Seton Hall Prep football team rallies past Delbarton in thrilling season opener

Jeff Goldberg Published: August 29, 2022 | Updated: August 30, 2022 3 minutes read

Seton Hall Prep head coach Bill Fitzerald and the Pirates stand during the national anthem.

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WEST ORANGE, NJ — The Seton Hall Prep Pirates opened the 2022 football season on a hot afternoon at Brendan P. Tevlin Memorial Field in West Orange with a come-from-behind 32-27 victory over Delbarton before a crowd of more than 2,500 on Saturday, Aug. 27.

Starting his first varsity game, junior quarterback Liam Londergan was very impressive, throwing for 303 yards and three touchdowns, slinging the ball all over the field.

On the first drive of the season, the Pirates went 80 yards in five plays and scored when senior Mason Mac took a jet sweep 29 yards for a touchdown and junior Jack Catchpole Jr. added the extra point for a 7-0 lead just 2:29 into the first quarter.

Delbarton scored a touchdown in the first quarter and two touchdowns in the second quarter before Seton Hall took the ball over on downs with 1:05 left in the second quarter. Londergan then led the Pirates down the field, capping off the 75-yard drive with eight seconds to play in the half with a 2-yard touchdown pass to Brody Davis, making the score 21-14 at the half.

In its first possession in the third quarter, Seton Hall drove 75 yards in 11 plays with junior Luigi Pantano scoring from 5 yards out, cutting the Delbarton lead to 21-20 with 3:18 left in the quarter. After a Delbarton punt with 1:31 left in the quarter, the Pirates in the fourth quarter drove 55 yards in 11 plays, and Londergan found junior wide receiver Julius Vicari in the back of the end zone with a 2-yard touchdown pass to give the Pirates a 26-21 lead with 7:09 left in the game. Delbarton scored on its next drive to retake the lead at 27-26 with 5:16 left. After the teams traded possessions, the Pirates took over the ball on their own 39-yard line after a Delbarton punt and drove 61 yards in eight plays, with Londergan finding Vicari for the go-ahead touchdown with 24 seconds left in the game for a 32-27 lead.

Following the game, SHP head coach Bill Fitzgerald said about Londergan’s play, “He is a tremendous young man and competitor. He is a great all-around athlete. He is a real gunslinger, and, as he gets better, he will become more of a quarterback.”

Londergan said, “On the final drive I had to man up and lead the team down the field to get the score. The receivers did an outstanding job today.”

Notes: With this victory, the Pirates and the Green Wave each have won five games in the all-time series. On Saturday, Sept. 3, Seton Hall Prep will participate in the Rumble on the Raritan against Pope John XXIII (Sparta) at SHI Stadium at Rutgers University in Piscataway.

SHP game stats against Delbarton:

Passing: