High Point defeated in sectional semifinal

A great season for the High Point Regional High School Wildcats came to an end Friday, Nov. 8 with a 35-18 loss to top seed Glen Rock in the semifinal round of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) North Jersey, Section 2, Group 2 Tournament .

After an 8-1 regular season, High Point, seeded fourth, beat fifth seed Becton, 46-6, in the quarterfinal round Nov. 1.

In the game against Glen Rock (9-1), the Panthers pulled ahead in the second half after a fairly balanced first half.

With Glen Rock ahead, 14-0, in the first quarter, High Point responded. Junior Jerron Martress was able to punch the ball in on a three-yard rush after a long drive for Wildcats. The defense tightened up, forcing multiple Glen Rock 3-and-outs, giving the offense great field position.

High Point continued its success in the second quarter. Senior quarterback John Elko was able to convert on multiple third downs as he led the offense down the field.

Mattress scored his second touchdown of the night on a nine-yard run, making the score 14-12 at halftime.

Glen Rock returned the opening kick of the second half nearly 95 yards and ran the ball into the end zone a play later to push its lead to nine points.

Elko and the High Point offense struggled to move the ball in the third quarter, as the Panthers extended their lead with a 60-yard touchdown.

For most of the night, Glen Rock spread out the High Point defense, with senior quarterback Nick Atme throwing for more than 200 yards and two touchdowns.

As the time ticked down, Elko led a late drive that culminated with a 14-yard touchdown reception by junior Slade Miller. After an unsuccessful two-point conversion attempt, Glen Rock was able to milk the clock and come out on top.

Elko threw for 133 yards while racking up another 86 yards on the ground.

“We had a chance to cut it to one score and threw a pick. It happens; these are kids,” said head coach Bill Percey.

Despite the loss, the season was a massive success for High Point.

Led by Percey, the team finished the season with a 9-2 record, its best mark in more than a decade.

“This is a very historical season and it’s very emotional ending like this, but I know these guys behind me are going to do great things next year and this is really a building block for the program,” said Elko.

After the Wildcats’ 3-6 record a season ago, Percey and the coaching staff wanted to make sure that this year was different.

“We started this journey back in January and these kids bought in right away,” he said. “We were well-prepared. The kids balled out and I couldn’t be more proud of them.”

Glen Rock will play Hanover Park (9-1) in the sectional final at 6 p.m. Friday, Nov. 15 at home.

Pope John wins

Pope John defeated Camden Catholic, 42-7, in the NJSIAA Non-Public, Group B Tournament at home Saturday, Nov. 9.

The sixth-seeded Lions (3-7) will face third seed Paramus Catholic (4-6) in the quarterfinal round there at 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 15. They lost to that team, 49-29, on Sept. 7.

In the game against 11th-seed Camden Catholic (9-1), Tylik Hill made four touchdowns for Pope John and Luke Gialanella added two more. Omar Daniel kicked six extra points.

Nymir Daily made the only score for Camden Catholic, and Matthew Kilic kicked the extra point.

Hill rushed for 210 yards in the game and Gialanella for 89.

Lions quarterback Luke Irwin completed five of 12 pass attempts for a total of 96 yards.