Hillsborough had an unforgettable season last fall finishing 13-0 and winning the Group 5 South/Central Regional Championship.
A big group of stars at this club would like to keep that streak alive by helping their Devil Dogs team win tonight (Tuesday) against the Leathernecks in the Ninth Basilone Bowl at John Basilone Memorial Field in Bridgewater. Kick off is at 7 p.m.
The annual affair pits two teams with a mix of players from Somerset and Hunterdon counties (see rosters below) and is named in honor of the WWII hero US Marine Corps. Jean Basilone. The Raritan native won the Medal of Honor for outstanding service in the Battle of Guadalcanal in 1942 and was killed in action in Iowa Jima in 1945. How fitting this game is played on Flag Day.
A portion of the proceeds from the event, sponsored by the US Marine Corps, will go to the Robert Wood Johnson Cancer Center and the Fisher House Foundation, a nonprofit organization that provides housing services to military and veteran families.
Nine Hillsborough seniors from that crushing championship team have been selected to the Devil Dogs squad, and eight are expected to play, including two-way lineman Ethan McLaughlin, a second-team All-State selection last fall, the quarterback Jay Mazuera, running back/LB Tyler Michinard and linebacker Andrew Santa Barbara.
Tight end/defensive end Will Dixon, a third All-State team pick, was selected, but will not participate due to his commitments to various camps. The biggest star of this exceptional group, first-team All-State draft pick Thomas Amankwaa, graduated early and entered Rutgers for the spring semester.
The head coach of this Hillsborough team, Kevin Carty, will be the head coach of the Devil Dogs while the head coach of Montgomery, Zoran Milich, will hold that accolade for the Leathernecks.
Among the Leathernecks’ stars are Bound Brook quarterback Patrick LePoidevin, North Plainfield DB Keiahn Grenald, Montgomery center Brandon Furey, Delaware Valley tight end Logan Blake and Voorhees lineman Brody Shaner.
Joining the Hillsborough crew on the Devil Dogs is Bridgewater-Raritan quarterback Brady Kurdyla, Manville DB/kicker Brandon Flores, Hunterdon Central wide receiver Owen Bill and safety Franklin Moshood Babalola.
| No. | Player | School | pos. | HT. | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anthony Yakobchuk | Manville | OLB | 5-11 | 180 |
| 2 | Dylan Corsi | Bridgewater-Raritan | WR | 5-10 | 180 |
| 2 | Moshood Babalola | franklin | SS | 6-1 | 171 |
| 4 | Tyler Michinard | Hillsborough | RB/LB | 5-11 | 195 |
| 4 | Bill Owen | Hunterdon Center | WR | 6-2 | 186 |
| 5 | Grass tolerance | Pingry | OLB | 5-11 | 180 |
| 6 | Samy El Hadidi | Bridgewater-Raritan | LS | 6-2 | 210 |
| 6 | Brandon Flores | Manville | DB/K | 5-8 | 160 |
| seven | Nasan Colson | franklin | RB | 6-2 | 195 |
| 8 | Brady Kurdyla | Bridgewater-Raritan | QC | 6-2 | 205 |
| 8 | Matt Caruso | Pingry | QC | 6-1 | 175 |
| 9 | Frank Lentin | Hunterdon Center | QC | 6-3 | 190 |
| ten | Anthony Ruscetta | immaculate | WR | 6-3 | 205 |
| 11 | Ryan Driscoll | Bridgewater-Raritan | OF | 6-2 | 205 |
| 13 | James Mazuera | Hillsborough | QC | 6-0 | 190 |
| 13 | Trevor McCloughan | South Hunterdon | AND OF | 6-4 | 200 |
| 15 | Jason Gonzalez | Manville | WR | 5-10 | 150 |
| 17 | Joseph Carroll | Bridgewater-Raritan | KG | 5-11 | 200 |
| 19 | Nick Venettone | South Hunterdon | WR/DB | 6-0 | 170 |
| 21 | Shahkai Matthews | immaculate | comics | 5-6 | 155 |
| 22 | Jacob Ventura | Pingry | KG | 6-1 | 200 |
| 25 | Andre Santa Barbara | Hillsborough | DL | 6-0 | 230 |
| 25 | Nils Luke | Pingry | RB/CB | 5-10 | 175 |
| 26 | Brandon McNab | immaculate | OLB | 5-11 | 180 |
| 35 | Leo Schiro | Hillsborough | KG | 5-10 | 190 |
| 44 | Salvatore Volpe | Hillsborough | KG | 6-0 | 230 |
| 44 | Reilly Stevens | Bridgewater-Raritan | DL | 5-11 | 180 |
| 44 | Zach Ventura | Pingry | KG | 6-0 | 195 |
| 51 | Christian Martell | immaculate | OL/C | 6-0 | 215 |
| 52 | Josh Farrel | immaculate | OF | 6-0 | 185 |
| 52 | Nick Lewis | Hunterdon Center | DL | 5-11 | 230 |
| 55 | Ethan McLaughlin | Hillsborough | LO | 6-2 | 250 |
| 55 | John Nwachukwu | franklin | LO | 5-11 | 265 |
| 60 | Luc Moleski | Hillsborough | VS | 6-0 | 190 |
| 70 | Stephen Dowe | immaculate | LO | 6-1 | 230 |
| 70 | Nico Ayala Biondi | Manville | LO | 5-8 | 230 |
| 77 | Marc Gulla | Hillsborough | LO | 6-5 | 310 |
| 4 | Evan Goldberg | Bridgewater-Raritan | RB | 5-10 | 180 |
| 87 | Will Dixon | Hillsborough | AND OF | 6-5 | 230 |
| 87 | Matthew Messing | Bridgewater-Raritan | DL | 6-1 | 215 |
| No. | Player | School | pos. | HT. | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michael Knight | Northern Plain | KG | 6-2 | 225 |
| 1 | Josh Reid | Voorhees | WR | 5-10 | 190 |
| 2 | Alex Benitez | Montgomery | RB/K/P | 5-8 | 195 |
| 2 | Sharrod Tedder | bound stream | BC | 5-9 | 155 |
| 2 | Jaden Corbin | Delaware Valley | comics | 5-10 | 160 |
| 2 | Giovanni Menace | Northern Plain | BC | 5-7 | 175 |
| 4 | David Walch | Montgomery | AND | 6-4 | 215 |
| 4 | Jesus Sanchez | bound stream | KG | 5-9 | 185 |
| 4 | Keiahn Grenald | Northern Plain | comics | 6-0 | 185 |
| 4 | Daylen Joyce | Voorhees | AND OF | 6-1 | 210 |
| 5 | bird of jordan | Northern Plain | KG | 6-1 | 225 |
| 6 | Liam McManus | Montgomery | KG | 5-10 | 175 |
| 6 | Jayden Brimage | bound stream | WR/DB | 5-9 | 175 |
| 6 | Nick Gluckman | North Hunterdon | comics | 5-10 | 165 |
| seven | Marc Jenkins | Montgomery | WR | 5-8 | 155 |
| seven | Patrick Le Poidevin | bound stream | QC | 6-5 | 200 |
| 8 | Bryce Cobb | bound stream | RB | 6-1 | 200 |
| 8 | Will Letters | Voorhees | FS | 5-10 | 175 |
| 11 | Logan Blake | Delaware Valley | AND | 6-7 | 220 |
| 11 | Marvin Cruz | Northern Plain | WR | 5-10 | 190 |
| 12 | Aidan Mott | bound stream | WR | 5-10 | 160 |
| 15 | David Alvarez | bound stream | comics | 5-8 | 165 |
| 16 | Brian Hayward | Watchung Hills | WR | 5-10 | 180 |
| 18 | Andre Scopel | Watchung Hills | WR | 6-4 | 175 |
| 22 | Jason Agyman | Northern Plain | OLB | 6-3 | 180 |
| 34 | Ryan Drwal | North Hunterdon | DB/K/P | 5-11 | 175 |
| 50 | Leo Azcona | bound stream | LO | 6-3 | 240 |
| 51 | Scott Pursell | Delaware Valley | KG | 5-11 | 230 |
| 52 | Winston Hesse | North Hunterdon | LO | 5-8 | 225 |
| 53 | Andre Soumeillant | Montgomery | OF | 6-1 | 220 |
| 55 | Matt Schneider | Delaware Valley | DL | 6-2 | 215 |
| 60 | Tom Markovitch | North Hunterdon | LO | 5-10 | 220 |
| 60 | Brody Shaner | Voorhees | LO | 6-3 | 280 |
| 61 | Amsony DeSir | bound stream | LO | 6-5 | 265 |
| 62 | Tim Torrey | Delaware Valley | OF | 5-10 | 200 |
| 65 | chris huljack | Watchung Hills | DL | 6-0 | 235 |
| 74 | Sean Krug | Watchung Hills | DL/LS | 6-3 | 220 |
| 77 | Brandon Fury | Montgomery | LO | 6-0 | 295 |
| 82 | Jalen McDaniel | Montgomery | OF | 6-1 | 210 |
| 5 | Chris Schenkel | North Hunterdon | KG | 6-0 | 195 |
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Mike Kinney can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @MikeKinneyHS.
