No. 6 Manalapan holds off furious comeback bid by St. John Vianney

MANALAPAN — All bets are off when the lights are on at Church Lane. If it can happen, it probably will during a Manalapan football game. Friday night offered the latest example.

Leading by as many as four touchdowns in the second half, including a 24-point cushion with 7:07 remaining, the Braves, ranked No. 6 in the Shore Sports Insider Top 12, barely held off a furious comeback attempt by St. John Vianney to earn a 38-35 victory in a scintillating Shore Conference Class B North showdown.

After recovering a St. John Vianney onside kick with 2:11 to play, Manalapan needed at least one first down to run out the clock. Facing a third-and-1 at the 49-yard line, senior running back Ah’sere Woolfolk broke free for a 31-yard gain that clinched Manalapan’s fourth straight win. The Braves are now 4-1 and 2-0 in Class B North, tied with Wall atop the division standings.

“The kids have been showing resilience all year,” Manalapan head coach Dom Lepore said. “We let them back in — it’s 35-7 and all the sudden it’s down to a three-point lead — but the kids stepped up and finished at the end.”

Woolfolk ran for 116 yards and three touchdowns on 13 carries to lead a Manalapan ground attack that churned out 205 yards and four touchdowns. Senior running back Nick Friscia added a touchdown run, while senior defensive back DJ Corsaro returned an interception for a touchdown and senior kicker Jonathan Weinberg connected on a 32-yard field goal that provided the eventual game-winning points.

“We just had to fight and put our foot on their neck and push through for the win,” Woolfolk said.

“It was definitely a huge win, but toward the end we have to clean that up, we cannot let them back in the game like that,” Corsaro said. “But the first three quarters we played almost perfectly. It was a huge division win to get to 2-0.”

After an inconsistent first three quarters, St. John Vianney senior quarterback Zach LaBarca was electric in the fourth to nearly rally the Lancers to an improbable win. As the third quarter was winding down, the game was closer to having a running clock than it was to St. John Vianney getting within striking distance. Yet, with 2:14 remaining, the Lancers had scored on four straight possessions to pull within three points. LaBarca threw for a career-high 319 yards with four touchdowns and two interceptions, and added 46 yards rushing and a touchdown plus a 2-point conversion run.

Junior Brayden Delavega caught four passes for 100 yards and a touchdown, while senior wide receivers Adam Urs and D.J. Carter and senior tight end Thomas Foley each had touchdown receptions.

Emerging from the locker room with a 21-7 halftime lead, Manalapan opened the third quarter with a 65-yard scoring drive that extended its advantage to 28-7 on a 6-yard touchdown run from Woolfolk. The lead grew to 35-7 with 2:22 left in the third when senior defensive back Dean Avilies intercepted a pass and Friscia polished off a 46-yard drive with a 13-yard touchdown run.

The game seemed out of reach for St. John Vianney, and even when the Lancers got back into the end zone on LaBarca’s 10-yard scamper on the second play of the fourth quarter, a comeback appeared unlikely. If not there, then certainly when the Braves answered by driving from their own 25-yard line to the SJV 15 and settling for a 32-yard field goal by Weinberg. Manalapan led 38-14 with 7:07 on the clock.

Down by 28 points after three quarters, St. John Vianney sped up its offensive tempo and took deep shots downfield, and the result was an offense that scored 28 points and gained 12 first downs in the fourth quarter alone.

Taking over at their own 30-yard line following Weinberg’s field goal, the Lancers needed just four plays to get back into the end zone. After two incomplete passes, LaBarca hit Carter for 11 yards and a first down to the 41-yard line. On the next play, Carter got behind the Manalapan secondary and LaBarca hit him in stride for a 59-yard touchdown. Vianney attempted a two-point conversion but the pass was ruled incomplete when the intended receiver didn’t have full control of the ball before going out of bounds.

SJV then forced a three-and-out to get the ball back at its own 25-yard line with 4:46 left. It took the Lancers just 72 seconds to zoom 75 yards and pull within two scores as LaBarca connected with wideout Khalyd Goodman-Ware for 11 yards, running back Danny Breen for 14 yards, Foley for 14 yards, and Breen again for 17 yards down to the Manalapan 19-yard line. On second down, LaBarca hit Urs in stride in the back-right corner of the end zone and then ran in the 2-point conversion. Just like that, Manalapan’s lead had been chopped to 38-28 with 3:34 left.

St. John Vianney then recovered the ensuing onside kick, and that’s when the Manalapan faithful really began to sweat. A defensive pass interference penalty moved the ball to the Manalapan 37 and LaBarca ran for 10 yards on first down. Completions to Noah Fitzpatrick and Delavega gained a first down at the 16-yard line and a catch by Urs advanced the ball to the 10. LaBarca moved the chains with a 5-yard run, and on second-and-goal, he lofted a pass to the back of the end zone where the 6-foot-6 Foley skied over his defender to haul in a 5-yard score.

Down 35-7 at one point, Vianney had surged to within a field goal with 2:14 to go. Time was not on the Lancers’ side, however, so they had no choice but to attempt another onside kick. They were flagged for an illegal formation for having too many players lined up on one side of the field, which pushed the kickoff back five yards. SJV tried for a pooch kick but Manalapan recovered at its own 42-yard line.

The Braves were not home free yet, but there was little doubt who would get the ball with the game on the line. Ryan Melendez gained six yards on first down before Woolfolk gained three on second down to bring up third-and-1. Woolfolk took the handoff and looked to cut around left end, but a pair of SJV defenders appeared to have the angle on him. The senior would not be deterred and outraced the SJV defense to the edge where he turned upfield for the first down and more. His 31-yard gain down to the 20-yard line made St. John Vianney burn its final timeout and allowed Manalapan to take a knee and escape with a critical victory.

“I just used my speed,” Woolfolk said. “It was a foot race and I beat them to the outside.”

The first half felt like a footnote by the time the final whistle was blown, but it was over the first two quarters where Manalapan set the tone and established its lead.

St. John Vianney had moved to midfield on the game’s opening series, but on third-and-10, LaBarca’s pass on a screen sailed high and right into the arms of Corsaro. The senior weaved his way through any would-be tacklers and into the end zone for a 50-yard pick-6 and a 7-0 Manalapan lead 2:41 into the game.

“We prep for that,” Corsaro said. “They came out in a trips set with the running back to the side, and that’s usually a pass, knowing the down and distance. I saw the screen going to No. 1, I jumped it, he overthrew it a little bit, and I just took it to the crib.”

Vianney then went three-and-out and Manalapan took its first offensive possession at its own 45-yard line. Woolfolk ran for 18 yards on first down and, on fourth-and-6 from the 34, junior quarterback Cameron Desfosse threaded a pass to Melendez for 19 yards and a first down. On the next play, Woolfolk burst up the middle and plowed through a defender at the 5-yard line on his way to a 15-yard touchdown run that put the Braves ahead, 14-0, with 3:37 left in the first quarter.

Woolfolk averaged 8.9 yards per carry and was rarely taken down by the first tackler. For a 5-foot-9, 175-pound running back, he packs a punch to go along with his speed and agility.

“His heart, his work ethic; he doesn’t go down on first contact,” Corsaro said. “That intensity and fire he brings, it’s hard to stop him.”

“He’s such a polished runner,” Lepore said. “He plays bigger than his pads, runs hard and his feet never stop. And he’s so experienced. I feel like he’s been here for 10 years.”

The remainder of the first-half scoring occurred in a span of just five plays. SJV got on the board on the first play of the ensuing series when Delavega caught a short pass and took advantage of an over-pursuing cover defender to race 62 yards for a touchdown.

Manalapan answered with a quick 4-play, 73-yard drive to retake a two-score lead at 21-7. On third-and-10, Desfosse connected with Melendez for a 47-yard gain to the Lancers’ 33-yard line. Woolfolk took it the rest of the way with a 33-yard touchdown run. The teams then traded punts before Vianney turned the ball over on downs at the Manalapan 31 in the final seconds of the half.

After a season-opening 36-35 loss to Staten Island’s Tottenville in which they nearly rallied from a 22-point first-quarter deficit, Manalapan has won four in a row with victories over Middletown South, Jackson, Howell, and St. John Vianney. It hasn’t always been pretty, but Manalapan will head into October tied for first place in Class B North. The Braves host Brick (3-2) in a non-divisional game next week before traveling to Wall for another major division game where first place will be on the line.

If this season has proven anything, it’s that nothing is off the table. One thing that can be counted on is Manalapan delivering the drama.

“That’s Manalapan,” Corsaro said. “We always find a way to make it a thriller.”

 

Box Score

No. 6 Manalapan 38, St. John Vianney 35

 

	SJV	Manalapan
First downs	19	17
Rushes-yards	20-92	39-205
Passing	19-30-2	9-12-0
Passing yards	319	142
Fumbles-lost	0-0	1-0
Penalties-yards	5-40	4-35

 

	1	2	3	4	F
St. John Vianney (2-3, 1-1)	0	7	0	28	35
Manalapan (4-1, 2-0)	14	7	14	3	38

 

Scoring Summary

M — DJ Corsaro 50-yard interception return (Brandon Kaplan kick)

M — Ah’sere Woolfolk 15-yard run (Brandon Kaplan kick)

S — Brayden Delavega 62-yard pass from Zach LaBarca (Justin Campesi kick)

M — Ah’sere Woolfolk 33-yard run (Brandon Kaplan kick)

M — Ah’sere Woolfolk 6-yard run (Brandon Kaplan kick)

M — Nick Friscia 13-yard run (Brandon Kaplan kick)

S — Zach LaBarca 10-yard run (Justin Campesi kick)

M — Jonathan Weinberg 32-yard field goal

S — D.J. Carter 59-yard pass from Zach LaBarca (pass failed)

S — Adam Urs 19-yard pass from Zach LaBarca (Zach LaBarca run)

S — Thomas Foley 5-yard pass from Zach LaBarca (Justin Campesi kick)

 

Individual Statistics

RUSHING — SJV: Zach LaBarca 8-46, Danny Breen 7-30, Corelii Thomas 4-14, Adam Urs 1-2; M: Ah’sere Woolfolk 13-116, DJ Corsaro 1-31, Nick Palmieri 10-25, Ryan Melendez 5-21, Nick Friscia 6-18, Cameron Desfosse 3-1, Team 1-(-7).

PASSING — SJV: Zach LaBarca 19-30-2, 319; M: Cameron Desfosse 9-12-0, 142.

RECEIVING — SJV: Brayden Delavega 4-100, D.J. Carter 2-70, Adam Urs 5-50, Thomas Foley 4-49, Danny Breen 2-34, Khalyd Goodman-Ware 1-11, Noah Fitzpatrick 1-5; M: Ryan Melendez 3-69, Nick Friscia 4-52, Nick Palmieri 1-15, Justin Carlson 1-6.

INTERCEPTIONS — M: DJ Corsaro 1-50, Dean Avilies 1-10.