HNT Football: Big plays, defense help Carteret beat Woodbridge
WOODBRIDGE - Quartius Byrd called it “lovely.” Antoran Chandler said it was “beautiful.”
The Carteret High School running backs were talking about the holes opened by the Ramblers offensive line in a 29-14 win over Woodbridge in a key Greater Middlesex Conference White Division game Friday.
Yes, running backs love those key blocks, as do all the skilled position players. Friday was mostly a game of big plays and defense for the Ramblers. Byrd unofficially rushed for 234 yards on 11 carries with touchdown runs of 76 and 49 yards. Quarterback Angelo Golino threw two scoring passes, a 65-yarder to Jalen Harris to open the game, and a 16-yard touchdown to Dwayne Sharpe. Holder Jarrod Tasnady added a two-point conversion run.
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Carteret led 21-6 at halftime, and cruised to the win as the teams traded touchdowns in the second half. Both squads were ranked in the Home News Tribune Top 10 — Carteret entered as No. 6, Woodbridge as No. 9.
With the win, the Ramblers (5-0 overall and in the GMC White) tied St. Joseph for first place in the division. Even though Carteret entered undefeated, some media members picked against them. For one, while Woodbridge (2-4, 2-3) had a losing record, the Barrons dropped heartbreakers to difficult South Plainfield and Manasquan by a combined four points.
The Ramblers had played one team with a winning record. They quickly — and for the whole game — showed they were for real.
“All in all, we got tested, and I think we responded,” Carteret coach Matt Yascko said. “We played well tonight. I hate to sound like a coach speak, but it’s one game at a time. We took care of this one and then we get ready for the next one.”
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On paper, it wasn’t easy. But on the play’s first game, Golino completed a pass to an open Harris just past midfield. The 5-foot-10, 170-pound senior took it in for the score despite almost getting tackled right before the goal line. James Hart kicked the first of his three extra points as Woodbridge led 7-0 just 20 seconds into the game.
“It kind of set the tone that we were going to be in attack mode for most of the night,” Yascko said. “And that’s what we did.”
Yascko said the call was for receiver Keanu Chapman, who hurt a knee on the play. Golino made a good read and found Harris for the touchdown pass. Chapman was limited the rest of the game.
Golino continued to make good decisions, and the running game took over. Chandler added 51 yards on 10 carries. The line of center Frank Coghan, guards Farhan Khan and Chris Pena and tackles Demetrius Ruiz and Skyler Daniels did their jobs.
“When the holes open up, it’s right there,” Byrd said. “For us running backs, it’s lovely if the line could block. Then we could run the ball. Without the line, we can’t do anything. And we just love the line.”
Of course, the runners have talent, as well. The “thunder and lightning” duo had combined for over 700 rushing yards entering the game. Friday, Byrd, the 6-1, 210-pound “lightning” senior gave Carteret a 14-0 lead with his 76-yard touchdown with 1:24 left in the first quarter. Byrd went up the middle, cut back and blazed down the left sideline for the long touchdown.
Carteret had its share of outstanding defensive plays, including wrestling star Khan getting a sack to force a punt in the second quarter and Jordan Demorla snagging an interception on Woodbridge’s two-point conversion pass after its first score. In the second half, Ruiz came up with two big sacks, one for a loss of 13 yards and the other for negative nine yards. Additionally, David Pierre had a tackle for a four-yard loss.
The score could have been higher, but Woodbridge twice held when Carteret had a first-and-goal with under four minutes remaining in the second quarter. On the first key play, Alex LaGrippo recovered a fumble inside the 5-yard line. On the second, the Barrons got the ball on downs after two sacks by Marquan Payne. Dylan Leone assisted on the second.
Woodbridge scored on a 20-yard run from Da’Avian Ellington, and on a 24-yard pass from Darin Tabon to Keshawn Henry. Quaasim Glover caught a two-point conversion.
As far as entering as an underdog, that doesn’t seem to bother the Carteret players.
“We don’t feed into that,” Byrd said. “We just work hard in practice and do what we got to do. We know that we got a big chip on our shoulder the rest of these games and what we’re going to keep doing is what we did today. Just keep pounding the ball and work hard in practice.”
And one other thing, that his running back mate Chandler also echoed, to “stay humble.”
CARTERET (5-0) 14-7-0-8-29
WOODBRIDGE (2-4) 0-6-0-8-14
SCORING SUMMARY
C – Harris 65 pass from Golino (Hart kick)
C – Byrd 76 run (Hart kick)
W – Ellington 20 run (pass failed)
C – Sharpe 16 pass from Golino (Hart kick)
C – Byrd 49 run (Tasnady run)
W – Henry 24 pass from Tabon (Glover pass from Tabon)
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing - C: Byrd 11-234, Chandler 10-51, Golino 10-8, Sharpe 3-14; W: Ellington 14-75, Henry 8-43, Daniels 1-0, Glover 1-minus 1, Don. Tabon 3-minus 24.
Passing - C: Golino 5-9-0-97; W: Don. Tabon 13-23-0-107.
Receiving - C: Harris 1-65, Sharpe 2-19, Raymond 2-13; W: Daniels 0-0, Glover 0-0, D. Tabon 0-0, Henry 6-52, Glover 4-33, Darin Tabon 2-13, Ramos 1-9.
