JACKSON - When Jackson Memorial's Mike Gawlik sailed into the end zone in overtime to the roar of the home crowd at John J. Munley Field on Friday night in the Jaguars' 33-27 stunner over No. 1 Red Bank Catholic, it was the final validation of an offensive line that manhandled the Caseys like no local team has done in four years.


Listen to the game broadcast at the end of this report


The Jersey Mike's Game of the Week was a classic as the No. 6 Jaguars (8-1) ended a 40-game winning streak against Shore Conference teams by the Caseys (8-1) dating back to 2010 by rolling up 258 yards on the ground. Gawlik, a sophomore tailback, led the way with 149 yards and three touchdowns on 16 carries, giving him 10 touchdowns in his last three games. None was bigger than his 18-yard burst off the right side in overtime behind senior center Ryan Frasier and senior right guard Glenn Kipila to win it after Jackson's defense had stopped RBC on downs on the Caseys' overtime possession.

"We're definitely the toughest line,'' Gawlik said. "You come into 'The Jungle,' you're gonna get it."

Jackson Memorial celebrated a 33-27 overtime upset of top-ranked Red Bank Catholic that ended a 40-game winning streak by the Caseys against Shore Conference competition dating back to 2010. (Photo by Bill Bricker)
Jackson Memorial celebrated a 33-27 overtime upset of top-ranked Red Bank Catholic that ended a 40-game winning streak by the Caseys against Shore Conference competition dating back to 2010. (Photo by Bill Bricker)
loading...

The nondivisional game was the ninth of the season for both teams, meaning it did not count toward their power-point totals for playoff seeding, but the Jaguars went all out in pursuit of taking down Goliath. They also are in the race for the No. 1 seed in Central Jersey Group IV in addition to having taken down a consensus Top 10 team in New Jersey.

Gawlik might as well have been speaking for the crowd at Jackson's home field, known as "The Jungle," when he described the feeling of putting RBC's streak to sleep after he crossed the goal line to touch off a wild celebration of one of the biggest regular-season wins in Jaguars history.

"Jell-O,'' Gawlik said. "My whole body went to Jell-O. I couldn't breathe."

Jackson Memorial sophomore Mike Gawlik ran for 149 yards and three touchdowns, including the game-winner in overtime. (Photo by Bill Bricker)
Jackson Memorial sophomore Mike Gawlik ran for 149 yards and three touchdowns, including the game-winner in overtime. (Photo by Bill Bricker)
loading...

Jackson Memorial put up 33 points on a Caseys' defense that had allowed 43 total points in its first eight games and had not allowed more than 10 points in any game this season. The last Shore Conference team to score 33 or more points in a victory over RBC was a 37-34 win by Raritan nine years ago. Their last loss to a Shore team was a 26-25 overtime setback against Freehold Boro in October of 2010.

"It's like no other feeling,'' Jackson Memorial senior two-way lineman Brad Greenway said about the win.

A line that averages 260 pounds across, consisting of Kipila, Frasier, Greenway, junior right tackle Dylan Smith and senior left guard Tyler Rauch, as well as 225-pound senior fullback Cole Collins and 260-pound blocking machine tight end Brody Graham, became the rare group to push around a team that usually dominates up front against local competition.

"We knew they were big and athletic, but we play against big and athletic lines in A South,'' Greenway said. "We play low, we condition every week, and we thought that would be the difference."

"Our offensive line is probably the best offensive line in the Shore,'' said senior wide receiver Matt Castronuova. "They are the hardest-working players on the team, so give them the credit they deserve."

The Jaguars led 27-20 going into the fourth quarter before Caseys senior tailback Mike Cordova scored from two yards out to cap a nine-play, 58-yard drive highlighted by a 30-yard pass from junior quarterback Eddie Hahn to senior wideout Trevor Cowley. Vince Gallo's extra point knotted it up at 27 with 11:05 in regulation, and that's the way it would stay until overtime.

Jackson had a chance to potentially end it in regulation as it neared the field goal range of junior kicker Jared Calhoun, who  had already nailed field goals of 34 and 35 yards earlier in the game. However, an interception by Cordova at RBC's 25-yard line in the final seconds forced overtime. The Jaguars then stuffed RBC on three straight running attempts up the gut in overtime and forced an incompletion on fourth-and-7 to get the ball with a chance to win it.

They gave it to Gawlik three straight times to bring it home, putting their trust in their offensive line.

"To get the (defensive) stop, we felt comfortable,'' Jaguars head coach Walt Krystopik said. "We were just going to be conservative, and we just blew them off the line."

RBC had taken the first lead of the game when Cordova, who also plays safety, recovered a fumble by Gawlik at Jackson's 39-yard line. That set up an 11-yard touchdown run by Hahn for a 6-0 margin after the extra point was no good with 2:18 left in the first quarter. The Jaguars then showed the Caseys they were in for a dogfight when they scored 13 unanswered points to take the lead.

Calhoun booted a 34-yard field goal to cap an eight-play drive, and then Gawlik, who also plays linebacker, recovered a fumble by Cordova at Jackson's 33-yard line to set up another score. The Jaguars drove 67 yards in seven plays, scoring on a 2-yard run by Gawlik for a 10-6 lead with 4:47 left in the half. They handed the ball to Gawlik five straight times on power and iso plays out of the I formation to end the drive, going right at the heart of the RBC defense.

An interception by Jackson Memorial junior defensive back Kyle Johnson then set up another field goal by Calhoun to push the lead to 13-6. The Caseys responded with a 10-play, 74-yard drive that ended with an outstanding catch by Cowley in the back of the end zone for a 7-yard touchdown that tied it at 13 with only 12.9 seconds left in the half.

RBC then looked like it was going to impose its will when it marched 65 yards in nine plays to start the third quarter, scoring on a 5-yard run by Hahn for a 20-13 lead after Cordova had racked up 51 yards rushing on the drive.

However, Castronuova swung the momentum right back to the home team when he returned the ensuing kickoff to RBC's 22-yard line.

"We knew we were going to fight,'' Castronuova said. "You come to Jack Munley (Field), that's what you get. All week I was thinking, I've got to make a play. Big-time players step up in big-time games. I got that kick return, set up our offense, and we went to work."

Four plays later, junior tailback Vinny Lee, who had 68 yards rushing, scampered in from three yards out to tie the game at 20 with 6:17 left in the third quarter. Jackson transferred that momentum to defense, where Greenway sacked Hahn on third down to kill RBC's ensuing drive.

While Hahn accounted for three touchdowns on the night, the Jaguars also sacked the elusive standout four times and made sure he didn't take over the game with his dual-threat ability like he has done to numerous opponents. Jackson's front seven also didn't get too far upfield in the pass rush to create running lanes. Hahn finished with 53 yards rushing and 97 yards passing in the loss, and the Caseys had 239 total yards, including 142 on the ground.

Jackson Memorial chased Red Bank Catholic standout quarterback Eddie Hahn all over the field, limiting the damage to help fuel the upset. (Photo by Bill Bricker)
Jackson Memorial chased Red Bank Catholic standout quarterback Eddie Hahn all over the field, limiting the damage to help fuel the upset. (Photo by Bill Bricker)
loading...

"He's a mobile quarterback, but we see mobile quarterbacks all season,'' Krystopik said. "He's no different from (Brick's) Carmen (Sclafani), he's no different from (Toms River South's) Tymere (Berry). They're just as fast."

"We just had to use our hands and not try to blow up just one gap,'' Greenway said. "(Hahn) has moves, so once you make your move, you have to make sure you're flat down the line to get to him."

After Greenway's sack, Jackson scored in just three plays, all runs by Gawlik, including a 48-yard burst that made it 27-20 with 2:32 left in the third quarter. RBC answered on its next possession to tie the game with Cordova's scoring run, setting the stage for the dramatic finish.

"Other than the (state championships in) 2000, 2001, 2005, this is right up there with some of the biggest victories we've ever had here,'' Krystopik said. "We felt confident after going through a very tough four-game stretch there in the middle of the season. This is just icing on the cake."

"It's definitely a historic game for us, especially on Senior Night, and now we look to the postseason to get the job done there,'' Greenway said.

The Jaguars stamped themselves as a prime contender for their first state title since 2005 with Friday's win. They will be part of a Central Jersey Group IV gauntlet that also includes Class A South rival and defending state champion Brick, which handed the Jaguars their only loss in overtime earlier this season, as well as Middletown South and Neptune.

"Now we're looking like no one can beat us,'' Castronuova said. "We're on another level right now, and we just need to keep rolling."

Box score

Jackson Memorial 33, Red Bank Catholic 27 (OT)

.                                 J                      R

First downs              16                    17

Rushes-yards       37-258             35-142

Passing                4-13-1               11-18-1

Passing yards         55                     97

Penalties               5-45                   3-28

Fumbles-lost         3-1                     1-1

Red Bank Catholic (8-1)  6   7 7 7 0 - 27

Jackson Memorial (8-1)   0 13 7 7 6 - 33

Scoring summary

R: Hahn 11-yard run (kick failed).

J: Calhoun 34-yard field goal.

J: Gawlik 2-yard run (Calhoun kick).

J: Calhoun 35-yard field goal.

R: Cowley 7-yard pass from Hahn (Gallo kick).

R: Hahn 5-yard run (Gallo kick).

J: Lee 3-yard run (Calhoun kick).

J: Gawlik 48-yard run (Calhoun kick).

R: Cordova 2-yard run (Gallo kick).

J: Gawlik 18-yard run (kick not attempted).

Individual statistics

Rushing - J: DeMaio 7-37, Lee 13-68, Gawlik 16-149, Castronuova 1-4. R: Cordova 15-79, Hahn 11-53, Cella 4-9, Spernal 6-20.

Passing - J: DeMaio 4-12-1 55, Johnson 0-1-0 0. R: Hahn 11-18-1 97.

Receiving - J: Castronuova 4-55. R: Cella 1-2, DeMonte 1-13, Lukawski 1-3, Dnistrian 1-12, Cowley 6-69, Lubischer 1-(-2).

Interceptions - J: Johnson 1-20. R: Cordova 1-2.


GAME BROADCAST

Click the PLAY button to hear the segment. RIGHT CLICK on the DOWNLOAD link to download a free MP3 file of the segment.

PRE GAME AND 1st QUARTER

2nd QUARTER

HALF TIME

3rd QUARTER

4th QUARTER and POST GAME

More From Shore Sports Network