November 14, 2009
Patriots win ninth in a row
Joe Impreveduto (in red) tries to elude a pair of tacklers during the Patriots' win.
Click Here for more photos from Weequahic at Secaucus.
By Jason Bernstein
Editorial Director
SECAUCUS – From afar, Patriot running backs Ed Delgado and Joe Impreveduto may not look like the track stars often seen at the position. Last night they showed that looks (and speed) can be deceiving.
Delgado and Impreveduto ran wild as top-seeded Secaucus remained unbeaten after defeating Weequahic 32-0 in the opening round of the NJSIAA North 2, Group I tournament.
“It doesn’t matter,” Secaucus coach Charlie Voorhees said about that perception. “They’re fast and tough and they play with heart. They’re coached well by (coach Bruce Naszimento) and I think they’re great players. They complement each other well.”
The running of Delgado and Impreveduto once again proved to be a winning formula for the Patriots (9-0) as they combined for 352 yards and four touchdowns on the ground, including five carries of 24 or more yards.
Behind a dominant performance from the offensive line Delgado and Impreveduto set the tone from the opening whistle, running the ball nine straight times on an 80-yard drive that culminated with an Impreveduto touchdown.
“It was a very important drive and it set the tone of the game,” Voorhees said. “Now the field position didn’t make a difference and we didn’t have to punt into the wind. It was a long drive and that big start was huge.”
With strong winds eliminating the viability of passing, Secaucus continued to use their potent 1-2 combination of power and speed.
“I think we complement each other a lot,” Impreveduto said. “It’s either we’re running the ball hard or blocking for each other hard. Either way we love it.”
“(Joe’s) the power and I’m the speed,” Delgado said.
Impreveduto may be known as the muscle of the combination, but his wheels were on display earlywhen he scampered for a 51-yard score in the second quarter. He added his third touchdown of the evening on a 15-yard run, breaking multiple Indian (4-5) tackle attempts in his path.
“I like to start off with the power (running) and then switch it up a little bit,” Impreveduto said.
While Impreveduto led the way with 112 yards in the opening half, Delgado took over in the second half. Delgado showed why he’s considered the “speed” half of the duo, with four carries of 10 or more yards in the second half and seven such carries for the game.
The junior rushed for 108 yards in the second half, as part of a 185-yard performance on 24 carries with a touchdown and a pair of two-point conversions.
Delgado, a senior had 167 yards rushing on 19 carries. Matt Roman added 62 yards in the fourth quarter as Secaucus rushed as a team for 439 yards in the win.
While the Patriots offense was rolling, their defense made sure that Weequahic never got into a groove. Secaucus limited the Indians’ offense to just 76 yards of total offense and three first downs.
The windy conditions wreaked havoc on Weequahic’s vaunted passing game which never got on track. Unable to throw the ball deep, the Patriots were able to hold standout wide receiver Jahleel McMillian to just three catches for 10 yards.
“We were very impressed with (McMillian),” Voorhees said. “We thought he was one of the best players we saw this season. We were able to shut him down a little bit because throwing the ball was so difficult.”
Angelo Abdellatif and Noah Mustafa both picked off passes for Secaucus in the second half to preserve the shutout.
Troy Chavers led Weequahic with 49 yards rushing on 18 carries.
With the win, Secaucus will host a semifinal game on Friday night against the winner of today’s Becton vs. Dayton contest.
Ed Delgado had a team-best 185 yards rushing in the victory.
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weequahic (4-5) | 0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Secaucus (9-0) | 8 |
8 |
8 |
8 |
32 |
| Sec: Joe Impreveduto, 7 run (run failed) | |||||
| Sec: Safety | |||||
| Sec: Impreveduto, 51 run (Ed Delgado run) | |||||
| Sec: Impreveduto, 15 run (Delgado run) | |||||
| Sec: Delgado, 8 run (Impreveduto run) | |||||