Shore Is One Win Away From State Title

By Walter J. O’Neill, Jr.      Photos by SportshotsWLB

One of the best kickers in the Shore Conference is Shore junior John Mazzacco (15)..

In week ten of the 2024 football season, the Blue Devils of Shore Regional are currently ranked tenth in the Shore Conference, with a perfect 10-0 record. This is an amazing accomplishment as the team graduated 16 players from last season and have a new head coach this year.

Football pundits has speculated that Shore Regional would have a “growing season” as new players and coaches would take time to meld. However, those experts underestimated the skills of the players and coaches.

Don Klein, who graduated from Shore Regional in 1997 and played quarterback for the Devils, was the head coach at Ocean Township High School for the past 17-years. He holds the record of the most wins as a Spartan head coach. “When the opportunity came up to coach at Shore Regional, it was one that I couldn’t refuse. It was the only coaching position that I would leave Ocean to take,” said Klein. He lives in Oceanport and one of his two daughters is now attending Shore Regional.

Klein hit the ground hard when he was appointed, holding meetings with the players, parents and community. He ran clinics during the summer, bringing in some of the top position coaches in the country. The result was a group of athletes who immediately bought into his style and philosophy. He also handpicked his coaching staff brining some from Ocean Township and keeping a few from last year’s Blue Devil squad.

“We set a few goals this year. Of course, one goal is to win the division, which we did. We also want to compete to be one of the top 10 teams in the Shore Conference. But the biggest goal is to win an NJSIAA title. And we are just one win away from that goal,” said Klein. It has been a very special year for Klein, taking over a program that finished 6-4 overall last year and were 2-3 in the Shore Constitution division. This year, the team went 6-0 in the D North division of the Shore Conference.

Going into the NJSIAA Central Jersey, Group 1 Sectional Final, the Blue Devils have outscored their opponents 325-61. That’s an average of 32.5 points per-game, and only giving up 6 points per-game. One of the first things Klein did when he took over was change the offensive scheme. For the past three decades, Shore was known as a running team with a limited passing game. “We have a strong kid at quarterback,” Josh Moeller has completed 77 of 112 passes for 1, 129 yards and 14 touchdowns. “He has only thrown one interception all season,” said Klein.

Running in for a Shore Regional touchdown in 17-7 NJSIAA Central Jersey, Group 1 semifinal win over Woodbury is Josh Moeller (9).

Shore has not abandoned their ground attack, as Cole Torres has 93 carries for 764 yards and seven touchdowns. Brendan O’Brien has 120 rushes for 640 yards and 13 touchdowns. Moeller has run the ball 40 times for 185 yards this season scoring four times.

The receiving core has been spectacular. Enzo Cagliastro has 20 catches for 296 yards and four touchdowns. Braeden Framer has 15 receptions going 202 yards and two touchdowns. Charlie McQuillian has nine catches for 192 yards and two scores while Jack Madalone also has nine catches for 192 yards and one touchdown.

The Devils also have one of the best kickers in the Shore Conference. John Mazzacco has made five of six field goal attempts with his longest being 32 yards. On extra-point kicks, he has made 38 of 43, for a grand total of 53 of the 325 points scored this season.

The hard nose defense that has only given up 61 points all season is led by Tommy Schroeder with 107 tackles. O’brien has 86, Mike Marotta has 63 and Torres made 30.

Tackles for a loss, Torres leads the team with 14, Schroeder and O’Brien each have 10, Marotta made seven and Rory Burkhardt has four. Sack stats had Torres with five, O’Brien two and Burkhardt and Schriappa each had one and half.

Shore also forced 12 fumbles this year with Schroeder causing four, O’Brien and Torres each had three, and Marotta two. Schroeder and O’Brien each recovered three fumbles, and Mazzacco picked one up and returned it 45 yards for a touchdown.

The secondary also had six interceptions this season. Cagliastro has four picks and one was returned 48 yards for a touchdown. Marotta and Jack Madalone each had one interception.

In the NJSIAA Central Jersey, Group 1 sectional playoffs, the Blue Devils were the two seed. They beat New Egypt 21-0 in the quarterfinals. Last Friday, they hosted and beat Woodbury 17-7 in the semifinals. That win enabled the Blue Devils to face top seed Woodstown on Friday, November 15, with a 7:00 p.m. kickoff for the Sectional final.

The last time Shore Regional was undefeated was back in 2015, when they went 12-0 and won the Central Jersey Group 1 title.