Saturday’s South Jersey roundup: Penns Grove beats Salem, 27-21, as Mahki Scott makes game-winning tackle at goal line
Saturday's top performances and highlights from around South Jersey.
Mahki Scott’s game-saving tackle at the 1-yard line as time expired helped Penns Grove escape with a 27-21 win over Salem on Saturday.
The Red Devils broke a 6-6 tie in the second quarter as Nasir Robinson scored two of his three rushing touchdowns to give Penns Grove a 20-6 lead at halftime. Both teams went scoreless in the third quarter before Robinson notched his third score of the game with an 11-yard run to begin the fourth quarter and extend the Red Devils’ lead to 27-6.
Kaciir Street scored two consecutive touchdowns for the Rams, a 5-yard reception followed by a 14-yard run set up by a blocked punt, cutting the deficit to six with 4 minutes, 15 seconds remaining in the game.
Salem got the ball back with just under two minutes left and began to drive downfield, but that’s when Scott’s game-winning tackle halted the comeback and sealed the win for Penns Grove.
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St. Joseph scored 15 unanswered points in the second half and held Holy Spirit scoreless in the process to come back and win, 22-19. The Spartans had a chance to win in the final moments of the game, but they fumbled at the 2-yard line and the Wildcats recovered the loose ball to close it out.
Elijah Gray had rushing and passing touchdowns for Holy Spirit, while Patrick Smith took off for a 74-yard run in the first half to take a 19-7 lead at the break. Jayden Shertel then threw touchdowns to Cohl Mercado and Ahmad Ross in the fourth quarter before converting on a 2-point try to make it a 3-point game.
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Woodbury beat Haddon Heights, 35-14, as the Thundering Herd scored three touchdowns on the ground. Andre Parker and Derron Moore tallied rushing scores from 10 and 40 yards out, while Dominic Abatelli’s 25-yard interception return for a touchdown highlighted a 28-point first half for Woodbury.
Parker also had a passing touchdown to Maurice Taylor for 26 yards. The Thundering Herd held the Garnets scoreless in the second half as Teddy Lockhart’s 62-yard rushing score in the fourth quarter extended the lead to 21.
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West Deptford won the West Jersey Football League’s Colonial Division with a 63-0 win over Overbrook.
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Maple Shade beat Wildwood, 37-8, scoring 31 points in the first half and holding the Warriors scoreless until the fourth quarter. Justin Milligan threw two touchdowns for the Wildcats.