Middletown North Shuts Down Freehold Township 35-7 In Must Win Game

Photo above: The Lions Troy Thompson in action earlier this season

FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP – It was a good thing the scoreboard wasn’t working Friday night at Freehold Township because the home team crowd wouldn’t have liked what they saw anyway, as the Patriots went down hard and without much of a fight in losing to Middletown North 35-7 on a cold and windy night in Freehold.

The Lions were facing a must-win situation if they wanted to keep their state playoff chances alive with the cutoff date for qualification into the NJSIAA playoffs scheduled for this weekend. If things brake right for the Lions in a couple of other CJG IV games, Friday night’s win would position them for a spot in the state playoffs.

“We’re playing well and at 6-2 it would be a shame if we don’t make the playoffs.” Head coach Steve Bush said. “Now we just got to wait and see what happens. The guys have worked really hard to get here; we’re hoping it works out. “

The Lions did their part with a suffocating defense that dominated the line of scrimmage all night and an efficient, opportunistic offense that seemed to score at will in the first half. They excelled in all phases of the game including the special teams which blocked a punt and consistently handed the offense excellent field position.

The battle of the trenches was a one-punch knockout for Middletown North as they manhandled the Patriots at the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball. The defense held the Patriots (3-6) to four yards of total offense in the first half including minus seven-yards rushing on seven attempts. For the game, the Patriots gained a paltry 46 yards of total offense with only 13-yards rushing on 16 carries.

The win was the Lions (6-2) fourth in a row and guarantees their first winning record since the 2000 season. In those four wins the defense has allowed only three touchdowns while the offense has scored a total of 120 points.

Freehold Townships only touchdown drive of the night – midway through the fourth quarter - was lengthened by a phantom defensive holding call after the Lions had stopped them on a third-and-10 screen attempt and two questionable pass interference calls that set the Patriots up with a first-and-goal at the eight-yard line. Two plays later Patriot quarterback Jake O’Brien scored on a five-yard scramble after being flushed out of the pocket by a horde of Lion defenders.

Middletown North scored on their first four possessions of the game and started out with excellent field position when the defense forced the Patriots to punt from their own end zone on their initial possession of the game. Senior defensive tackle Joe Antonio had a two-yard tackle for a loss on second down and senior linebacker Troy Thompson stopped Patriot running back Matt Pine for no gain on third down initiating the punt.

Taking over at the Patriot 30-yard line, the Lions ran off four consecutive running plays with senior back Aaron Borrero taking the ball in from the six-yard line for a 7-0 lead. Borrero gained 25 yards on three carries on the drive when star running back Chad Freshnock was sidelined with an equipment malfunction.

On the Lions next possession – with Freshnock back in the fold – they drove 51 yards in eight plays with senior wideout Jordan Pitts taking an end around the final four yards for the score. Pitts also kept the drive alive with a fantatic leaping 10-yard grab on third-and-10 from the 35-yard line.

On the ensuing Patriot possession, Thompson and sophomore outside linebacker Nicholas Kish teamed up for a nine yard sack on third down setting up a blocked punt by junior safety Josh Gomez with junior Matt Harrison recovering at the Patriot 22-yard line.

Three plays later, Freshnock scored from the two after picking up seven and 13 yards on his first two carries. Freshnock finished the game with 124 yards rushing on 17 carries including 95 yards in the first half and two receptions for 28 yards. He now has 1,129 yards rushing and 14 touchdowns on the year.

“Chad’s a very hard runner and he’s got some speed as well,” Bush said. “We’re lucky to have him; he’s such a talented kid.”

On the next scoring drive, Freshnock gained 23 yards on a first down run worthy of a nomination for ESPN’s top ten plays of the week, hurdling a defender and running over several would-be tacklers before being dragged down at the 48-yard line. Four Donald Glenn completions – one to Freshnock and three to Thompson – led to the touchdown with Glenn hitting Thompson for the final 21 yards.

“We treated this game like they were undefeated,” Thompson said. “We prepared this week the same as we have all year. We knew we had to come in physical - they’re a physical team – and get the job done.”

The defense then muscled the Patriots into their fifth three-and-out of the first half and again handed the offense superb field position at the Patriot 43 with under a minute remaining in the half.

Three plays later with no time left on the clock, Glenn hit Thompson with a perfectly thrown fade pass to the right pylon for a picture-perfect 34-yard scoring play and a 35-0 halftime lead.

“Donald has really played well lately and Troy has been a team leader and has played great all year on both sides of the ball,” Bush said. “They’ve really connected and developed into a nice combination.”

Glenn, who’s silently having a very solid sophomore campaign at quarterback, was 10-of-12 for 126 yards passing with two touchdowns and one interception which was wrestled out of Pitts hands at the goal line. His two touchdown passes give him 13 on the year.

“This is our second year as a staff here and the kids have bought into everything we’ve asked,” Bush said. “The seniors have started the tradition of winning and we just got to keep it going from here. It would be so disappointing if we don’t get in. Our seniors have worked so hard to get there - all our kids have worked so hard – but we did all we can do.”

“We’re not just trying to get into the playoffs,” Thompson said. “We want to win to go all the way and bring home a title. It started last year with the new coaching staff and a new mentality and whatever happens I’m just real proud of everyone.”

There’s nothing official yet and I may be wrong, but according to my calculations after the outcomes of last night’s games, the Lions will qualify as the eighth seed in the Central Jersey Group IV bracket.

A sad side note: Coach Bush came into the game with a heavy heart as his mother passed away last Sunday and will buried today, Saturday.

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