Warriors of Manasquan down Spartans 47-14

By Walter J. O’Neill, Jr.

Ocean’s Eric Brandimarte (4) and Malcolm Beale (21) attempt to stop JD Teza (13) of Manasquan from making a catch. Teza had two catches for touchdowns in the 47-14 Manasquan win.

Struggling is the best word to describe the 2024 football season for the Spartans of Ocean Township. The latest labor occurred on October 5, on Vic Kuba Warrior Field at Manasquan High School. Ocean entered the game with a 1-3 overall record, while host Manasquan was 2-3.

For most of the first quarter it was a defensive battle. Then with 1:05 left in the quarter Ace Etienne of Manasquan scored on a seven-yard run. The extra point was good and the Warriors were up 7-0, and that is how the first quarter ended.

With 8:37 left in the first half, James Sobieski, senior quarterback for Ocean, handed the ball to Hayden Ansell, junior running back, who powered his way into the Warriors end zone for six points. The extra point kick was good and the game was deadlocked.

With just 29 seconds left in the first half with the game tied at seven, Manasquan had a fourth and goal at the Ocean four-yard line, and they completed a pass to JD Teza. The extra point kick was short, with the first half ending with a 13-7 Manasquan advantage.

The second half was all Manasquan as they scored three times. The first was a 25-yard run by Dylan Lu. The second was a 19-yard pass from Matt Antonucci to Teza. They were now leading Ocean 27-7.

With 1:12 left in the third quarter, Sobieski dropped back and threw a perfect 26-yard pass to Alex Staten, sophomore, for the touchdown. The extra point kick was good and Ocean was now down 27-14.

On the ensuing kickoff, Lu took the ball at his own 11-yard line and returned it 89 untouched yards for another Manasquan touchdown. With 57.4 left in the third quarter, the Warriors were now leading Ocean 34-14.

In the final quarter, Matt Schneider of Manasquan intercepted an Ocean pass and returned it 42-yards for the score. The last touchdown of the game was a five-yard run by Dax Klein, with a missed kick. But that was enough as Manasquan took a 47-14 victory. They improved to 3-3 overall and are 0-3 in the C North division of the Shore Conference.

Ocean drops to 1-4 overall and are 1-2 in the B North division. They started the season with a 10-6 win over Red Bank Regional and then lost 42-10 to Holmdel, 20-14 to Freehold Township, and 24-7 to Middletown North.

The Spartans have three games left on their schedule. October 10 they are at Matawan for a 6pm kickoff. They host Shore Regional on October 18, which is homecoming and then host Freehold Borough on October 25. Both home games have 7:00 p.m. start times.

More photos can be viewed at www.Facebook.com/TheLinkSports