NEPTUNE, NEW JERSEY – It was a Thursday night to remember for sophomore Isaias “Ikie” Calderon, as he led the Neptune Scarlet Fliers to a 26-20 overtime upset over the Freehold Boro Colonials at Summerfield Elementary School.
Calderon rushed for 50 yards on nine carries and scored three touchdowns in the win against the top-ranked team in the Shore Conference.
Scarlet Fliers improve to 1-1
Photo by Steve Goldberg
Calderon’s first touchdown came on defense when he recovered a fumble by Freehold Boro quarterback Derrick Bender and ran it back 40 yards for the score.
With 3:30 remaining in the fourth quarter and Neptune trailing 20-12, Calderon had a 5-yard touchdown run which allowed the Scarlet Fliers to tie the game on a successful 2-point conversion.
In overtime, the Scarlet Fliers had first possession, and Calderon ran for a 2-yard touchdown to give Neptune a 26-20 lead.
The overtime rules allowed Freehold Boro to have an opportunity on offense, but the Neptune defense was able to keep them out of the end zone. The Colonials moved the ball to the 3-yard line, but quarterback Derrick Bender could not find his receiver on a screen pass behind the line of scrimmage on third-and-goal, which resulted in a loss of 17 yards. Martin Corso was brought in to play quarterback on the ensuing play, but failed to pick up the 20 yards needed for a touchdown on fourth-and-goal. The Neptune bench charged on to the field in exhilaration as the Scarlet Fliers pulled off the upset.
“Coach was in my head telling me to calm down, that they’re going to give me the ball,” Calderon said in an interview after the game. “He kept saying when I got mad that I’m going to score the winning touchdown, and I did. I know everybody probably picked Freehold Boro to win, but we showed them wrong.”
Junior running back Charlie Davis also had a big game for the Scarlet Fliers. Davis had a 56-yard rushing touchdown in the second quarter which put Neptune ahead for the first time in the game. Davis is capable of playing quarterback, running back, and wide receiver on offense, and has already received an offer to play football at Rutgers University.
Colonial QB Martin Corso.
Photo by Steve Goldberg
The running game of Freehold Boro was effective once again this week, as the team rushed for a total of 220 yards. The Colonials utilized both Martin Corso and Derrick Bender at the quarterback position in their triple option offense. Bender ran for 107 yards, and Corso had two rushing touchdowns.
Freehold Boro will look to put the loss behind them as they move forward in the season. The Colonials return home to play the Lakewood Piners next Saturday in their homecoming game.
“Hey, it’s one loss,” Freehold Boro Head Coach Mark Ciccotelli said. “Sometimes when you lose, you remember what it felt like. If we have winners and we have character, we’ll rally. I think these guys will regroup, and hopefully we’ll be back next week.”
Prior to Thursday night, Neptune had not defeated Freehold Boro since 2006. The Colonials won the previous three matchups against the Scarlet Fliers, including a 14-0 victory in the semifinals of the 2008 NJSIAA Central Jersey Group III Playoffs.
Neptune will travel south to Bayville on Friday to take on the Central Regional Golden Eagles in another Federal Division matchup.
“That was an awesome win, but it’s just one,” Neptune Head Coach John Fiore said. “One game at a time is our motto. We have to keep doing that, but now our destiny is back in our hands. It was taken away from us last week by a very good Ocean team, but now we know what we have to do.”
Recently, the Scarlet Fliers have had success against No. 1 ranked teams in the Shore Conference. Last year, Neptune upset the top-ranked Asbury Park Bishops 6-0 in the season finale on Thanksgiving. Now the Scarlet Fliers can add the Freehold Boro Colonials to that list.
