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Point Borough defeats Manchester in NJSIAA state playoffs

Harry November 9, 2024

Point Pleasant – Point Pleasant Borough football is back as it always is: dominating opponents on the way to the division final. The Panthers earned a 49-14 victory over Manchester on Friday night, giving the team a chance to qualify for the Southern Group 2 division championship game for the third time in the last four seasons.

But to go even further, they will rely on a freshman class that was the last time the team captured the division title in 2021. No one exemplifies his return to the top better than Dylan Reitmeyer, the star of Friday night’s victory.

“The coaches really built this program from the ground up,” Reitmeyer said. “And we have strong kids from Point Pleasant and we’ve all been playing together for a long time. We just kind of come together and win games.”

Reitmeyer struggled with injuries that hindered him in past seasons, but he emerged as a senior, leading the team in rushing yards and scoring runs after scoring three against Manchester. His grit and determination carries over to the Panthers’ strong senior class, who came into the offseason determined to make this a breakthrough year for Point Boro.

“It all starts in the weight room,” senior defensive lineman Tanner Hynes said. “We work our asses off every week. That’s why we went out there today; we were pushing them back 5 to 10 yards every play.”

The contrasting sentiment that reminded the players why this work was necessary was echoed in reverse on the Manchester sideline, as Point Boro were unstoppable by pressing inside within the team’s flexbone triple option scheme. Even the outside runs returned to the inside to get behind a parade of powerful Panther blockers.

That raw power and excellent execution is why Point Boro was three points behind No. 1 Toms River North in the Asbury Park Press rankings at the start of the season. And he’ll be put to the ultimate test on the road next week when the Panthers face Camden in the division final.

“This team has done an outstanding job week in and week out with consistency in preparation,” head coach Brian Staub said. “It starts Monday in the weight room and then continues through Tuesday and Wednesday – we work hard.”

The formula hasn’t changed and neither have the results, thanks to players like Reitmeyer who set the tone for the entire group.

“Every day of practice should be great,” Reitmeyer said. “And that’s been it so far and we just want to take it every week and go out there and beat them.”

Point Boro beat error-plagued Manchester team

For the upstart Manchester Hawks to pull off an away defeat against powerhouse Point Boro, they needed to be perfect on Friday night. Instead, from the first capture to the final capture, they were beset with an unprecedented amount of self-inflicted wounds.

The first possession of the game looked promising for the first few plays, but a slanting pass from Aidan Lunn went through the receiver’s hands and was intercepted by Jake Clayton, creating the first of five straight Point Boro possessions that started in the opposition half. As always, the Panthers took advantage of every opportunity.

Such mistakes from Manchester were compounded by the fact that the Panthers almost always won the big moments. The Hawks forced a 4th-and-3 as they tried to stay strong defensively, with Reitmeyer kicking a 6-yard field goal for the first score of the game. The next Manchester possession also ended in disaster, with Point Boro’s Calvin Videon-Perino blocking a punt to put the Panthers in the Hawks’ red zone. Clayton finished the game with a quarterback sneak for a second touchdown.

Apart from the mistakes, Manchester faced a fatal early defeat with a controversial decision in games 4 and 1 as the Hawks looked to keep their comeback hopes alive. A Point Boro player was twice seen to be clearly offside without a flag, and the subsequent possession of the ball was also incorrect.

Controversial 4th defeat will lead Manchester to further disaster

Controversial 4th defeat further devastates Manchester against Point Boro

But the Hawks weren’t resilient enough after such setbacks either, and the Panthers’ execution was nearly perfect throughout the night. Just a few plays later, Clayton dashed down the sideline to score a 35-yard field goal, increasing the lead to 21-0.

Manchester responded by driving down the field and Lunn capped it with a 6-yard touchdown run, but the deficit was too great as the Hawks’ defense had no answer for the Point Boro offense. Brady Kirk returned a big kickoff to set up another Reitmeyer touchdown. The Panthers kept their foot on the gas pedal as they executed a surprise onside kick to regain possession of the ball in opponent territory.

The first game that followed was a rare display of air raids; Clayton threw a 45-yard touchdown pass to Videon-Perino that put the game behind us at halftime as Point Boro took a 35-7 lead.

Jake Clayton 45-yard touchdown pass to Calvin Videon-Perino

The Hawks responded before halftime with a pair of creative passes from Lunn to Dom Rekus and MJ Goins. But even in the second half their ability to steal possessions was ultimately undermined as Manchester fought for pride and points.

In contrast, the Panthers kept up the pressure even though backup quarterback Michael Ollendorf had several great runs and capped the win with the final touchdown pass. Point Boro was determined to go straight to the section final.

Hawks’ historic season approaching

While the final result was heartbreaking for a Manchester team hoping to follow up on its best season in school history, it was a breakthrough season for a program that had been under pressure for nearly half a century. The team reached the highest win total in school history after breaking that record last year and won its first playoff game in the football program’s history last week.

“They laid the foundation for the future of this town,” Manchester head coach Tommy Farrell said. “It’s emotional because these seniors have done so much for this program, but they won’t know it until weeks and years in advance. It’s just an honor. It hurts because we’re not really looking for moral victories, but yes, they are. They’ve done things that no one thought could be done.”

So many losses from the upperclassmen could make for a tough rebuild for the Hawks. But this year’s group set a new standard and secured its place in the history books.

What’s next: Point Boro eyes Camden

For the Panthers, this season is another great chapter in Point Pleasant Boro’s many-year restoration to its historic glory. But the final differentiating step is yet to come.

In past years, the Panthers have feuded with Willingboro because both teams have finished each other’s seasons in some way over the past three years. Two of these came in the division finals; including last year when Willingboro held on to win in the final minutes.

This year’s Camden squad (8-2) may be a completely different beast after defeating Willingboro 41-6 in the semifinals. Next week, two very different types of Panthers will face each other in the final of the South Group 2 section. Point Boro’s physicality will need to overcome Camden’s elite athleticism and speed. This will be the last such match between two teams hungry to take home the title.

Point Pleasant Boro 49, Manchester 14

Manchester 0 14 0 0 – 14

Nokta Pleasant Boro 14 21 14 0 – 49

1st quarter

Point Boro: 6-yard touchdown run by Dylan Reitmeyer (Jack Sullivan kick). Jake Clayton 1-yard touchdown run (Sullivan kick).

2nd quarter

Manchester: Lunn’s 6-yard goal (Ian Spicer kick). 7-yard touchdown pass from Dom Rekus to MJ Goins (spicer kick).

Point Boro: Clayton’s 35-yard touchdown run (Sullivan kick). Reitmeyer 2-yard touchdown run (Sullivan kick). Clayton, 45-yard touchdown pass to Calvin Videon-Perino (Sullivan kick).