St. Joe’s Transfer QB Throws 4 TDs While Sophomore Dazzles in Debut with 3 TDs and INT
CHERRY HILL, NJ—The Woodbridge Barrons football team made a statement for themselves, the Big Central, and the rest of the Garden State against Winslow Township in the finale of the 2021 Battle of the Beach on Sunday night. Led by the poised play of senior QB Matt Stanton, and the inspired effort of sophomore A.J. Bosch, Woodbridge, ranked 5th in the Big Central Gridiron Pre-Season Top 10, gave the BCC a much needed 26-14 win over the Eagles from South Jersey, ranked 4th in the South Jersey Sports Zone Top 15, and 15th in the state according to NJ.com.
The Barrons had to overcome quite a bit to get the win. Much of it was prior to the game itself. Due to a flooded Carey Field due to significant rain in the Ocean City area on Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning, the final two games of the showcase were moved out of town to Camden Catholic High School near Philadelphia. Then, Woodbridge fell behind 8-6 after Winslow QB Hamas Duren hooked up with WR Cam Miller for a 26 yard TD pass and subsequent two point conversion with 10:23 remaining in the second quarter.
However, Woodbridge didn’t fret. Instead the Barrons relied much on the very same things that gave them a ton of success over the past two seasons: Winning the battle at the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball, solid running game and defense, and Stanton utilizing all of that as well as other offensive weapons such as senior Isaiah Allen and Bosch to manage the game effectively for the win. Stanton, a transfer from St. Joe’s, who was recognized by BCG as the Week 0 Player of the Week, was perfect in all 7 of his pass attempts for 138 yards and 4 TDs.
In addition, Stanton, who also added 27 yards rushing on five carries, tallied nearly 20 yards per pass completion, and amassed 165 total yards or about 61 percent of the team’s total offense. Bosch dazzled in his debut with 4 receptions for 76 yards, or 19 yards per catch, 3 touchdowns, 5 tackles, an interception and a caused fumble. Bosch accounted for 69 percent of the Barrons scoring in the contest. Allen, a standout player for the past two seasons in Barron Country, had 36 yards rushing on 6 carries, and 48 yards receiving on just two catches for 84 total yards and a touchdown.
Allen, who gave Woodbridge the lead for good at 14-8 lead going into halftime when he caught a 42 yard strike from Stanton with 3:58 left in the second, ended up with averaging 10.5 yards per touch on the game while compiling 3 tackles. Senior running back, Mike Calvert, led the Barrons in rushing with 68 yards on 17 carries while adding one catch for 14 yards. Calvert also accounted for a two point conversion following Allen’s TD catch in the 2nd while tacking on two tackles.
Woodbridge twin brothers Dylan and Jayson Bradley, also standouts in basketball, combined for 4 tackles, a tackle for loss, and a half a sack. Laz Lisojo also equaled the team high in tackles with 5 while defensive tackle Lamar Knight had four tackles including two for losses, and a caused fumble. The Barrons opening drive was a promising one, but ended empty handed as they fumbled the ball away in Winslow territory. The Eagles were on the move for a while until Bosch intercepted a Duren pass, and ran it back some to give Woodbridge the ball again.
Taking advantage of the turnover, Stanton and the Barrons methodically drove down the field with a combination of good inside running and short passing plays that culminated with Stanton’s first TD pass of the game to Bosch for 13 yards and a 6-0 WHS lead with 1:54 left in the first quarter. Winslow would respond though with a drive of its own that lasted some three and a half minutes before Duren struck Miller in the end zone, and moments afterward on the two point conversion to give the Eagles their only lead of the contest.
The Barrons then took over by scoring 20 unanswered points including two touchdowns and a two point conversion in the remaining 10:23 of the second. After Stanton hooked up with Allen for a score and Calvert added the two point conversion to give the Barrons a 14-8 lead with under four minutes to play in the first half, the Barrons got the ball back, and threatened again. Woodbridge would end up scoring on the final play of the first half as Stanton threw a short pass to Bosch, who then eluded tacklers as he scampered to the end zone from 44 yards out for a 20-8 halftime lead.
Woodbridge then capped its scoring run for its largest lead of the game at 26-8 with 2:38 to go in the third when once again, Stanton threw a flare out to Bosch, who then did the rest by running into the end zone from 13 yards out. Winslow then attempted to rally behind the arms and legs of Duren, who scrambled his way into scoring with a long keeper, and then followed that up by zipping a bullet to Trey Simmons from 15 yards out to close the gap to 26-14 after the two point conversion with 11:29 to play in the game.
After stopping the Barrons on their next possession, Winslow moved into scoring position once again, and got as far as Woodbridge’s 16 yard line when Duren’s first down pass to the end zone was deflected, and then intercepted by freshman Bryan Anderson with 6:28 to play in the game. The defensive stop essentially ended all hopes for an Eagles comeback as the Barrons were able to put the game away for the 26-14 victory. Woodbridge opens the season at 1-0, and will take on arch rival, Colonia in the annual Bragging Rights Game on Friday night at 7:00 PM at Nicholas A. Priscoe Stadium in Woodbridge.
DID YOU KNOW? Bryan Anderson, whose interception helped seal the win for the Barrons has a twin brother, Derek on the Barrons varsity football team. Both are the younger brothers of Kyle Anderson Jr., who was QB for Woodbridge under head coach Brian Russo, and was teammates with Anthony Nyers for three seasons from 2009 to 2011 before graduating WHS in 2012. In 2010, Anderson Jr, Nyers, and hoops standout Keith Hughes Jr. teamed up as sophomores to help the Barrons overcome an 0-4 start where they were outscored by a margin 112-22 to qualify for the state playoffs and beat top seeded Union before losing at Ridge in the North Jersey Section 2 Group 4 semifinals. Kyle Jr. also played basketball and baseball for the Barrons before going on to play football at TCNJ. He is now a physical education teacher at Scotch Plains-Fanwood, and is an assistant coach for football and basketball as well as freshman baseball coach. All three are the sons of Woodbridge councilman, Kyle Anderson Sr.
