Red Bank Knocks Off No. 11 Matawan to Shake up the Class C North Race

Red Bank announced itself as a contender for the Class C North title on Friday night by handing visiting Matawan its first loss to a Shore Conference team this season with a 27-18 victory.

The Huskies, ranked No. 11 in the Shore Sports Insider Top 12, were coming off a 14-point win over Manasquan before the Bucs (2-1, 2-0) halted Matawan’s two-game win streak with their second straight win of the season.

Junior Kaden Jackson had a 75-yard punt return for a touchdown, senior Matt Huss ran for a pair of scores and senior Bennett Lopez had a two-yard touchdown catch to lead the way.

“This was huge,” first-year Bucs coach Tyler Karalewich said. “We know on our best day we can take on anybody. It’s not about what they can do. We knew they had weapons, but we had a good plan that we put together, and it really paid off for us.” 

Matawan (2-2, 1-1) had put up more than 30 points in two straight games behind a talented young offense led by a trio of sophomores: quarterback BlairCarter Gagneron, wide receiver Cayson Williams and running back Sean Euell.

“We knew that they had good athletes, but the thing about Red Bank Regional is we have good athletes, too — kids who compete and play hard every single down,” Karalewich said. “We wanted to single out their skill guys and put pressure in the face of their young quarterback. Our athletes we thought would match up well, and we proved that.” 

Senior outside linebacker Jah’mir Lane-Bailey continued his stellar season with two more sacks to give him four for the year. It came a week after the 6-foot-5 senior forced three fumbles in a win over Colts Neck.

“He was in the backfield wreaking havoc,” Karalewich said. “He worked so hard in the offseason to get to this point.”

The Bucs jumped out to a 14-0 advantage and took a 21-12 lead into halftime. Matawan closed the gap to 21-18 on a fumble return touchdown by Alex Liss in the third quarter, but Jackson answered with his punt return touchdown to push the lead back to nine.

Huss finished with over 100 yards rushing and also teamed up with his twin brother, Jay Huss, at linebacker to key the defensive effort. Lopez also was a force on defense in the win.

The victory sets up a pivotal Class C North game against Shore Regional next week on Red Bank’s home field. Shore plays Manasquan on Saturday, and if the Blue Devils lose it would put the Bucs alone in first place in the division. A win by Shore would set up a showdown for sole possession for first next week against Red Bank.

“(Shore head coach) Donnie Klein runs a great program, and they’re always tough,” Karalewich said. “We’re excited for the opportunity.”

Red Bank’s last division title came in 2015, when the Bucs went 11-1 and reached a sectional final.

Scott Stump is the football editor and a reporter for Shore Sports Insider. He first started covering Shore Conference football in 1999 and has covered basketball, baseball and seemingly every other Shore Conference sport at some point. 

Email: scottstump25@gmail.com