High School Football:
Camden Catholic Uses Big Plays To Defeat Eustace

Saturday, October 17, 1998

By Art Redd
SJSports Staff Writer

If you thought that the opening play of the Camden Catholic at Bishop Eustace football game was an indication of a high scoring game, then your guess would be right. Both teams were able to score at will and defense was not much of a factor. Camden Catholic's J.P. Hammond took the opening kickoff 88 yards for the early lead. Bishop Eustace then countered with an early touchdown of their own, but it was the Irish who got the final score with just under a minute left in the game. Camden Catholic would get their first victory of the season by defeating the Crusaders 42-38.

Sophomore running back Mark Caputi continued the theme of big plays by taking the hand-off from junior quarterback Brian Cassano and running down the right sideline for a 64-yard touchdown. Caputi then scored on the 2-point conversion to put Camden Catholic up 14-6 in the first quarter. The Crusaders continued to counter every score their opponent put on the scoreboard.

After each team traded touchdowns, Bishop Eustace put together a more controlled offense and worked their way down the field. Senior quarterback Bruce Ciallella tied the game at 20 when he scored on a 1-yard run and then converted on the 2-point attempt. This game saw both offenses having their way throughout all four quarters. Now it was the Irish's turn again, and guess what happened? Camden Catholic's opening play hero struck again. J.P. Hammond scored on a 68-yard touchdown pass from Cassano. After the 2-point conversion, Camden Catholic was up ten points at the beginning of the final quarter.

The Crusaders would take the lead when, on a strange occasion, the Irish didn't score on one of their possessions. Ciallella was able to get loose for a 25-yard touchdown run and put his team up for the first time in the game, 38-36. But Camden Catholic regained the lead when Cassano would get into the end zone on a dramatic fourth and one quarterback sneak with 58 seconds remaining in the game. The Crusaders did not let the little time left on the clock slow them down. They moved the ball into Irish territory and on the final toss of the game, Hammond batted down the ball to preserve the win.

Photos by Art Redd