Kittatinny to play Lenape Valley in opener

The Kittatinny Regional High School football team finished last season with a 5-5 overall record.

That included winning the last four games, outscoring opponents by a combined 126-57 during that span.

The Cougars are hoping to keep that positive momentum going into the 2024 season.

They will begin the regular season with a road contest at Lenape Valley on Friday, Sept. 6 after a scrimmage against Brearley at 3 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 29.

The first home game will be Sept. 14 against High Point.

“We want to compete for a league title and qualify for the state playoffs,’’ head coach Joe Coltelli said.

Among the key returning players are seniors Jorden Pflugfelder (offensive line and defensive line), Aaron Pflugfelder (offensive line and defensive line), Will Wallace (offensive line and defensive line) and Jacob Fryer (tight end and linebacker); juniors Jack Brex (quarterback and defensive line), Kevin O’Keefe (running back and linebacker), Niko Martinez (split end and defensive back) and Jaden Roberts (running back and defensive back); and sophomores Shane Weiss (offensive line and defensive line) and Mike Strong (split end and defensive back).

Promising newcomers include junior Shane Carman (tight end and strong safety) and sophomores Keegan Monahan (quarterback and linebacker), Justin Bair (running back and strong safety), Lucas Inglima (running back and safety), Jakub Chaberek (offensive line and linebacker), Trevor Greenwood (offensive line and defensive line) and Billy Jackson (offensive line and defensive line).

Leadership will be important to the Cougars’ success this year.

Kevin O’Keefe and Jorden Pflugfelder are the team captains “and showed great leadership last year as captains,” Coltelli said. “I hope they can lead by example and also motivate our new players as well as the returners.’’

Kittatinny competes in the Super Football Conference American Blue Division along with High Point, Lenape Valley, Hackettstown, Newton and Sussex Tech.

“We are a young team with only six seniors,’’ the coach said. “If our offensive line develops and our young players mature quickly, we can be a contender.’’