Asbury Park Press from Asbury Park, New Jersey • Page 45

ASBURY PARK PRESS I MONDAY, DEC. 6, 2004 I 1 -'V IIV'ri KiDD TO FLAY PLUS College football 7 CG'iTACTUS Sports Editor Eric Girard 132-643-4251 egirardapp.com HOT YET Rutgers women's basketball coach Vivian Stringer will have to wait for ber 100th win. 6 For latest results and scores: vyww.app.com Jason Kidd makes his return tonight. 6 i'J Scoreboard 15 NJSIAA CENTRAL JERSEY FOOTBALL SECTIONAL FINALS I (Tx DBS Middletown South, Raritan capture titles. Jackson losses to East Brunswick MIDDLETOWN SOUTH 14 WALL 0 RARITAN 35 CARTERET 12 EAST BRUNSWICK 17 JACKSON 14 TP" ST i .5.

St LN. rv am. Sn Jackson's Gary Wypych walks off the field after losing to East Brunswick, (staff photo: michael sypniewsn) Middletown South' Nick Macaluso and Eric Daneman celebrate their victory, (staff photo: peter ackerman. chief photographer) DEFENSE MECHANISM: Eagles capture 2nd straight state title with shutout Raritan's Michael Stoffers carries the ball. (STAFF PHOTO: PETER ACKERMAN, CHIEF PHOTOGRAPHER) CROWNING GLORY: Raritan gains its first football state championship DRIVE TIME: Jackson mounts 3 4th-quarter drives, but falls short each time By SCOTT CLAYTON STAFF WRITER PISCATAWAY Despite 112 yards rushing from junior tailback Jon Reggio, top-seeded Jackson fell in the NJSIAA Central Jersey Group IV final to East Brunswick, 17-14, last night at Rutgers Stadium.

The Jaguars mounted three fourth-quarter drives, but could only muster a punt, a costly interception on the Bears' 10 yard-line, and a missed attempt at a desperation 47-yard field goal as time expired. East Brunswick was led by senior quarterback Matt Mariano, who rushed for 105 yards. All but nine of his rushing yards came in the first half, then he went to the air with success in the second half. The biggest of Mariano's three second-half completions was a 43-yard touchdown strike to tight end Danny Fessel with 5:06 remaining in the third quarter that staked the Bears to a 17-6 lead. The win was the first sectional title in school history for East Brunswick, and marked Jackson's third finals appearance in five years, after back-to-back South Jersey IV titles in 2000 and 2001.

Stories, pictures, D13, 14 By JOE ADELIZZI STAFF WRITER PISCATAWAY The people at Raritan have been waiting for 41 years for a state football championship. "They deserved one," said Raritan coach Bob Generelli after the Rockets won the NJSIAA Central Jersey Group championship with a 35-12 victory over Carteret yesterday at Rutgers Stadium. "The community has given this team so much support," he added. "We're glad we were the team to give it to them." The arm and legs of quarterback Andrew Mandeville proved to be the difference for the Rockets. The junior threw for two touchdowns and rushed for one, and, more importantly, helped Raritan maintain its composure after it fell behind 6-0 in the opening period.

He completed a touchdown pass to Jeff Papcun on a crucial fourth-down play at the start of the second period to help Raritan regain the lead, then used his scrambling ability to keep the Ramblers' defense off balance for the remainder of the afternoon. The Rockets, who ended the season with a 12-0 mark, became the first team from Raritan to win a football title. Stories, pictures, Dll, 12 By NEIL SCHUMAN STAFF WRITER PISCATAWAY As it has through the entire season, Middle-town South relied upon its defense to carry it to victory. Bending, but refusing to break, the Eagles' defensive unit led the way yesterday, as South defeated Wall 14-0 at Rutgers Stadium to capture its second consecutive NJSIAA Central Jersey Group in football championship. The Eagles (12-0), who have won 24 consecutive games, took the lead on a 2-yard touchdown run by junior back Knowshon Moreno with 1:39 to play in the first half.

"This is the best experience of our lives," said senior defensive tackles Tom Nicholes, who assisted on four tackles. "As a senior, I couldn't be more proud and I know these guys will come back next year and make us proud again." After South senior linebacker Chris Martino forced Wall junior running back Chris Martino to fumble (the two Martinos are not related), the Eagles took over on the Wall 27-yard line and scored three plays later when senior quarterback Dan Sti-vala (4-for-6, 60 passing yards) connected with junior receiver Mark Longo on a 10-yard TD pass in the first half. Stories, pictures, D8-10 Eagles Giants -i A Packers 1 Cn trJx Redskins rj Cosz Tcxans 1 11 'J Pennington returns in win Giants lose 5th straight McNabb throws 5 TDs Big Blue suffers humiliating loss to Redskins. D3 QB amasses 464 yards in air as Eagles cruise. D5 Curtis Martin, defense overpower Texans.

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