Football Recap: Matthew Belenko's Big Game Can't Quite Lead Middletown North over Rumson-Fair Haven + How To Watch

Middletown North lost against Rumson-Fair Haven back in October of 2020 and unfortunately they wound up with the same result on Friday. The Lions lost to the Bulldogs on the road by a 48-29 margin. While the Lions had to settle for second, they closed the game well in the third quarter, where they outscored the Bulldogs 13-7.

Middletown North lost despite a true team effort on offense. The best among them was Matthew Belenko, who rushed for 112 yards and one touchdown. Another player making a difference was Jack Viola, who picked up 89 receiving yards and one score.

Liam Kuntz had a dynamite game For Rumson-Fair Haven., rushing for 327 yards and a pair of TDs while picking up 12.1 yards per carry, and also throwing for 42 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

This is the second loss in a row for Middletown North and nudges their season record down to 2-2. Admittedly, the team was facing some tough opposition over that stretch, including 4-0 Red Bank Catholic (their opponents had an average overall winning percentage of 90% over those games). As for Rumson-Fair Haven, the victory made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 4-1.

Both teams are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. Middletown North will challenge Central Regional at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The Golden Eagles' defense has only allowed 11.6 points per game this season, so the Lions' offense will have their work cut out for them. As for Rumson-Fair Haven, they will get to enjoy the win for a while: their next game is against Red Bank Catholic at 7:00 p.m. on October 10.