The Eagles A Team rolled to a 29-0 win last Saturday over the East Hanover Hornets to close their season at 5-2-1.
Luke Connell had an outstanding game on both sides of the ball. On the Hornet’s first possession, Connell pressured the QB who rushed his throw and Mark Bennett picked it off. A few plays later, Connell hauled in a Frank Ferrari pass down the left sideline for a 40 yard touchdown. Brian Liggio kicked his first of two extra points, and the Eagles led 8-0. Connell again came up big tackling the Hornets ball-carrier for a 16 yard loss to force a punt. Frank Ferrari wasted little time before tossing a 25-yard TD pass, this time to Jimmie Crawford. Mark Bennett would later pick off his second pass of the day to set up another Ferrari to Connell TD pass and the Eagles were up 22-0.
The offensive line got a boost for the second consecutive week. Last week Nick DePaul returned from injury, and this week Mike Cifaretto made his debut after missing 7 games with a broken arm. Harvard Fraser, a first-year player who scored twice on Saturday in a JV game, would add the Eagles final score on a 30-yard run. Matt Zebrowski passed to Michael Carlucci for the extra point giving the Eagles a 29-0 lead. Jordan Francullo preserved the shutout with an interception to end the game.
The team will face Nutley in the playoffs at West Essex on Sunday at 5 p.m. Good luck to Steve Lupo and his A-Team!
B Team – 19 East Hanover – 6
In their final tune-up before the playoffs, Gerald DeLuisi’s B-Team outslugged The East Hanover Hornets 19-6. The win closed out a near perfect regular season at 7-0-1. Coach Ed Shields D made the first statement of the afternoon as Zack Zkrivanic and Austin Camp stopped the Hornets cold on 3rd and short on the hornets first possession. Still scoreless, the Eagles D delivered again, as Devon Jacobsen knocked the ball loose and Chris Aldiero and Sean Ryan pounced on it. Zach Zaccone passed to brother Matt for a 50-yard gain down to the Hornet’s 7 yard line.
An interception temporarily thwarted the Eagle’s momentum, but just one play later, Mike Mughetto recovered a fumble on the 5 yard line. Following consecutive penalties, The Zaccone boys hooked up again, this time on a 17-yard touchdown pass. Z ran in the point after and it was 7-0 Eagles. The Hornets broke a long run on their next series that looked like a sure touchdown until Jake Houthuysen streaked down field to catch the surprised runner inside the 10 yard line. Again, the D was stout, turning away the Hornets on the goal-line.
Coach DeLuisi wasn’t content to take the slim lead into half-time, and with just 54 seconds left the Zaccone’s hooked up again, this time from 7 yards. The lead was 13-0 at half-time. A score late in the third quarter made it a game at 13-6, but Houthuysen changed that. Hoot followed a Greg Marlo block and scooted 49 yards for the final score of the day. After that the D stepped up, led by Mike Stanisci, Matthew Gautieri, Chris Aldiero, and Zach Zaccone who capped his stellar game with an interception.
The B-Team will be up against Caldwell at Centennial Field on Sunday at 12:30 p.m. Good luck to all the players & coaches!
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C Team – 27 East Hanover – 6
Stinging from their first defeat last weekend, the C-Team rolled over East Hanover 27-6, to finish the regular season at 7-1. Special Teams Coordinator Rob Frungillo saw his hard work payoff as Isaac Skrivanic kicked a perfect on-side kick to open the game with the Eagles recovering the ball on the 50 yard line. Runs by Anthony Zamloot and Matthew Frungillo got the ball to the 11 yard line, and Nick Riggio ran it in from there. Tommy Sharkey passed to Pat Haughney, and before the snack bar sold a single one of Rocco Stanisci’s meatball sandwiches, the Eagles were up 8-0.
Defensively, Matt Monroe, Garreth Jenkins, and Riggio came up huge, tackling the Hornet ball-carriers for losses. A Sharkey 47-yard run to the Hornets 15 set-up the Eagles next score. Zamloot did the rest, running the ball three consecutive times until he made his way into the end-zone behind the blocks of Monroe and Brandon Cariani. The lead increased to 20-6 on a Sharkey QB sneak following a Zamloot 40 yard run, and Zamloot capped the scoring with a 3-yard dive.
Bob DiTrani’s squad ends the season in a three-way tie for first place. It faces West Essex at West Essex High at 3:30 p.m. for its playoff game. Best of luck to the C-Team in the playoffs!
