PHOTO GALLERY: Toms River South Tops Toms River East

(Photos by Karen Wall)

In the second Battle of Toms River, the Toms River South Indians football team outmuscled the Toms River East Raiders and came away with a 21-0 victory on Friday night.

The Indians, who squeaked out a 14-10 victory over Donovan Catholic in their season opener, had to work hard for the victory over the Raiders, however.

Both teams struggled to put together any consistent offensive effort as the defenses stepped up. East’s defense corralled South quarterback T.J. Scuderi and running back Tyler Sosa until the last 15 minutes of the game, when the Indians’ size on the line finally wore down the Raiders. With a minute to go in the third quarter, Scuderi finished off a 93-yard drive with a 3-yard run for the first of his three touchdowns, and added two more, including a 20-yarder, in the fourth.

East starting quarterback Dylan Savulich went down in the second quarter with what appeared to be a shoulder injury, and junior Branden Laird stepped in under center for the remainder of the game. But the line just got pushed around the entire game, with holes for running backs Norion Davis and Tyler Machnick closing as quickly as they opened.

East’s best chance came when Davis, on third-and-long from the Raiders’ 3, slipped through a hole and sprinted 69 yards before South’s Isaiah Parker grabbed him for a touchdown-saving tackle. The Raiders were unable to advance the ball farther, however.

South plays at Toms River North in the Great American Rivalry game next Friday. North (1-1, 1-1) will be licking its wounds after Brick Memorial handed the Mariners a 52-20 loss.

East hosts Brick (2-0, 2-0), which put a 35-0 licking on Southern Regional Friday night.