Football win at EHT, first place by Alexa Palmieri, highlight OCHS week

By TOM WILLIAMS

The first week of the 2018-19 school year was a big winner for Ocean City High School’s sports teams.

The football team defeated Egg Harbor Township, 25-6.

The two soccer teams were a combined 4-0-1.

The field hockey team was a winner, the girls tennis team won and the cross country teams combined for the best co-ed performance in the Cherokee Challenge.

Kevin Smith’s football team got strong performances from seniors Ian Aungst and Brandon Lashley in the win over EHT that was interrupted twice. There was a 30-minute delay per NJSIAA rules when lightning was seen in the vicinity of the Egg Harbor Township campus. And there was another 10-minute delay when media personality Pete Thompson was injured on the sidelines after three players collided with him. Thompson suffered a broken arm.

After EHT scored first on a pass from Steve Ramos to Sal Paschall with 3:50 left in the first half, Ocean City scored 25 unanswered points – 13 of them in the final three minutes of the half.

Aungst (8-17, 157 yards) hit Jake Schneider with a short pass and the sophomore cut across the field and, showing his great speed, blew past the EHT defense for a 60-yard touchdown play. Micah Waid’s extra point gave the Raiders a 7-6 lead.

Ocean City got the ball back but that threat seemed to end with an incomplete fourth down pass at the EHT goal line in the final seconds. However, a pass interference penalty gave the Raiders another chance. They took advantage when Aungst fired a pass to Lashley who made a diving catch into the end zone for a 13-6 halftime lead.

Early in the second half, Aungst scrambled around the field, doing his best Russell Wilson imitation, until he found a lane to the end zone for a 15-yard touchdown run. Then, with 5:25 left in the third quarter, Lashley picked off a pass and ran it back 94 yards for his second touchdown of the game. Jake Inserra (11 tackles), Travis Stoerrle (9), Brandon Lin (7), Austin Green (7) and Will Drain (2 sacks) sparked the OCHS defense.

The Raiders, now tied for first place in the West Jersey Football League’s Independence Division with Mainland and Oakcrest, open their home season on Friday at Carey Stadium against Bridgeton.

Aaron Bogushefsky’s boys soccer team won twice during the week. His Raiders defeated Cedar Creek, 5-0, with senior Matt Brook and freshman John Lindsay each scoring twice, Brook adding an assist. Senior Hunter Paone also scored. Junior Noam Levy-Smith had two assists and senior Trevor Paone had one. Senior Brian Calderon stopped four shots for the shutout in goal.

In a 4-2 win over Absegami, senior Luke Varallo scored twice with Lindsay and senior Matt Leap each scoring once. Hunter Paone had two assists with Brook and Lindsay each getting one. Calderon had six saves.

The Raiders host Mainland on Wednesday at Tennessee Avenue in a re-match of last year’s South Jersey Group 3 final.

Kelly Halliday’s girls soccer team played Shawnee to a 2-2 tie today at Carey Stadium. Ocean City had a 2-1 lead at the half but did not score again. Sophomore Paige Panico and senior Tori Rolls scored for the Raiders and sophomore Faith Slimmer had an assist. Junior Abbey Fenton stopped eight Shawnee shots.

In a 6-1 win over Cedar Creek, Faith Slimmer scored the three-goal hat trick. Junior Delaney Lappin, Panico and freshman Summer Reimet each scored once. Rolls had two assists with Slimmer, junior Katie Mazzitelli, freshman Hope Slimmer and sophomore Kelsey White each assisting on one goal. Fenton made three saves.

Fenton also stopped three shots for a shutout in a 6-0 victory over Absegami. Junior Carly Reighard scored twice with Lappin, Reimet, senior Anna Devlin and Faith Slimmer scoring once. Faith Slimmer had two assists with Reighard, Reimet, Rolls and Hope Slimmer each making an assist.

The OCHS girls host Middle Township on Monday at Tennessee Avenue.

Senior Reese Bloomstead had a three-goal hat trick in a 6-1 win by Kelsey Mitchell’s field hockey team over Vineland. Junior Jaclyn Charbonneau, sophomore Morgan Decosta and sophomore Tara McNally also scored for OCHS. Junior Chloe Prettyman had two assists and junior Courtney Stoerrle one.

Ocean City goes to Atlantic City on Tuesday and then hosts defending conference field hockey champion Millville at Carey Stadium on Thursday night.

The OCHS cross country teams had a combined score of 128 at the Cherokee Challenge today, 25 points better than second place West Windsor-Plainsboro South. The next best Cape-Atlantic League school was Mainland, which was eighth.

The Ocean City boys finished third behind Salesianum (DE) School and Freehold Township. The Cherokee Challenge breaks its races down by class. Tyler Greene was sixth for OCHS in the sophomore race. Owen Ritti came home 11^th in the freshmen race. Luke Kramer was 16^th in the junior race. And Gavyn Fox finished 25^th in the senior race.

The strongest individual performance by Ocean City was the first place finish by Alexa Palmieri (above) in the sophomore race, nearly five seconds in front of the field, that helped the Ocean City girls finish fourth as a team. Casey McLees was seventh in the junior race. Brooke Farr was 13^th in the senior race. And Kailey Grimley was 49^th in the freshmen race.

The Ocean City cross country teams open head-to-head competition Tuesday in a quad-meet with Bridgeton, Egg Harbor Township and Vineland that will finish at Carey Stadium. Matt Purdue’s boys bring an 88-meet win streak into the season and Trish Henry’s girls have won 60 of their last 61 meets.

Samantha DiMatteo’s girls tennis team defeated Absegami, 4-1. Gina Schmid and Kate Carter both won straight-sets victories in singles. The teams of Rosalie Graham-Brynn Bowman and Nicole Blum-Ashley Devlin were winners in doubles.

The Raiders play at Holy Spirit on Wednesday and are home against Mainland on Thursday.

Check out daily results and schedules at the Raider Diary – http://www.oceancitysports.com/OCDiary.html.