered the game ranked No. 5 in the Shore Sports Network Top 10, while Freehold came in at No. 7. Senior wide receiver and defensive back Ryan Mazik caught four passes for 153 yards and a touchdown, and also returned an interception 45 yards for a touchdown. Senior running back Nick Chambers ran for 164 yards and two touchdowns and senior quarterback Eddie Morales threw for 180 yards and two touchdowns. Howell’s defense forced five turnovers, including interceptions returned for touchdowns by Mazik

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he Jersey Mike’s Team of the Week for Week 1 is Long Branch, which defeated Manasquan, 28-19, to make a strong statement in its opening game.

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Week-1 9/8/I7

The Green Wave and head coach Danny George were presented with a special game ball at practice by Shore Sports Network’s Steve Meyer. The program was also presented with a $500 Jersey Mike’s gift card.

Long Branch-28 M a n a s q u a n -19

Senior wide receiver T.J. Fosque caught six passes for 178 yards and three touchdowns, senior quarterback Juwan Wilkins threw for 227 yards and

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and senior Naseim Brantley, the latter of whom ran it back 94 yards for a score.

The Rebels needed all of those turnovers to negate a record-setting night by Freehold quarterback Ashante Worthy, who ran for 338 yards and threw for 286 yards for a combined total of 624 yards.

Howell made waves last season by going 6-5 and reaching the semifinals of the NJSIAA South Jersey Group IV playoffs.

They went on the road and beat fourth-seeded Vineland, 2927, in a first-round thriller for the program’s first playoff victory since 2009, and with a large group of key players returning, the Rebels earned the No. 5 ranking in the Shore to start the season. So far Howell has lived up to the billing with a 2-0 record behind an offense that is averaging 44.5 points per game.

Howell has another challenging game against a ranked opponent this week when it hosts No. 10 Middletown North on Saturday night.

sophomore running back Jermaine Corbett added a touchdown run to lead Long Branch past defending Central Jersey Group II champion Manasquan in a key Class B North game to open the season.

Long Branch finished 2-8 last year, but with a senior-laden group of skill players returning for the 2017 season, the Green Wave had high hopes to reemerge as a championship contender. They were impressive in summer 7-on-7 tournaments, including winning the Shore Conference 7-on-7 championship, and in Week 1 proved they will be a factor in the deep and competitive Class B North division.

Long Branch also jumped into the Shore Sports Network Top 10 this week at No. 8. The Green Wave have a bye in Week 2, and will return to action on Saturday, Sept. 23 at Colts Neck.

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he Jersey Mike’s Game of the Week returns to the Shore Sports Network this fall with the regular season broadcast schedule to begin on Friday, September 8 when defending state sectional champion Wall faces Ocean in a Class B North matchup.

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The game will mark the head coaching debut of Wall’s Tony Grandinetti, who was an assistant on the team when they captured the South Jersey Group III title last December.

Jersey Mike’s Subs is the title sponsor of the game broadcasts and will also sponsor the popular Team of the Week program throughout the season.

The schedule includes a weekly Friday night broadcast, a special Saturday night edition in week 3 when Central hosts Jackson Memorial and the annual Thanksgiving Day meeting between rivals Manasquan and Wall. As in the past, coverage will include NJSIAA Playoff games right through to championship weekend in early December. All games can be heard on Beach Radio 1160 & 1310 and will be streamed live on shoresportsnetwork.com and through the new Shore Sports Network app.

Matt Harmon is back as the play-by-play voice of the game broadcasts and will be joined by longtime partners Kevin Williams and Ed Sarluca. The trio have been together for nearly 20 years calling Shore Conference football games in Ocean and Monmouth County.

(7pm)

Fri

Sept 22

Donovan Catholic

at

Point Boro

Thr

Sept 28

TR North

at

Howell

Fri

Oct 6

Central

at

Brick Memorial

(7pm)

Fri

Oct 13

Howell

at

Manalapan

(7pm)

Fri

Oct 20

Middletown South

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TR North

(7pm)

Fri

Oct 27

Central

at

Brick

(7pm)

Fri

Nov 3

TBD

Thr

Nov 23

Manasquan

at

Wall

(11a)

NJSIAA Playoffs

(6:30pm)

TBD

Schedule is subject to change Engineer/Producer: Brad Burascano All games broadcast on 1160/1310AM and those in YELLOW will also be simulcast on 92.7 WOBM. All streamed live at shoresportsnetwork.com and on the FREE Shore Sports Network App.

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very week this regular s eason, Shore Conference Soccer fans will have their chance to vote for the Shore Sports Network Soccer Player of the Week on our website, with tens of thousands of votes cast already.

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ne of 10 new starters on the defending NJSIAA Non-Public A champion, Bellomo and his teammates are off to a fast start as varsity newcomers. CBA’s 4-0 start includes three wins in Class A North play, but the most noteworthy win came on S a t u r d a y S e p t . 1 6 th a g a i n s t P e d d i e .

In that game, CBA trailed Peddie 2-0 in the second half and rallied to win the game thanks to a breakout performance by Bellomo. The junior scored the first two goals of his varsity career as part of the comeback, including the golden goal in overtime. Bellomo was also active in a 2-0 win over Howell on Tuesday despite not breaking into the scoring column.

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Christan Brothers Academy’s

Dominic Bellomo

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Bellomo won the first Player of the Week vote of the season with 37 percent of the more than 45,000 VOTES CAST. He beat out Pinelands junior Dom Dos Santos, who collected 30 percent of the vote.

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Soccer Top Ten

By Matt Manley - Senior Staff Writer

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7. Middletown North (4-1, 2-1) Preseason Rank: Not ranked

he Shore had the look of a parity-riddled conference heading into the 2017 campaign and it has lived up to that classification in nearly every way imaginable. With nearly two whole weeks passing between the Shore Sports Network Preseason Top 10 and this latest installment, there were bound to be some significant changed to the field, but the changes still looks jarring compared to where things were on opening day.

Only four unbeaten teams are left: only one of them was ranked in the preseason top 10 and two of them have not yet played five games. Among the top 10 teams from the preseason only five survived to see to top 10 again this week, with the pool of unranked preseason teams producing five ranked teams this week and two in the top five.

These lists tend to stabilize over the course of the year, but given some of the names that dropped out of the top 10 this week, it’s likely stability won’t be a characteristic of this year’s Shore Conference regular season, save for maybe one or two teams.

The Lions graduated eight starters from last year’s sectional finalist squad, but have jumped on the back of senior Liam McGregor to start the season 4-1. An ugly 4-0 loss to Long Branch notwithstanding, Middletown North has started strong against good competition, picking up quality wins over Westfield, Wall and Manalapan. With two of those wins coming against teams outside of B North, Middletown North has probably done more than any team in the Shore Conference to bolster the profile of their division.

8. Rumson-Fair Haven (4-0, 2-0) Preseason Rank: Not ranked The Bulldogs don’t have any wins that jump off the page, but they are one of the four remaining unbeaten teams in the Shore Conference and have not had to sweat too much in picking up their four wins. Rumson will have a chance to make a big splash on Wednesday, when the Bulldogs travel to play No. 1 Holmdel.

9. Freehold Boro (3-3, 2-2) Preseason Rank: Not ranked While the Colonials are only .500 and still might have some consistency issues to iron out, they have proved that their ceiling is as high as any public school team in Class A North. The Colonials took down Colts Neck on opening day and just bulldozed preseason No. 4 Ocean, 5-1, on Saturday. Blowing a 2-0 lead in a last-minute loss to Manalapan hurt their potential to climb for now and a 4-1 loss to Jackson Memorial could be an anchor for the Colonials and other A North teams when it comes time to seed the SCT.

10. Ocean (3-1, 3-0) Preseason Rank: 4 1. Holmdel (5-0, 4-0) Preseason Rank: 1 The Hornets have been as good as advertised so far, outscoring opponents 26-3 during a 5-0 start. The competition has been modest early on, but will pick up this week with a home game under the lights against perennial Group IV contender Monroe as well as a showdown with undefeated Rumson-Fair Haven in a rematch of the Central Jersey Group II semifinals from a year ago.

The Spartans walked the tightrope in their first three games of the season and in the fourth, the rope gave way.

Ocean needed late goals to beat Long Branch, Monmouth and Manasquan – all solid teams – before swallowing a 5-1 loss to Freehold Boro on Saturday. That’s not a losing score that one would find on many top-10 resumes, but the win over Long Branch keeps Ocean in the top 10 for the time being.

2. Christian Brothers Academy (5-1, 4-0) Preseason Rank: 5 Despite suffering their first loss of the season on Saturday, the Colts have a strong case to be the No. 1 team.

Had they pulled off an upset against St. Benedict’s over the weekend, they would have earned the billing and with wins over Peddie, Freehold Boro and Colts Neck so far, it’s not hard to argue they have already earned it. With that being said, Holmdel entered the season No. 1 and has performed as well as possible, plus CBA has a loss – albeit an excusable one. We’ll check back on these two next week.

3. Pinelands (5-0, 4-0) Preseason Rank: Not ranked From unranked to No. 3 in the Shore, Pinelands climbs to a place in the rankings that is uncharted for the program.

The Wildcats are one of four undefeated teams remaining in the Shore Conference and outside of Holmdel, they have been the most impressive of the bunch. Pinelands scored resounding wins over Lakewood and Point Boro and also edged Southern in overtime. The parity-filled conference certainly opens the door for a team like Pinelands to step through, but the Wildcats have looked as solid as any team outside the top two.

4. Jackson Memorial (4-1, 3-1) Preseason Rank: Not ranked It has been a while since Jackson Memorial has had so few seniors in its lineup, but it has not slowed the Jaguars down to this point. They have not given up more than one goal in any game and have pitched shutouts in three of their four wins. Jackson has wins over Toms River South and Freehold Boro, both of which appear in this week’s top 10 and both of which the Jaguars beat by more than a one-goal margin.

5. Toms River South (3-1, 3-1) Preseason Rank: 2 In their lone loss of the season, the Indians outplayed Jackson Memorial over the first 70 minutes before a controversial foul call set up the winning free kick, followed by a tack-on goal. Outside of that loss, Toms River South has outscored its opponents 15-1, which is noteworthy considering the Indians lost a lot of scoring from last year’s NJSIAA Group III runner up team.

6. Long Branch (4-1, 2-1) Preseason Rank: 6 Long Branch’s only loss was an overtime defeat at the hands of Ocean in which the Green Wave outshot the Spartans 18-7. Since that loss, Venancio Fernandes has begun to find his scoring touch, scoring four goals in each of Long Branch’s last two games after scoring none over the first three.

With a dominant performance in a 4-0 win over Middletown North, the Green Wave proved to be a topfive caliber team that will be in the mix throughout the year.

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Dominant Second Half Paces Freehold Twp. to Win Over Wall in Battle for No. I

By Matt Manley - Senior Staff Writer

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t’s not hard to find Shore Conference teams ranked among the top 20 in the state and Freehold Township ran into three of them in eight days. Now that the Patriots made it through that stretch, they have made the point that when it comes to the Shore Conference, they are the team to beat.

After trailing Wall, the No. 2 team in the latest NJ.com rankings, at halftime, No. 3 Freehold Township scored three second-half goals to storm past the Crimson Knights, 3-1, for their fifth straight win to open the season.

“We’ve shown the last few games that we can take it up another level,” Freehold Township coach Dave Patterson said. “It’s just been building since (Saturday against Shore Regional). These girls are spent after a three-game week and four games in eight days and that’s a tough think to do, but the adrenaline kept them going today.”

Senior Paige Farrell converted the penalty kick that gave Freehold Township the lead in the 66th and had a hand in the two other Patriots goals by seniors Laura Noseworthy and Jada Colbert.

Freehold Twp. FR. Gabby Zuczek Neck, which opened the season nationally-ranked and No. 3 in N.J. The Patriots scored three goals in each of the three games against the ranked opponents and put up seven in both of their other wins, which came against Class A North opponents Neptune and Howell.

With her team down 1-0 in the 50th minute, Farrell served the ball toward the near corner of the six-yard box, where Jasmine Colbert just barely got her head on it to flick the ball toward the mouth of the goal. Noseworthy beat a defender to it and poked it past Wall goalkeeper Guilianna Cavazzoni. Just seconds before the ball made its way out to Farrell on the right flank, Jada Colbert ripped a shot from the right side square off the crossbar.

“This is to prepare for further in the season and postseason,” Farrell said. “We need to know we can play big games like this and we know this isn’t the best we

can be. We just need to grow from these games in the beginning of the season.

Freehold applied pressure on the Wall defense throughout the second half and it finally paid off in a lead when sophomore Athena Giannakouros drew a foul inside the 18yard box in the 66th minute to set up Farrell’s penalty strike.

Jada Colbert capped the scoring in the 75th minute by running onto a ball from Farrell and drilling it off Cavazzoni and in.

Wall grabbed a 1-0 lead in the ninth minute thanks to a leftfooted strike by Amy Paternoster off a feed from senior Cara Capra.

Freeho ld Twp. sR From there, Freehold Township established control, building up a steady stream of runs at the Wall net over the course of the next 70 minutes. After outshooting the Crimson Knights 72 in the first half, Freehold Township owned a 12-1 advantage in shots in the second half.

Paige Farrell

“While didn’t play poorly early, we didn’t have the energy, we didn’t have the intensity that I know we’re capable of,” Patterson said. “From the first whistle of the second half, they just showed that they wanted it more than they did in the first half. I think that made the difference, honestly.”

Wall’s one second half chance was a dangerous one. Shortly after Farrell gave Freehold Township the 2-1 lead, the Crimson Knights earned a free kick from 25 yards out. Senior Hailee Reinhardt took the free kick and hammered it off the bottom of the crossbar, but her Knights teammates could not swoop in for a successful rebound attempt before the Patriots defense fought off the threat.

The goal Saturday was Jada Colbert’s fifth in five games, which trails only her twin sister, Jasmine, for the team lead. Jasmine Colbert scored seven goals in the first four games.

Noseworthy has also been a steady scorer with four goals, giving the Patriots 16 goals of the team’s 23 goals through three players.

“They (the twins) are our main (players) but we have others that work around them, which is really special about our team,” Farrell said. “We’re not two players – we’re a team, which is what we focus on throughout our season.”

Patterson said his team did not play encouraging soccer in the preseason, but with four games in eight games with three against state-ranked opponents, the Patriots showed they have all the pieces in place to perform when it counts. The run started with a hard-fought, 3-2 win over two-time defending Group I champion Shore Regional in which Noseworthy scored the winning goal later.

It continued Tuesday with a resounding 3-0 win over defending Shore Conference Tournament champion Colts

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& Photos by:

Matt Manley

www.shoresportsnetwork.com

“We just never put our heads down, which is what we needed to do,” Farrell said. “Our main focus is on the team and we never get down on each other.”

“We know how good of a player Amy is and we know how good of a team Wall is,” Patterson said. “We had a little bit of a breakdown and obviously, if you give Amy Paternoster an opportunity, she’s going to bury it.”

Freehold Twp. SR. Jasmine Colbert

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A

By Matt Manley - Senior Staff Editor

s Good as Advertised:

and yet all three have jumped on board and contributed early one without disrupting the rapport that the returning players established last season.

No. 1 Holmdel Off to Torrid Start

Talent is the reason the Holmdel boys soccer team entered the season as the No. 1 team in the Shore Sports Network Top 10 and talent is a leading factor why the Hornets have started the 2017 season 5-0, effectively living up to the expectations as much as is possible in the five games.

Those first five games, however, have been more than just wins. Holmdel has outscored its opposition 26-3 and has been coasting through the finish line in each game. In each of the last four games, Holmdel has scored at least five goals.

On arguably the most talented roster in the Shore Conference, junior Anthony Arena has been the clear standout player. He posted hat tricks in back-toback games against Red Bank Regional and Woodbridge, scored two in the first half in a 5-0 win over Matawan, then threw up another hat trick in a 6-1 win over Shore Regional.

"It's definitely a big help because having that caliber of a player, you get them the ball and they get you the ball," Arena said. "That's just how it works and when you have everybody going around you, it's just easier and a lot more fun too."

Sr. Justin M c Stay

For Arena, it was all part of the long game and part of the reason his team has clicked so seamlessly early in the season.

"It's obviously good to come together as a team and have all this talent around you," Arena said. "But the chemistry is the most important thing, in my opinion."

The early-season chemistry the Hornets have shown is especially noteworthy considering how many of their prominent contributors were not on the team last year. Seniors Justin McStay, Cyrus Darvish and Matt Leon all opted to play for their academy teams last year in lieu of high school soccer

Jr. Anthony Arena

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Now back as a senior, McStay has notched four goals in five games, including one in Tuesday's win over the Huskies.

With Arena scoring left and right, McStay has taken to setting up his teammates, racking up six assists total and five in the last two games.

Sr. Cyrus Darvish Darvish and Leon have also thrived with the high school team, which they left following their freshman seasons. Both newcomers have contributed three goals and four assists through five games.

Arena currently sits second in the Shore Conference with 11 goals and might have had a shot at four consecutive hat tricks had head coach John Nacarlo not decided to pull him with Holmdel already up 4-0 in the Matawan win.

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In McStay's case, the transition has been an easy one because he already was a significant part of Holmdel's NJSIAA Group II runner-up team as a sophomore in 2015.

That year, he led the team with eight goals while playing only about half the season as a forward after beginning it as a central defender.

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The Hornets are also getting steady play from returning starters like senior Mikey Neff, junior Torre Avitabile, junior Joe Arena, sophomore Mark Walier, junior Mark McStay, junior Nick Russo and senior Nick Guga. They have also been strong in goal, with both senior returning starter Jack Murray and upstart senior Matt Lionette proving capable in the net so far.

While Holmdel has had no trouble through five games, the schedule could present some concerns for their long-term prospects. The Hornets were set to play perennial Group IV contender Monroe on Monday, but the death of Holmdel junior lacrosse player Jack Dowd over the weekend, which prompted the cancellation of after school activities for Monday.

The schedule still gets harder with undefeated Rumon-Fair Haven visiting Holmdel and the two meetings with the Bulldogs should give the Hornets a taste of the postseason intensity. The Shore Conference Tournament will boast battle-tested teams from Class A North and A South, while Delran is a top-five team in the state that resides in the same NJSIAA group as Holmdel.

"The most important thing is to stay focused," Arena said. “We have our captains to keep us in line if we're goofing off.

That's the most important thing: staying focused and worrying about the next game."

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its three opponents 8-1 and Pinelands doing so 12-2.

urprise!:

Pinelands & Jackson Memorial Surge Out of the Gate in 2017

Matt O'Connell of Pinelands and Mike Schoener of Jackson Memorial were two of the most dangerous strikers in the Shore Conference over the previous two seasons and their respective teams entered the 2017 season having to figure out how to thrive without them.

Over the first two weeks of the season, Pinelands and Jackson Memorial are proving that they have a chance to be just as good, if not better, behind their next wave of players.

Both the Wildcats have risen from unranked in the preseason to top-five ranked teams, with Pinelands ascending to No. 3 in the latest Shore Sports Network Top 10 behind its 5-0 start and Jackson Memorial climbing to No. 5 at 4-1 overall.

Pinelands is one of just four remaining unbeaten teams in the Shore Conference – Holmdel, Rumson-Fair Haven and Asbury Park are the others – while Jackson Memorial is coming off one of the tougher weeks in the conference. The Jaguars beat three-time defending Class A South champion Toms River South on the road and after a 1-0 loss to Southern Regional, the Jaguars beat Toms River North on Friday. All three of Jackson’s opponents last week were ranked in the preseason Top 10.

Like Jackson Memorial, Pinelands also picked up a key victory over a longstanding division champion, defeating five-time defending Class B South champion Point Pleasant Borough, 4-1. The Wildcats also played Southern and defeated the Rams, 2-1, in overtime and picked apart a strong Lakewood team in 6-0 rout.

The two teams have both posted dominant goal differentials as well, with Jackson Memorial outscoring

Jr. Anthony Diaz

Not only are Jackson Memorial and Pinelands off to surprisingly hot starts, but the two teams are doing so despite young rosters. Of the 26 combined goals scored by the two teams, only two of them have been scored by a senior and both were by Pinelands center back and captain Cade Sundermann.

For Pinelands, juniors Kieran Sundermann, Dom Dos Santos and Anthony Diaz have been prominent goal-scorers so far, while fellow junior Aniello Lubrano has been a facilitator in the midfield.

Sophomore Creed Nas, sophomore Anthony Aguilar and freshman John Hart have also gotten into the act for the Wildcats, while Cade Sundermann has captained the defense in front of sophomore goalkeeper Logan Johnson.

Jr. Kieran Sundermann

Both Kieran Sundermann and Dos Santos scored two goals each the 41 win over Point Boro in which the Wildcats scored all four of their goals during a 29-minute span between the 20th and 49th minutes to lay claim to a 4-0 lead. Sundermann has four goals and two assists through three games, while Dos Santos leads the team with five goals. He also scored two goals in the 6-0 win over Lakewood and put one in during a 2-1 win over Manchester.

Diaz, Nas and Aguilar also have two goals each for Pinelands, with Diaz scoring in both the opener vs. Lakewood and in the 2-1 win over Southern on Saturday. Nas scored twice against Lakewood in his first varsity game and Aguilar scored in back-to-back wins against Manchester and Donovan Catholic.

"We talked a lot before the season about the kind of team we wanted to be and I think the one thing about this group is they know exactly who they are and who they want to be," Pinelands first-year head coach and former assistant Nino Scotto di Carlo said.

"We have a lot of guys with skill, we move the ball, we play soccer and we make teams chase. We also have multiple guys who can finish and when you can possess the ball and beat teams with a few different guys, it's tough to defend."

Sr. Cade Sundermann All this early success has come despite the fact that O'Connell and his 32 goals from a year ago graduated.

Pinelands placed a great deal of offensive burden on O'Connell and while he handled it for most of the year,

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from page 15 made up for it with creativity in the final third of the field.

he eventually broke down and missed the team's final four games with a back injury.

"We are young, but we have some legitimate soccer players out there," Bado said. "A lot of the guys who came back were near the top of our scoring leaders and they are a year older and a year better. So even though we don't have a lot of seniors, we have guys who have played a lot of soccer and have played a lot together, so it doesn't surprise me that they have played well this early."

The injury to O'Connell likely damaged Pinelands' chances at making a deeper run in the NJSIAA South Jersey Group III playoffs, but it proved to the returning players they could play and remain competitive without their top scoring option.

"We ran almost everything through Matt last year and rightfully so - he's a great player," said Scotto di Carlo of O'Connell, who is a freshman at Division I American University. "When you have a player like that, you don't really have a choice but to get him the ball and that might have limited some of our other players. It's not a bad problem to have, but I think we came in wanting to play a little bit differently this year and our guys embraced it."

The Jaguars also built on their success at Toms River South, where they won a 1-0 Shore Conference Tournament round-of-16 game last season as a No. 19 seed against the third-seeded Indians.

Of course, the success of both the Jaguars and the Wildcats comes with the caveat that the season is still very young and both have a long way to go in order to reach the goal of a division title. Last year Pinelands led the Class B South race for most of the season before losing to Point Boro in the final regulars e a s o n game, giving the Panthers the outright B South title and denying the Wildcats their first division title since 1989.

Pinelands even beat the Panthers 4-1 in the first meeting.

Jackson Memorial's offense, meanwhile, has come primarily from two players - sophomore Dan Russo and junior Joe Schlageter.

Russo scored in each game of Jackson's first three games so far, including two goals in a 2-0, opening-day win over Brick Memorial and the game-winning goal in the 65th minute Sept. 11 against Toms River South. With the game scoreless in the final quarter of regulation, Russo earned a free kick just outside the top of the 18-yard box and bent a left-footed shot into the upper left corner of the frame to break the scoreless tie. Junior Logan Lewis then followed with his first varsity goal in the 78th minute to cap the win.

Schlageter, meanwhile, helped lead Jackson Memorial to a 4-1 win over No. 9 Freehold Borough, which hammered preseason No. 4 Ocean, 5-1 on Saturday and lost a tough, 1-0 loss to current No. 2 CBA. Schlageter scored two goals in the win, with Russo and junior Riley Keating adding a goal apiece. Schlageter also added an assist in the win over Brick Memorial and assisted Lewis's goal on Monday night.

"We are much more prepared for the long season this year," Scotto di Carlo said. "We aren't relying on one guy to carry us, which helps us tactically and physically. We can win games with a few different guys leading us and we also don't have to ask somebody to play 80 minutes and carry us every game."

Jr. Joe Schlageter

Junior goalkeeper Nick Kinzler has also stepped up and seized the starting job

after sharing time with current sophomore Joe Weinstein last year. Kinzler has secured three shutouts in five games, including a seven-save performance against Toms River South that included a pair of diving saves two minutes apart from one another in the first half.

So. Dan Russo

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Jackson Memorial has to survive the rough-and-tumble A South schedule to claim its first A South crown since 2012, when the Jaguars entered the Shore Conference Tournament undefeated and reached the Central Jersey Group IV championship game.

"You can never get too overconfident playing in A South and I think my guys understand that they have to bring their best every day and take it one game at a time," Bado said.

"There is still a long way to go and I think we've shown that we have the potential to play with anybody, but we have to stay focused and continue to improve."

Jackson Memorial has established a reputation for physicality over the 13 years Steve Bado has been head coach, but this year's team does not have as much size as some of the Jaguars teams of recent vintage and has

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Daly scoring both goals against St. Benedict’s and Gill scoring a pair of goals in a 2-1 win over Marlboro.

Even With New Lineup, CBA Off to Hot Start

By Matt Manley - Senior Staff Editor

The players are different, but the goal is the same.

That is the way the Christian Brothers Academy soccer team is approaching the 2017 season: even though the Colts graduated 10 starters from a 24-1 state championship team, this year's starters want to end the season in the same fashion.

"Our goal is still to get to that Shore Conference final and that state final," said senior center back John Askin, who is the lone returning starter from last year. "I'm sure that's everyone else's goal and we might lose games here or there, but the ultimate goal is to go undefeated. If we don't that's alright, but the ultimate goal is to be there when it matters at the end and getting it done."

Gill and classmate Joe Lozowski are CBA's only two returning scoring threats from a year ago and both came off the bench to score their 15 combined goals – Gill eight and Lozowski two. Lozowski has also contributed to the scoring in the form of a goal and two assists, but the Colts have not had to lean on the returning players to carry the load thanks to the effectiveness of newcomers like Daly, Bellomo and sophomore Luke Pascarella.

Mulligan said his focus leading up to the opener has primarily been directed toward organization in the back and in its Shore Conference games, CBA has been solid in that department. Juniors Liam Mulvey and Jack Hempstead have been key pieces on the back line, with Hempstead playing a big role on the attack as well. Hempstead’s strong start has earned him high praise from Mulligan.

"He reminds me of (Colin Lankau)," Mulligan said, comparing Hempstead to last year's starting right outside

back. "Strong player technically, smart player. He's only a junior so I'm excited to watch his progress throughout the season. I don't like to compare players, but he's the second coming of him.

He's like a carbon copy."

Not only are the expectations still the same, but the results through seven games look awfully similar as well. The Colts have stormed out to a 6-1 start, climbing to No. 2 in the Shore Sports Network Top 10 after opening at No. 5.

Along the way, they have displayed both the potential and the long road ahead for this year's team to get to a position that is remotely close to last year's team, which finished No. 1 in the state according to NJ.com.

Among all the newcomers, none has made an impact quite like senior goalkeeper Shane Keenan. According to Mulligan, Keenan decided to play his first season of high school soccer just before the start of practice and won the starting job shortly thereafter. He played for Players Development Academy (PDA) over the past three years and has already verbally committed to the University of Connecticut.

"The lack of experience shows in the fact that when the lights are on and the season is underway, we missed some chances we're capable of making," second-year CBA head coach Tom Mulligan said following an opening-day win over Howell. "As the season progresses, they are going to get more chances in game situations and they are going to get more comfortable. I think for what we are right now, considering how little varsity experience we have back, I'd have to say I'm pleased with where we're at right now.

As long as they continue to learn and adapt, I think we'll be fine."

CBA has gone on to prove its head coach right during its first twoplus weeks of the season. Not only is CBA 6-1 – the Colts have defeated the likes of Peddie, Colts Neck, Freehold Borough and Freehold Township. Their only loss came on Saturday against a nationally-ranked St. Benedict’s team, which scored twice in the final 43 seconds to fight off CBA, 4-2.

Jr. Joe Lozowski

As CBA approaches the second turn through the Class A North schedule, they have been toughened up by what Mulligan called the toughest regular-season schedule in the history of the program.

The Colts have already played non-conference games against Peddie and St. Benedict’s and will travel for two weekend games at Delbarton against DeMatha (Md.) and Chaminade (N.Y.) on the weekend of Sept. 23.

This might not be the team loaded with Division I seniors that finished No. 1 in the state like last year’s group was, but Mulligan still has high hopes for this junior-heavy group over the next two years.

Bellomo was the hero in arguably CBA’s two biggest wins. He scored twice during the Colts’ 3-2 come-from-behind win over Peddie on Sept. 9 and put in two more in a 2-1 win over Freehold Township on Monday. His game-winner against Peddie came in the 13th minute of overtime, while he scored the game-winner against the Patriots in the 78th minute.

“The coaches believe in us a lot, which we didn’t even believe in at first” Bellomo said. “Even after (last year’s) team, (Mulligan) was like, ‘You’re not that team. You can be something special.’ And we believe him.”

“Freehold Township’s always been a big rivalry,” Bellomo said. “I remember when I was a freshman, watching the games and thinking, ‘I want to play in this game.’ To play in it and score is great.”

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So far, Keenan has turned in four shutouts in seven games behind a relatively young group of field players.

"The kid is just a great athlete and a great goalkeeper," Askin said. "It's just nice to have him this year because he's been (an) academy (player) for the past three years. To get him this year is a privilege and the save he made was world class."

“We’re all really good friends. I love my teammates,” junior Dom Bellomo said. “I love playing for them, it feels great to score for them. We help each other out and we pull through for each other. We might be young, but we have heart and we’re skilled. That’s a good combo.”

Bellomo is one of three CBA players to have scored two goals in a game. Juniors Charlie Daly and Jack Gill have also accomplished the feat, with

Jr. Dominic Bellomo

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four goals in a wild, 6-5, opening-day, overtime win over Metuchen and also scored the golden goal in a 2-1 win over Mater Dei Prep on Monday.

Asbury Park Off to Another Strong Start in 2017

By Matt Manley - Senior Staff Editor

Unlike last year, when it won 18 games and won an NJSIAA Central Jersey Group I championship, the Asbury Park boys soccer team has felt what it's like to be the team that opponents gear up to beat.

The games at the beginning of the season have been more challenging than they were a year ago, but the results, to this point, have been the same.

With a 4-2 win over perennial Shore Conference Class B Central contender St. Rose last Wednesday, the Blue Bishops improved to 4-0 on the young season – the third straight time the Bishops have defeated the Purple Roses dating back to last season and a win that gives Asbury Park the inside track in the B Central race.

"We've been down, we've been in overtime and we have some new guys playing for us so to still be undefeated is good for us," Asbury Park coach Jean Dortissant said. "I like where we are. I knew it was going to take a little bit of time to build the chemistry like we had last year and today (Wednesday), I really liked what I saw. There was more communication on the field, which we did a lot last year."

At the center of Asbury Park's strong start is senior Davensky JoinVilmar, who also led his team in scoring as a junior and was the primary catalyst in the Blue Bishops' 9-0 start in 2016. On Wednesday, JoinVilmar recorded his second hat trick of the season by scoring twice in the first seven minutes of the game and scoring the game-winning goal in the 58th. He now has nine goals in four games, including three game-winners - two of which were golden goals in overtime.

Wednesday’s showdown with St. Rose initially looked like it would be another lopsided win for Asbury Park against St. Rose, whom the Bishops outscored 9-1 in two meetings last year. JoinVilmar scored 4:44 into the match and converted a pass from senior teammate Widmaier Beaubrun 1:40 later to stake the Blue Bishops to a 2-0 lead.

Asbury Park took that 2-0 lead into the second half despite the fact that JoinVilmar spent the last 12 minutes of the first on the bench after getting kicked in the shin. St. Rose came out firing in the second half, scoring on two goals by junior Evan Walters in the first 3:01 of the half.

The Bishops switched freshman goalkeepers at halftime, with Woodley Cagilus taking over for Walter Duarte. Walters scored in the second minute on a hardhit shot that one-hopped into the goal and scored again 1:07 later on a 50-yard free kick that took a high bounce off the turf, over Cagilus and into the goal.

Jr. Widm aier Beaubrun

"Both of those guys are getting better and I think by the end of the season, we'll be solid there," Dortissant said. "(Cagilus) is very athletic and we're just trying to get him some confidence."

In the 57th minute, Asbury Park earned a corner kick and senior Stevenson Jean Baptiste swung the ball into the middle of the 18-yard box. JoinVilmar stormed into the box from the opposite side of the kick and one-timed a volley out of the air into the goal for the go-ahead score.

The Bishops capped the scoring in the 65th when senior Jean Osner Pierre headed in a long free kick from junior defender Wenderlens Garius.

Pierre has emerged as a reliable second option to JoinVilmar. The senior has four goals in the four games, including a two-goal game in a 5-2 win over Keyport and a goal in a 21 overtime win over Mater Dei Prep. Pierre also assisted JoinVilmar’s gamewinner in overtime vs. Mater Dei. The overtime win over the Seraphs was the second of the season. The first came on opening day against Metuchen, which jumped out to a 2-0 lead and battled the defending Group I champs to a 5-5 draw over the first 80 minutes. JoinVilmar played the hero in that game as well, scoring his fourth goal of the match to end it in overtime. Senior Stevenson Jean Baptiste scored the other two goals in that game.

"He's had to be a leader for us this year," Dortissant said of JoinVilmar. "It's an adjustment for him, which is why I didn't make him captain. I didn't want him to feel any extra pressure, but he knows we need him to do a lot for us as a leader on the field."

Wednesday's win over rival St. Rose puts Asbury Park in an ideal position going forward as the Blue Bishops build chemistry and confidence for their new starters around returnees like JoinVilmar, Beaubrun, Garius, Jean Baptiste and senior Schown Narcisse.

During its 4-0 start to this season, Asbury Park has already played two overtime games and faced a 2-2 tie into the middle stages of the second half against St. Rose. During their ninegame winning streak to open last year, the Blue Bishops went to overtime once, which was also the only game they won by one goal.

Losing three of its top five scorers and an all-division goalkeeper from last year's team, the Bishops and Dortissant had their work cut out for them in 2017, but bringing back the top scorer has helped. JoinVilmar scored

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"I like what I've seen," JoinVilmar said. "So far, so good, but we've got to keep practicing, keep working and hopefully win the championship again."

Photos by

Matt Manley www.shoresportsnetwork

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very week this regular season, Shore Conference football fans will have their chance to vote for the Orthopaedic Institute of Central Jersey/Shore Sports Network Football Player of the Week on our website, with tens of thousands of votes cast already this week.

Week-1 9/8/17

of scrimmage from his spot at defensive end. His safety put Barnegat up, 16-14, in the fourth quarter, and he also had a key sack on fourth down (video above) to force a turnover on downs.

Barnegat Jr Tight En d

Sean Morris The first winner of the Shore Conference Football Player of the Week poll is Barnegat junior tight end and defensive end Sean Morris, who made plays all over the field to help lead the Bengals to a 22-14 victory over Donovan Catholic to open their season. Morris finished with six receptions for 75 yards and a touchdown, and was a menace on defense with seven tackles, including five tackles for a loss, two forced fumbles and two sacks, one of which resulted in a safety.

Morris had a 15-yard touchdown reception in the second half and made several big plays behind the line

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Morris has two older brothers who starred at tight end for the Bengals and went on to play in college. Ryan was an FBS recruit who signed with Purdue before later transferring and finishing his career at FCS powerhouse Villanova. Kyle is currently a junior wide receiver at Johns Hopkins. At 6-foot-4 and 220 pounds, Sean could certainly follow in their footsteps and is off to a great start.

It was a back and forth voting period between Morris and Long Branch wide receiver T.J. Fosque, who had six receptions for 178 yards and three touchdowns in the Green Wave’s 28-19 victory over Manasquan. A late push enabled Morris to edge Fosque with 33.09 percent of the vote.

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Two ranked teams lost this past week, but their defeats came at the hands of fellow top-10 teams which were ranked higher. Three ranked teams also had byes in Week 2. It all adds up to some shuffling, but no new teams pushing their way into top-10 status.

The two games between teams in the top 10 featured a combined 191 points and 2,018 yards. Shout out to the respective scoreboards for not completely melting during the game. Howell outlasted Freehold in a wild 55-35 Class A North win where Freehold quarterback Ashante Worthy had over 600 yards of total offense to set what is believed to be the Shore Conference record. The offenses had their way in the first half of the Red Bank Catholic vs. Middletown North game, with each team putting up 34 points. The Caseys pulled away in the second half, however, to win 60-41.

All the other ranked teams took care of business, including a Point Boro team that was dominant in defeating Lacey, 27-0, to further entrench itself as the Class B South favorite. Plenty of teams currently outside the rankings continued to make their case for a spot in the Top 10, as well, with six other teams remaining undefeated through Week 2.

The only matchup of ranked teams in Week 3 is a big one, as Middletown North travels to Howell for a nondivisional clash on Saturday night. There’s also Manasquan at Middletown South, Asbury Park at Point Beach and Barnegat at Manchester playing crucial division games on Friday night.

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Thursday, 7-8pm on 105.7 The Hawk, www.1057thehawk.com & www.shoresportsnetwork.com.

The only weekly radio and online show that covers Ocean and Monmouth County High School Football

Award-winning broadcasters Kevin Williams, Bob Badders and Ed Sarluca cover the entire Shore Conference from Matawan to Pinelands. Broadcast live each week the show features players, coaches and a preview of upcoming games.

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