It was a damp night at the former swamp in Middletown South last night, and the home team went on to beat Wall 27-7.

Middletown South, the #2 team in the NJVarsity Top 25, did this with minimal contribution from star running back Knowshon Moreno. Moreno is still feeling the effects of a sprained ankle. It didn't matter, as South was clearly the better team.

South struck first on a drive that started on the 50 yard line. On the drive's fifth play, QB Matt Walsh hit WR Mark Longo on a fade pattern for a 29 yard touchdown and a 6-0 South lead, with 3:28 left in the first quarter. Wall answered back when QB Chad Tirpack connected with WR Adam Mancino for 33 yards down to the South 30. The drive ended on 4th and 7 on the 17 when DL Andrew Poulson sacked Tirpack for a 9 yard loss. South took over and marched down the field, sharing the wealth. Moreno had some carries, along with Trent McCray, Walsh, and Keith Heaney. They struck gold when Walsh scrambled around and found WR Dayon Lane for a 21 yard score with 3:26 left in the half. The two point conversion try was unsuccessful and it was 12-0 Middletown South at halftime.

Wall had its chance early in the third quarter. Walsh fumbled for South and Tyler Richards recovered for Wall on the South 19. South's Eric Daneman intercepted on the 7 yard line, killing Wall's opportunity. Wall had the ball again at midfield when South's Longo picked off Tirpack's throw and ran 62 yards for the score. This time, the point conversion was successful. It was 20-0 Middletown South, with 3:01 left in the third quarter.

Wall engineered a drive from its own 39, carrying over into the fourth quarter. With 8:48 left, Tirpack found Steve Bower in the end zone with a circus catch and a Wall touchdown. Bower was down on the ground, reached out, and caught it. He may have done it with one hand and it will surely be one of the Catches of the Year. 20-7 Middletown South. After a kick return to its 45 yard line, South needed six plays to close out the scoring, as McCray ran it in from 3 yards out. 27-7 with 5:10 remaining.

Middletown South has enjoyed enormous success over the years. Much of their recent success has revolved around Moreno and LB Nick Macaluso.

However, the team has many good players, among them LB/FB Keith Heaney and WR/CB Mark Longo. Both are seniors with great potential for playing football in college.

Heaney is an excellent linebacker who played defensive end last year. He has also been getting some chances to run the ball this year. "I like to mix it up on offense, but with Knowshon, I don't get many looks," said Heaney. "It's tough being on the team with two great kids who are going to go bigtime. I'm there, too, and hopefully I'll get noticed."

Head Coach Steve Antonucci appreciates Heaney. "He's very good, a great kid, and a great player," said Antonucci. "With Macaluso there, he gets overshadowed. With #44 (Macaluso) there, people forget #35 (Heaney) is standing there right next to him."

Antonucci also had praise for Longo. "He's another guy who gets overlooked, overshadowed. He's 6-2, weighs 215, and runs a 4.5 40. We don't throw the ball around much and he doesn't get a chance to do what he's capable of doing. On defense, he gives us a great corner, with size and speed. If he makes plays like he did tonight, he could be a scholarship player as well."

Longo was satisfied with tonight's game. "We played very well as a team and didn't let up too many big plays," said Longo. "My interception gave us great momentum."

When asked about his run after the interception, he said, "I cut it up around the 50 yard line, saw a lot of great blocking, went up the sideline, and scored." He's very good at executing the fade pattern. "It's a play we work on a lot. With a great tailback like Knowshon, teams stack a lot of guys in the box. We're trying to throw the ball around a little, and free up the running game."

South came up with a great effort. "It's a great win for us, our kids played well tonight," said Antonucci. "I couldn't have asked for a better performance. Our star running back showed up tonight, wanted to give what he could, he wasn't able to do it. The guys who get overshadowed stepped up tonight and did a nice job. There's some good football players here. We're not a one man show, with Walsh, Dosil, McCray, Heaney, Longo, and our defense."

The defense has a long tradition at Middletown South. "Defense wins championships. That's been the motto here for a long time. It never changes," said Antonucci. "When you play good defense, you can win any kind of championship. Even Wall; last year they weren't the greatest offensive team, but their defense kept them in games. That's how you win. We count on our defense every week to do what they do. Even if we have the players we have on offense, I count on our defense."

The drive from Bergen County down to Middletown was worth the trip. It was a very intense game with great hitting. I was very impressed.