WEST ORANGE, NJ – The Seton Hall Prep football team opened the 2019 season with a convincing 42-20 victory over Archbishop Carroll from Radnor, Pa. in the Rumble on the Raritan at SHI Stadium at Rutgers University in Piscataway on Saturday, Aug. 31. This is the first time the Pirates ever played at Rutgers and it is their first opening game victory since 2015 when they defeated Union City 21-6.
Seton Hall opened the scoring when senior Dominic Busby recovered a Archbishop Carroll fumble on a punt at the Seton Hall 47 yard line. The Pirates drove 53 yards in five plays as senior Matt Colantuono ran off left tackle from 12 yards out and junior Austin Kuterka added his first of six extra points with 11:32 left in the second quarter.
Later in the quarter, junior right defensive end Jack Larsen caused a fumble which he also recovered. The Pirates drove 54 yards in eight plays with senior quarterback Zander Zebrowski hitting Colantuono on an eight- yard swing pass for a touchdown to make the score 14-0 with 6:30 left in the second quarter.
The Patriots made the score 14-6 with 2:41 left.
Senior linebacker John Nicosia recovered a Archbishop Carroll fumble on the 39-yard line with :59 left. Zebrowski hit Giye Jenkins with a 15-yard touchdown pass in the left corner of the end zone as he out-jumped the Patriot defender with only :08 left to give the Pirates a 21-6 halftime lead.
Archbishop Carroll took the second-half kickoff and drove 68 yards in seven plays to cut the Pirates’ lead to 21-12. On the ensuing kickoff, junior PJ Penders ran it back 79 yards for the touchdown to make the score 28-12 with 9:03 left in the third quarter.
On their next possession, the Patriots drove 68 in nine plays to make the score 28-20 with 5:25 left. Seton Hall then drove 57 yards on eight plays on its next possession and extended the lead to 35-20 when sophomore Myles Thomason scored on a 33-yard run with 2:12 left.
Early in the fourth quarter, Seton Hall took over on downs on its own three-yard line. Colantuono scored on a 97-yard run where he stiff-armed a defender and sprinted past three more would-be tacklers on his way to the end zone to make the final 42-20.
Following the game, Colantuono said, “I like to run hard and down hill. I really like to thank my offensive line. If it wasn’t for them, I would not be doing what I am doing.”
Senior right guard captain Thomas Grippo said, “We are a great group of seniors who come to work every day. We are not going to shy away from anyone. Playing on a big stage at Rutgers was a great opportunity for us and it was a full team effort today and we were really excited.”
SHP head coach Bill Fitzgerald said, “It was a great day for the entire program, the players, coaches, students, alumni, and the administration. Everyone came together at a great venue like Rutgers University. I am very happy that we played a great game on all three sides of the ball, offense, defense, and special teams. All the hard work and preparation really paid off.”
SHP stats
Passing: Zebrowski: 11 of 15, 100 yards, 2 TDs.
Rushing: Colantuono: 22 carries, 203 yards, 2 TDs. Thomason: 6 carries, 1 TD.
Colantuono: 5 catches, 42 yards, 1 TD.
Defense:
Senior linebacker Nicosia: 16 tackles, 1 fumble recovery. Senior linebacker Busby: 13 tackles, 1 fumble recovery. Sophomore linebacker Jackson Collins, 10 tackles, 1 sack. Junior defensive back Penders: 10 tackles. Larsen: 9 tackles, 1 fumble recovery, 1 fumble caused, 1 sack. Jenkins: 9 tackles. Senior defensive back Ryan Monteleone: 9 tackles.
Next game: The Pirates will travel to Wayne to face DePaul on Sept. 6 at 7 p.m.
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