Owls fall hard in Central Jersey final

At halftime,Highland Park only trailed by 14-6 in the sectional football championship, versus top-seeded Asbury Park. Then the roof caved in.

The Blue Bishops scored 30 consecutive points in rolling to a 44-6 victory over the third-seeded Owls for a third straight Central Jersey Group I sectional title. Asbury Park finishes the year with an 11-1 record. In the third quarter, senior running back George Stephens (11 carries, 72 yards) of the Blue Bishops took the opening kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown. The Owls could not recover from that point forward the rest of the way.

"That was demoralizing," said Owls senior running back Nate Smith, who rushed for 110 yards on 25 carries with a touchdown, and caught one pass for 17 yards, in the final game of his illustrious high school career. He will be making a decision soon on where he will be attending college, with Temple University number one on his list. Could Rutgers be far behind?

 

On the opening possession of the contest, Highland Park held the ball for almost four minutes but could not score. Quarterback Louis Middleton's pass attempt was taken in by senior Jamar Small at the 10 and returned 18 yards to the Bishops' 28-yard line, where they scored on an eight-play drive with Stephens banging it into the end zone from nine yards out for the touchdown. Small ran in the conversion to give Asbury Park an 8-0 lead. Stephens gained 39 yards on four carries on the drive, which was also aided by two offside penalties from Highland Park.

 

Middleton was sacked on the next possession by Darryl Johnson, with Smith recovering the ball on a forced fumble at the H.P. 44-yard line. A seven-play, 56-yard drive was capped by a nine-yard touchdown run by Smith. Asbury's Addison Henderson was called for a personal foul for punching Smith after an incomplete pass, but was not ejected from the game. The touchdown by Smith cut the Asbury Park lead to 8-6 with 11 minutes remaining before the half.

The rest of the half was nip-and-tuck on both sides of the ball. Asbury Park controlled the ball for seven minutes before losing the ball on downs. Highland Park took the ball from their own 29 to the Asbury Park 49, but Lashon Parkey was stopped cold on a fourth-and-one run with 2:03 remaining. With momentum on their side, the Blue Bishops marched down to the Owl eight-yard line, where Small threw for a touchdown to Taj Hammary with 17 seconds remaining, to give Asbury Park a 14-6 lead.

 

Following Stephens' touchdown return of the second half kickoff, the third period was an offensive disaster for the Owls. They were on the field for only eight offensive plays in the period and gained just four total yards after moving Smith to the quarterback position. A punt by Stephens in the third period glanced off a Highland Park player and was recovered by Asbury Park at the Highland Park 24. Three plays later, Small (4-of-12, 59 yards, two touchdowns) threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Lamar Davenport to give Asbury Park a 28-6 lead with 2:45 remaining in the quarter.

 

In the fourth quarter, Smith took the ball 35 yards down to the Asbury Park seven, but two plays later scrambling under heavy pressure, he was sacked and fumbled. Dajan Mindingall picked up the loose pigskin and raced 68 yards for the touchdown. Stephens ran in the second of his three conversions for an insurmountable 36-6 lead. Small, who had three interceptions on defense, capped the scoring with a 90-yard interception return for a touchdown.

The Owls offense was held to 142 total yards of offense. Strong defensive play was turned in by Smith and fellow seniors Louis Middleton, Mike Ryan, Bell, Parkey and David Webb, as well as sophomores Tyler Rios and Manny McClain.

After playing to the last whistle of the 2009 campaign with a 8-4 record, the Owls look to rebuild and reload in 2010.
"What you saw this year was old time Highland Park football," said head coach Rich McGlynn. "There are many teams and many players who never get to a game of this level. This is a tribute to the play of our seniors this season," McGlynn added.