Brick's Starego and Scott Instrumental in Ocean County Win
BY MIKE READY
BRICK TOWNSHIP – It was ‘home sweet home’ for a couple of Brick standouts as kicker Anthony Starego booted the game-winning 20-yard field goal with 5:21 remaining on the clock after teammate Drew Scott returned an intercepted screen pass 26 yards to the 5 yard-line.
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Starego’s boot was the difference in the game, as the Ocean County all-stars defeated the Monmouth County all-stars 17-14 Thursday night at Keller Memorial Field at Brick High School in the 37th U.S. Army All-Shore Gridiron Classic. The win ends a two-game losing streak for Ocean against Monmouth and trimmed Monmouth’s lead in the all-time series to 20-16-1.
Starego, who has overcome autism and who has emboldened his Brick Dragon teammates over the past two years, was also 2-for-2 on extra points and was named Ocean County Offensive Most Valuable Player for his heroics.
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“It was an awesome experience to see him do what he did tonight and do what he did all year.” Scott said. “As close as I am to him I wouldn’t want to see it end any other way.”
Scott, who along with Starego, were invaluable pieces in Bricks run to the Central Jersey Group IV sectional crown last season, read the play all the way while lining up a right defensive end.
“I’m really good at reading screens but I don’t know who turned on the slow motion,” said Scott, who was caught from behind by Manalapan running back Tyler Leonetti. “I should’ve taken it to the house. I was a little disappointed in myself. But to see Anthony hit that field goal, there is nothing like it. I’m so happy for him.”
Following Starego’s go-ahead kick with the score 17-14, Monmouth County moved the ball down to the Ocean 25 yard-line with just over a minute to play with a chance to win or at least tie the game.
Starting at their own 30 yard-line, Manasquan’s Joe Fittin picked up 14 yards on an end around for a first down at the 44 before Colts Neck’s Anthony Gargiulo rumbled for another first to the Ocean 45 yard-line. On second and 10 from the 45 Saint John Vianney quarterback Billy DeMato scrambled for 20 yards to set up a first down at the 25 yard-line.
With the seemingly improbable win - or at least a tie - now within its grasps, DeMato faded back looking for Holmdel’s Mark Scherzer in the near corner of the end zone. However, his pass was slightly underthrown allowing Southern defensive back Logan Sheehan to undercut the route and intercept the ball at the five yard-line. He returned it to the 17 yard-line essentially ending the highly contested game.
Sheehan, selected to the Coaches All-Division team as a quarterback and defensive back last season when he threw for 1000 yards and 10 touchdown passes and added 21 tackles from the safety spot will play safety for Rowan University in the fall of 2015.
“I read it perfect, undercut it and went up and just grabbed it,” Sheehan said. “We came together so well as a team with just five practices. The defensive coaches were impressed with how quickly we picked up the game plan; we were making our own checks out there. I credit our defense for winning this one; we were all brothers out there tonight.”
Monmouth County’s defense did not allow the Ocean County offense to score a touchdown the entire game and held them to 131 total yards (59 yards passing, 29-72 rushing). If not for two very out of the ordinary scoring plays, the outcome of the game in all probability would have been much different from the one that played out.
The first of two bizarre plays was set up by a blocked punt by Southern defensive lineman Mason Fazekas. The block and recovery handed Ocean a first down at the Monmouth 31 yard-line with two minutes left in a scoreless first half.
On fourth and 10 from the 31, Long Branch safety Myson Pennington intercepted a pass from Lacey quarterback Tom Kelly near the goal line. As Pennington headed up field, Kelly ran him down from behind and forced a fumble that Monsignor Donovan’s Vinnie Grasso scooped up and high-tailed 26 yards into the end zone for a 7-0 lead with only 55.7 seconds left in the first half.
Ocean fumbled on two consecutive possessions to open the second half and Monmouth took advantage of the first one to tie the score. Red Bank defensive end Dylan DeVita pounced on a Amani Richardson fumble at the Ocean 29 and three plays later, quarterback Connor McGlynn of Howell connected on a slant over the middle with Frank Olmo of Red Bank Catholic for a nine-yard score. Mike Creamer of Matawan added the PAT to even it up at 7-7.
Two plays later, Deon Williams of Long Branch, recovered a fumble by Manchester’s Shaquille Benjamin at the Ocean 25 yard-line. But on third and 12 from the 27 Fazekas stopped McGlynn after a two-yard gain forcing a fourth down for Monmouth at the 25.
Here’s where the turning point of the game took place on another seldom-seen play by the opportunistic Ocean County squad.
Matawan’s All-Shore kicker Mike Creamer trotted onto the field and promptly nailed a 42-yard field goal for what appeared to be Monmouth’s first lead of the game, 10-7. However, a dead-ball encroachment penalty by Ocean killed the play and forced Creamer to kick again, taking the points off the board. This time, Jackson Memorial’s 6-foot-4 tight end Marcus Ademilola blocked the kick up the middle and Benjamin picked up the loose ball and took it 71 yards for a stunning touchdown. The play turned a 10-7 deficit into a 14-7 lead for Ocean.
“It was a big momentum swing,” Ademilola said. “My coaches wouldn’t put me in on special teams, I told them I could block the field goal, so I just went out there and blocked it.”
Monmouth shook it off and marched 72 yards in seven plays, aided by a pair a 15-yard penalties. On first and 10 from the Ocean 15, DeMato found teammate Julanee Prince for another first at the five-yard line. Navy-bound running back Anthony Gargiulo then bulled his way up the middle for a five-yard score to tie the game once more, 14-14, with 1:24 remaining in the third period.
The game remained tied until Starego’s game winning kick with 5:21 left in the very entertaining contest.
Gargiulo was named Monmouth Offensive Most Valuable player after rushing for a game-high 51 yards on 14 carries with a touchdown. Matawan defensive end Nick Tomkins, a Dartmouth recruit, was Monmouth’s defensive MVP with two sacks, a pass defended and seven tackles, including consecutive stops on the goal line on third and fourth down in the second quarter.
Including Tomkins two sacks, Monmouth County recorded six sacks altogether with Colts Necks Nick Volpe matching Tompkins two, while Ocean's Mike Halawani and Shore Regional's Matt Protto registered one sack each.
Ocean County matched Monmouth's tenacity on the defensive side of the ball allowing Monmouth's offense a mere 161 total yards on the evening. They forced three turnovers - two interceptions and a fumble - and sacked Monmouth quarterbacks four times. Bricks Matt Ulufanua, Monsignor Donovan's Matt Post, and Barnegat's Greg Moran and Ryan Ulrich each had one.
Kelly handled most of the quarterbacking responsibilities for Ocean County and finished 7-for-17 for 59 yards with one interception. He connected with Ademilola four times for 49 yards as Ademilola lead all receivers in receptions and yardage. Fazekas, who seemed to be in on every play, earned defensive MVP for Ocean with four tackles - two for a loss - and a blocked punt.
