No changes in Marcus Borden’s Week 8 Big Central Top Ten; plus rankings for BCC West, Middlesex and Union Counties

Friday night in Perth Amboy’s Waters Stadium with Arthur L. Johnson and the Panthers had a special meaning for the home fans as well as the visitors as an impending storm was on the horizon which could cause havoc for the Senior Night festivities, as well as a meaningful game with a division title on the line for the winner and a potential higher seed for the upcoming playoffs.

Amboy would win the toss and put their offense on the field first. They would move the ball past midfield and be faced with a fourth and one and elected to go for it but the Crusader defense led by Matt Reichenbach and Manny Rendeiro would swallow up the Panthers dangerous quarterback Amauris Peguero and turn the ball over at 9:09 in the first quarter.

Johnson would methodically move the ball in four plays as their bruising senior quarterback Vincent Cilento would waste little time getting on the board with a dive fake to his fullback and then running down the visitors sideline while leveling a would-be-tackler en route for 47-yard touchdown run and a 7-0 lead at 7:08 in the initial stanza.

The Panthers would get the ball around midfield as Johnson squibbed the ball down the middle of the field. Peguero would complete a quick screen to his left but the Crusader defense forced a fumble recovered by sophomore Cruz Valente for Johnson.

The Crusaders would mix the run with Cilento and his trio of backs which include Majerska at fullback, Rendeiro and Downey at halfbacks. They would use almost the entire quarter with Cilento scoring from five yards out at 51.5 seconds left in the first quarter for a 14-0 lead.

Perth Amboy would get good field position again as AL Johnson squibbed the ball not willing to give the Panthers skilled returners an opportunity to return the kick for a score. The home team would march into Crusader territory but turn the ball over on downs at 10:45 as Johnson’s Sean Volmut swatted down the Peguero pass intended for Ariel Rosario Sime.

Johnson would give it right back as Cilento attempted a rare pass that was intercepted by Amboy’s Quamair Kearse.

Peguero would use his legs to get the Perth Amboy offense into scoring position running to the outside on sweeps or sprint action. He would get the Panthers to the Johnson 15 and then hand off to senior Ricardo Henriquez who barreled up the middle of the defense for a 15-yard touchdown at 8:01 in the second quarter. The PAT was blocked making the score 14-6.

Amboy would squib the ball themselves trying to recover the ball which was recovered by the Crusaders on the 22 along the visitor sideline. Cilento would need one play to go 78-yards on a dive fake left to Majerska cutting up field and down the visitor sideline for a 20-6 lead at 7:39 remaining before halftime.

Johnson would squib kick the ball down the middle of the field which was recovered by lineman TJ Kershaw. Cilento would find Zaire Majerska for a 35-yard touchdown pass and a 27-6 lead with 4:21 before halftime.

Peguero would use his legs and Henriquez to get into scoring position. He would then hit Ronald Esteves on a quick stop route which he took to the Johnson one-yard line. Peguero would score from the one but come up short on the two-point attempt making the halftime score 27-12.

Johnson would get the ball to start the second half taking their time as they moved into Panther territory but were forced to turn it over on downs at the 7:45 mark of the third quarter as Perth Amboy was not about to give up knowing that their senior quarterback could close the gap quickly with his arm or his legs.

Peguero would do just that marching his team down towards the scoreboard end of the field with fourth and six at the Johnson 17-yard line. He would toss a dart between two defenders at around the five-yard line but the receiver couldn’t hang with 2:51 remaining in the third quarter still down 27-12.

Quarterback Vincent Cilento would use his trio of backs to engineer a time consuming drive while facing a third and eight from a around midfield. The shifty field general would orchestrate a perfect counter flip to Matt Rendeiro who would get he first down and more down the visitor sideline. The Crusaders would extend their lead to 34-12 with Majerska’s one-yard plunge with 8:48 remaining in the game.

The Panthers wasted little time taking the squib kick into Crusaders territory as Peguero performed his magic finding Yendi Linaries on a 22-yard laser shot down the middle of the Johnson defense followed by his two-point scamper making it a two score game at 34-20 with 6:39 remaining in the contest.

Johnson would answer the bell by moving the ball and snapping as the referee starting signaling the five-second count before a delay of game penalty would be called. Majerska would score on a 20-yard burst through the middle of the Panthers defense with 3:12 remaining in the game making it a three-score advantage at 41-20.

Peguero would score one more time on a one-yard run and two-point conversion pass making the final score 41-28 as the AL Johnson Crusaders sealed the victory and a share of the Patriot Silver Division title after starting the season at 0-2.