A strong start to the season for Marlboro was questioned after facing off against two of the Shore’s best in Middletown North and Rumson-Fair Haven. After killer losses to those powerhouses, questions were asked to see if the Stangs’ strong start was true or if the opponents were not worthy. This week’s game against Middletown South would tell a lot about the boys and whether or not they were what the first two weeks seemed.
Coming into the game, Marlboro was 2-2, coming off losses to Midd North and RFH. Midd South, which has been a dominant football program for its entire existence, was 0-4. Throughout the week, coaches preached that despite their record, they were no team to take lightly, as the Eagles had losses to Cherokee, Manalapan, RBC, and Holmdel. The latter two are the top two teams in the shore.
It was a beautiful night at the field the night of Friday, September 26th. The stang gang, dressed in all white, was ready for this all-important A-North showdown. The Stangs started the game out hot both offensively and defensively. In the first half, junior QB/DB Nick Dimino rushed for not one but two touchdowns, and the senior linebacker Jennaro Percodani led the boys to a 14-7 lead heading into the half. Finishing the half with a 95-yard touchdown drive, Marlboro was hoping to extend its lead with the first possession of the second half, which would demoralize the Midd South sideline and student section.
However, that was not the case. After a defensive third quarter left both teams with no points, the Eagles knew that it was do or die. Midd South chose do. A huge touchdown drive would tie up the game at 14, but the Stangs had faith that their offense would come through. After both teams traded punts throughout the final quarter, a Mustang turnover would set up Midd South at Marlboro’s 40-yard line. With less than 2 minutes remaining and a field goal being needed to take the lead, the Marlboro sideline still had hope. The Eagles would drive down the field and get all the way down to the Marlboro 2-yard line with 2 seconds remaining. Out trots their kicker to kick a 19-yard game-winning field goal. The Stang Gang was rowdy, and the sideline was howling. The boys needed a miracle.
And a miracle they got. The Eagles’ kicker miraculously pushed the kick wide left, sending the game to Overtime.
So here it is. Overtime in the most crucial game of the season thus far. The Mustangs would win the toss and give Midd South the ball first, so they would know what they needed to do to win the game. Out comes the mighty Mustang defense, which had been so stifling the entire game, until now. The Eagles easily scored a touchdown on the first play of overtime to take a 20-14 lead. The extra point would make this a 7-point game, but he missed again, doinking the ball off the right upright. With a touchdown and the extra point, the Stangs would win the game.
The offense takes the field, led by junior QB, Nick Dimino, and junior RB, Zack Mojares. They had performed well in the first half, but had completely cooled off in the second half. Failure was not an option for this offense with the game on the line. The first three plays of the drive went nowhere. On 4th down and 10 yards to go, it was do or die, but for Marlboro this time. Dimino takes the snap, under pressure, rolls left, flips to Mojares, Mojares tries to find a seam, and FIRST DOWN! The game was still alive! At least that’s what everybody thought. After a further review, the officials would decide that Mojares was tackled just a few inches shy of the first down marker, ending the game and giving Midd South their first win of the season.
An absolutely astonishing loss in such an important game was demoralizing for the Stangs, but the sights have to be set on next week’s game against Howell.
