St. Joseph Regional celebrates a milestone victory against Don Bosco Prep.
Photo by Vin Carchietta
For the first time since 2004,
St. Joseph Regional (Montvale, N.J.) won its Thanksgiving rivalry game against
Don Bosco Prep (Ramsey, N.J.) as the Green Knights dominated defensively in a 20-10 victory over the Ironmen at Granatell Stadium in Ramsey on Thursday.
St. Joseph Regional led 13-3 after jumping to a 10-0 advantage, thanks to a
Mark Fossati field goal and a touchdown by
Brion Wynn.
The Ironmen responded with a field goal to narrow the gap to 10-3, but Fossati stuck again before halftime.
In the second half, the St. Joseph defense continued its dominance. The defense, which has struggled at times this season, shut down Don Bosco's offense.
Troy Kay, St. Joseph Regional
File photo by Ray Passaro
Led by
Troy Kay, who spent his first two seasons at Don Bosco Prep, St. Joseph allowed only one touchdown to an offense that came into the game averaging over 35 points per game.
Looking to put the game away, St. Joseph head coach Tony Karcich called for a fake field goal. The Green Knights executed, and Fossati found the endzone again to make it 20-3.
Don Bosco got a late touchdown catch from
Tom Sweeney but St. Joseph recovered the onside kick.
The loss by Don Bosco was its first in-state defeat since 2005, when it went down by 22-15 to St. Peter's Prep in the non-public Group IV finals.
With victories over Don Bosco Prep, Bergen Catholic and St. Peter's Prep, St. Joseph Regional will be the top-ranked team in the state next week for the first time since 2004.
Both teams are still alive in their respective playoff brackets. Don Bosco Prep plays rival Bergen Catholic next weekend; St. Joseph Regional faces Red Bank Catholic.
