POINT PLEASANT -- Point Pleasant Borough football is back where it always seems to be: dominating opponents on their way to the section final. The Panthers cruised to a 49-14 victory over Manchester on Friday night, giving the team their third appearance in South Group 2 section championship game in the past four seasons.
But to go even farther, they will rely on a class of seniors that were freshman when the team last took home the section title in 2021. Nobody exemplifies the journey back to the pinnacle more than the star of Friday night's victory, Dylan Reitmeyer.
"The coaches really built this program from the ground up," Reitmeyer said. "And we have tough kids from Point Pleasant, and we've all been playing together for a long time. We just kind of come together and win games."
Reitmeyer battled injuries that hampered him in past seasons, but has been a revelation as a senior as he leads the team in rushing yards and is tied for the lead in touchdowns after scoring three against Manchester. His grit and determination is mirrored across a strong senior class of Panthers that was determined in the offseason to make this the breakthrough year for Point Boro.
"It starts in the weight room," said senior lineman Tanner Hynes. "We work our butts off every week. That's why it showed on the field today — we were pushing them back 5 to 10 yards every play."
The opposite sentiment, reminding players why that work was needed, was conversely echoed on the Manchester sideline as Point Boro was simply unstoppable getting a push on the interior within the team's flexbone triple option scheme. Even outside runs turned back inside to get behind the parade of powerful Panther blockers.
That raw strength combined with superb execution is why Point Boro came within three points of upsetting Toms River North, No. 1 in the Asbury Park Press rankings, earlier in the season. And it will be put to the ultimate test on the road next week as the Panthers face Camden in the section final.
"This team's done an outstanding job every single week with the preparation consistency," said head coach Brian Staub. "It starts Monday in the weight room and then it carries over to Tuesday and Wednesday — we go hard."
The formula hasn't changed and neither has the results, thanks to players like Reitmeyer who set the tone for the entire group.
"Each and every day of practice has to be great," said Reitmeyer. "And it has been so far, and we're just looking to take it week by week and go in there and beat 'em."
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Point Boro overwhelms Manchester team that was plagued by errors
For the upstart Manchester Hawks to pull off the road upset against powerful Point Boro, they needed to be perfect Friday night. Instead, they were beset by an unprecedented amount of self-inflicted wounds from the first possession to the last.
The opening possession of the game looked promising through the first few plays, but a slant pass from Aidan Lunn went through the receiver's hands and it was intercepted by Jake Clayton, setting up the first of five straight Point Boro possessions that began in opposing territory. As usual, the Panthers seized on every opportunity.
Those kinds of mistakes by Manchester were compounded by the fact that the Panthers nearly always won the pivotal moments. The Hawks forced a 4th-and-3 as they tried to hold strong defensively, by Reitmeyer punched in a 6-yard touchdown for the game's first score. The following Manchester possession also ended in disaster as Point Boro's Calvin Videon-Perino blocked a punt to set up the Panthers inside the Hawks' red zone. Clayton finished it off with a quarterback sneak for a second touchdown.
On top of the mistakes, Manchester faced an early fatal setback on a controversial call on 4th-and-1 as the Hawks were driving and trying to keep alive hope for a comeback. A Point Boro player appeared to blatantly jump offsides twice without any flag, and the subsequent spot of the ball also appeared to be incorrect.
But the Hawks were also not resilient enough in the wake of such setbacks, and the Panthers' execution was nearly perfect throughout the night. Just a few plays later, Clayton darted down the sideline for a 35-yard touchdown to extend the lead to 21-0.
Manchester answered by marching down the field and Lunn finished it off with a 6-yard touchdown run, but the deficit was too much as the Hawks' defense had no answers for the Point Boro offense. Brady Kirk had a huge kickoff return to set up another Reitmeyer touchdown. The Panthers kept their foot on the gas pedal as they executed a surprise onside kick to get yet another possession in opposing territory.
The first play that followed was a rare showing of the aerial attack, as Clayton hit Videon-Perino for a 45-yard touchdown that essentially put the game away in the first half as Point Boro had a 35-7 lead.
The Hawks answered before the half on a creative double pass from Lunn to Dom Rekus to M.J. Goins for the touchdown. But even in the second half as Manchester drove for pride and points, their ability to move the ball was eventually undermined by fumbles.
By contrast, the Panthers kept pressing even with backup quarterback Michael Ollendorf producing several great runs and finishing off the victory with the final touchdown. Point Boro was determined to roll right into the section final.
Hawks' historic season comes to close
Although the final result is heartbreaking for a Manchester team that had hopes of continuing the best season in school history, it was a breakthrough season for a program that had been downtrodden for nearly half a century. The team matched the highest win total in school history after setting that record last year, and won the first playoff game in football program history last week.
"They laid the foundation for the future of this town," said Manchester head coach Tommy Farrell. "It's emotional because these seniors did so much for this program, but they won't know until weeks and years ahead. It's just an honor. It hurts because we're not really in it for moral victories, but yeah they it. They did things that nobody thought could be done."
With so many losses from that senior class, it could be a challenging rebuild for the Hawks. But this year's group set a new standard and cemented its place in the history books.
What's next: Point Boro sets sights on Camden
For the Panthers, this season is another great chapter in a multi-year restoration of Point Pleasant Boro to its historic glory. But the final differentiating step is still to come.
In past years, the Panthers contended with Willingboro as the two teams had ended one another's season in some form each of the past three years. Two of those came in section finals, including last year when Willingboro held on for a victory in the final minutes.
This year's Camden squad (8-2) might be a different beast entirely after they walloped Willingboro 41-6 in their semifinal. It will be a matchup of two very different types of Panthers in the South Group 2 section final next week. As Point Boro's physicality will have to overpower the elite athleticism and speed of Camden. It will be the ultimate matchup of styles between two teams hungry to take home a championship.
Point Pleasant Boro 49, Manchester 14
Manchester 0 14 0 0 - 14
Point Pleasant Boro 14 21 14 0 - 49
1st quarter
Point Boro: Dylan Reitmeyer 6-yard touchdown run (Jack Sullivan kick). Jake Clayton 1-yard touchdown run (Sullivan kick).
2nd quarter
Manchester: 6-yard touchdown run by Lunn (Ian Spicer kick). 7-yard touchdown pass from Dom Rekus to M.J. Goins (Spicer kick).
Point Boro: Clayton 35-yard touchdown run (Sullivan kick). Reitmeyer 2-yard touchdown run (Sullivan kick). Clayton 45-yard touchdown pass to Calvin Videon-Perino (Sullivan kick).
3rd quarter
Point Boro: Reitmeyer 9-yard touchdown run (Sullivan kick). Michael Ollendorf 5-yard touchdown run (Sullivan kick).
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