Asbury Park Press from Asbury Park, New Jersey • Page 118

Sunday, Dec. 6, 1992 Asbury Park Press H9j Scholastic 2 Lacey's bid or title comes nip short In defeat, Lions hold heads high All! A A Berino (left). BOB BIcLKAsDury Par Presaj City (Lacey beat them, 14-13, and! Egg Harbor lost to them, 30-20), but we knew we could come in and take itj to them." Stetser said. By MITCHELL POWITZ PRESS STAFF WRITER LACEY TOWNSHIP Going into yesterday's championship game, Lacey head coach Lou Vircillo knew one thing was certain. Vircillo knew any shortcomings in the Lions' offense could spell doom as they took on an explosive Egg Harbor Township squad for the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association South Jersey Group III title.

The Atlantic County school vali dated those offensive fears as it shut out Lacey, 14-0, to capture the SJ Group UI title and pin Lacey with its first loss of the season. "This was the best group of seniors I've ever had in terms of leadership," Vircillo said. "We had a very good bunch of players. Today, they had just too many ob- stacles. (Egg Harbor) was just a little too much." The tone EGG HARBOR LACEY 14 0 of the game was set early as the Eagles (9-2) came out with an aggres sive defense and jumped out to a 7-0 lead with 2:16 to play in the first quarter.

After Egg Harbor forced a fumble (the first of five Lacey turnovers) on the Lions' second possession, the Eagles unleashed a balanced attack. Seven plays and 40 yards later, senior running back Isaiah Morris rumbled five yards up the middle for a touchdown. "We've been running off of our passing attack all season, but we weren't able to do that today," Parker said. "It was a little windier than we would have liked because we wanted to throw the ball more. Today, the offensive line had to dig down and do it in the trenches.

They did a super job." The score was set up by a 13-yard completion from senior quarterback Scott Parker to senior wide receiver Jason Larned and a 15-yard run by Parker on a third-and-five situation. Once in the lead, Egg Harbor put the game in the hands of its defense, which was led by tackles Kevin Stetser (6-2, 235 pounds) and Ed Li-chotta (6-2, 210) and defensive ends Scott Learn and Varion Thomas. "We came out and knew what we had to do," Stetser said. "We knew we could win it. They talk about our offense, but the defense has been there all season for us.

We have a balanced team. We have a good defense." The Lacey offense leaned heavily on junior running back Gary Sasala, who rushed for 75 of his 113 yards in the first half. However, the Lions saw two second-quarter drives end in interceptions. In the last three minutes of the first half, Lacey worked its way to the Egg Harbor 15-yard line but saw the Rivera From page HI lift host Matawan to a thrilling 29-28 overtime win over Neptune yesterday in the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association Central Jersey Group III final. The win gave Matawan (10-1) its second consecutive CJ Group III title.

"It was a great feeling," said "(Matawan coach Joe Martucci) put the pressure on me and said it was on me. Everything was on me." Rivera's conversion jiot only produced the win but also ruined another spectacular Neptune comeback. Nep- tune (8-2-1) trailed 21-7 in the fourth quarter but scored two touchdowns in the final 6:53 to make it 21-21. In overtime, each team was given four downs to score from its opponent's 10-yard line. Neptune got the ball first and needed just one play to take its only lead of the game.

Quarterback Dan Gonzalez threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to receiver Brian Coleman, who made a diving catch in the back of the end zone, and Jeremy Car-cich added the extra point to give the Fliers a 28-21 lead. "We wanted to curl Brian up deep in the end zone and put the running back (Scott Harley) in the flat," said Neptune head coach John Amabile. "We thought maybe they would lose sight of Brian, and the kid made a magnificent catch." Matawan, though, needed just two plays to reach the end zone on its overtime possession. After Katz ran five yards to Neptune's five-yard line, tailback Bob Jameson took a pitchout to. the left and ran five yards for a touchdown to pull the Huskies to within 28-27.

"Coach Martucci told me before the play, "These are the biggest five yards of your said Jameson, who gained 143 yards on 20 carries. "And LACEY TOWNSHIP Flying wildly in the wind over the stands at Lacey High School yesterday during Lacey's football game with Egg Harbor Township were seven banners that help tell the story of Lions' football. In 1982. they won their first Shore Conference division title. Going into this season, they had won four straight Class South titles and they won consecutive New Jersey State Interscho-lastic Athletic Association South Jersey Group III championships in 1988 and 1989.

'All of those banners were blowing in the wind yesterday. There were two poles remaining naked, waiting for this year's addi tions. One was a sure thing. Lacey won its fifth straight conference title so a banner for 1992 will be delivered. The other pole, re JOE ADEUZZI served for a SJ III title, will have to wait for a while.

Egg Harbor proved to be a little bigger, a little stronger and a little more experienced during the course of its 14-0 victory over Lacey. "I feel sorry we couldn't get it for these kids," said Lou Vircillo, the Lacey coach who has made winning a common practice in this community. "But the sun is going to come up in the morning. "I'm as proud at having coached these kids as any group we've ever had. They worked hard from last January to get where they were at today.

They were a coachable group. They did everything you could ask." What they couldn't do yesterday had nothing to do with not trying. What they couldn't do was mount an offense against a defense that had more size and more speed. "They had more athletic ability. It's not the first time this year we've faced a team with more athletic ability.

It's just that today we couldn't overcome it," said Vircillo. He had said words to the that effect earlier in a meeting with his team, which finished the season 10-1. He told his players to keep their heads up, to walk proud. A bunch of cliches to the old hardened cynics, but words of truth for the moment. There wasn't a soul at the Shore who expected Lacey to get this far this year, not with an offensive line filled with sophomores.

"Overachievers? I don't think you can call us that," said Vircillo. "We had some kids with talent. Kids like (Matt) Coffee and (Tommy) Nolan. And Brian Elias, who played this season on a bad leg. You saw him out there, he's a warrior.

"What these seniors got they earned. They also sent the message down to the underclassmen about what it takes to win. The hard work, the dedication. That's what builds a program, spreading the word from seniors to sophomores. When you've got that going you're on the right trail." What Vircillo is growing here is a little Brick Township.

He has a team filled with dedicated players who follow their orders and respond to pressure. "These kids take things in stride. They don't get too caught up in things. Maybe that's one of the sons they were able to win 10 straight games," said Vircillo. Some of those players were underclassmen, guys like TJ.

Hutler and running back Gary Sasala. And there's sophomore Casey Mahoney, who led the team in tackles. "We started looking at next year about three weeks ago," said Vircillo. "We looked at films of the freshman and the junior varsity games to get an idea of who could help us next year. "We'll take about a month off to work on getting some kids into college.

Then, it's back to work in the weight room in January. You just start all over again." About 15 minutes later Mahoney, a hulk at 6-0, 190 pounds, came into the coach office. Vircillo asked the sophomore how he was. Mahoney shook his head that he was fine. But his voice didn't sound as sure as his nod wanted you to believe.

"You sure you're OK?" asked Vircillo. Mahoney sat down next to him. He fought off the tears. "I'm sorry we didn't win for the seniors," said Mahoney. Vircillo wrapped his arms around him and told him to put it behind him.

To be proud of what they had accomplished. i The program was done for this year. fj. After the game, Larned was aifvfi lilted by a New Jersey State Police helicopter to Camden's Cooper University Medical Center after he complained of numbness in his extremities. According to a hospital spokesperson, Larned was treated and released last night.

Brick suffers setback rx yiv-: 0 Green Dragons succumb: to Washington Township In second half In SJ Group IV showdown. by Egg Harbor defense, including Ed the turnover as they hit Larned, who was coming down with the ball. The ball popped out of Larned's breadbasket and into Lemanowicz's hands. Lacey drove to the Eagles' 40 in seven plays but was thwarted by senior Matt Kopp, who registered the third Egg Harbor interception as the third quarter ended. "The key was to shut down the run," Stetser said.

"And when they passed, our defensive backs came up by friend after overtime loss to Matawan win after losing, 33-0, to-Middletown South in the season-opener. Rivera, a 5-foot-ll, 175-pound senior, contributed more to the win than just the conversion. He ran for a five-yard touchdown to cap Matawan's first possession, an 89-yard, nine-play drive, for a 7-0 lead. After a one-yard touchdown sneak by Gonzalez made it 7-7 in the second quarter, Rivera struck again. This time, he took a pitchout and ran 27 yards down the right sideline for a touchdown and a 13-7 lead.

In the third quarter, Rivera made a 24-yard ruriand caught an 18-yard pass to set up Tyrone Garland's one-yard touchdown burst for a 21-7 Matawan advantage. 'J i v' Lacey's Gary Sasala (center) is stopped Eagles' David Dudley pick off a Scott Bargloski pass at the goal line. The Lions faced many of the same problems in the third quarter, even though the defense provided the team with a spark. Lacey came up with a big play eight minutes into the second half when junior Doug Lemanowicz picked off a Parker pass on the Lacey 13 and returned it 20 yards. Senior defensive backs Brian Elias and Jon Coen caused Neptune's Louis Goodman is consoled he was right.

I headed for the corner of the 'end zone. They came up hard, and I knew I had to beat somebody." Then came the two-point conversion. The Huskies had already scored a two-pointer in the third quarter on a three-yard Jameson run. But they had also botched an extra point in the second quarter because of a mishandled snap. When Neptune called timeout, the Matawan players convinced Martucci to go for the win.

"Coach asked us what we wanted to do," said Jameson. "Without hesitation-; Hve said go for it." So Ry'era followed blocks by Jameson, Tyrone Garland and James Cross and scored from three yards out, giving Matawan its 10th straight 7 ''i. with big plays." The Eagles doubled the score after they took over on their own 33 and hit the end zone seven plays later. After six running plays, including a 26-yard jaunt by Morris, Parker rolled out to his left and hit tight end Stetser in the front left-hand corner of the end zone to complete a 10-yard scoring strike. Parker booted his second extra point to make it 14-0 with 8:43 to play.

"We saw what they did to Ocean PETER ACKERMANAsbury Parti Press yesterday. Trailing 21-7 in the fourth quarter, Neptune mounted its comeback. The Fliers went on a 75-yard touchdown drive, highlighted by a 43-yard pass from Gonzalez to receiver Joe Fiore, to pull to within 21-14. Harley, who gained 104 yards on 33 carries, scored from three yards out to cap the drive with 6:53 left. Three plays later, Neptune linebacker Chris Shea intercepted a pass at the Matawan 24.

Gonzalez then ran for 20 yards in three plays, including a five-yard touchdown, to tie the game at 21 with 2:56 left. "We knew we could come back," said Harley, who finished the season with 2,171 yards. "We've come back before. We just believed in ourselves." 1 By JOEL MAGARACI PRESS STAFF WRITER WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP After the first half of yesterday's championship game against unbeaten Washington Township, Brick had it all. The Drag-, ons had the; lead, the mcr mentum and WASH.

TWP. BRICK 20 6 mhmbmhbbb the player -r all-time leading rusher Steve DeTata on their' side. (' All the top-seeded Minutemen had was one last half of football. It was all they needed. Junior Mike Koerner scored two touchdowns, one on an electrifying 65-yard punt return, rallying Washington Township past Brick, 20-6, in the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association South Jersey Group IV final.

"We weren't going to let this season end that way," said Koerner, referring to his team's dismal firt-half performance in which the Minutemen Please see Brick, page HI 1.