Pennsville gets the nod in head-to-head matchup with Woodstown in their final pool game of the ATF Ginsburg 7×7 Classic
By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News
PITMAN – In the grand scheme of things, a 20-minute 7-on-7 football game in late June won’t mean much when both teams are fighting for a playoff spot in late October, but it meant plenty to Pennsville receiver Malik Rehmer.
Pennsville and Woodstown haven’t played in the regular season since 2020 despite being Group I programs in the same county less than 15 miles apart, so when they get put together in the final game of pool play in the Adam Taliaferro Foundation Ginsburg 7×7 Classic at Total Turf it’s a special occasion even if it is only half football.
This one went to the Eagles and was all for bragging rights as Eastern clinched their bracket’s spot in the semifinals even before the teams took the field. Robbie McDade threw third-down touchdown passes to Rehmer and Cole Campbell and the defense turned away a reserve Woodstown offense four times in a 22-3 win that left them 2-1 i(and Woodstown 0-3) in the pool.
“It meant way more,” Rehmer said. “The whole time being here we haven’t beaten Woodstown in any sport, so that was a good emphasis win. Played good all around, the whole team. It was a really good win. I don’t think people will forget this.”
The Eagles hadn’t beaten Woodstown in football since their 2017 season opener. Their boys basketball hasn’t beaten the Wolverines since 2019 (7 in a row) and girls basketball hasn’t since 2020 (8 in a row).
“It’ll really mean something to put on the pads and we actually play a real game, but it’s still good to get a win over Woodstown,” McDade said.
Of course, 7x7s are more about performance between quarterbacks, receivers and secondaries than results, but they still keep score. For the record, Pennsville was shutout by bracket winner and eventual runner-up Eastern in its first game, then swamped Bridgeton and beat the Wolverines. Woodstown lost a close one to Bridgeton, then fell to Eastern and the Eagles.
“Overall I was happy,” Pennsville coach Mike Healy said. “We weren’t great in our first game and then we really improved a lot the second and third; we were real sharp the second game. We finished with a winning record (and) obviously when you play Woodstown you always want to get a win. It would’ve been nice to be sharp all three games, but overall (it was) a good day.”
McDade thought he was “a little rusty” in the first game against Eastern despite completing 10 of 17 passes in two possessions, but felt “good” in the ensuing two victories. He was 23-of- 40 with four touchdowns and three interceptions in the three games.
“He threw better than he threw last year at this point, which is what we wanted to see,” Healy said. “We obviously had a good day overall, but we know what we have to work on.”
In the game against Woodstown, he gave the Eagles a two-score edge when he hit Rehmer with a long touchdown pass against tight coverage by Wolverines’ Max Csaszar.
“Just a great ball from the best quarterback in South Jersey,” Rehmer said.
For Woodstown, it was the first time new head coach Frank Trautz got the chance to see his team against outside competition, which meant the first time seeing quarterback Jack Holladay running the offense as the starter.
Holladay has been dreaming of being the starter since his freshman year. He takes the reins from his cousin, Max Webb. A year ago in spot quarterback duty he didn’t throw a pass and had two rushes.
His first pass of the day was intercepted, but he responded by going 7-for-7 on the next series, culminating in the first of three touchdown passes to Anthony Bokolas, and ultimately completed eight in a row. He was 11-of-15 with two touchdowns against Bridgeton and 18-of-28 with three touchdowns to Bokolas and three interceptions. He played the first series against Pennsville before giving way to the younger set.
“I’m really excited to see what Jack’s gonna do this year,” Trautz said. “He’s a great athlete. He’s got all the tools you want in a quarterback. He can make every throw. He’s a really good athlete, so he’s going to be able to help us out as well in the run game a little bit and he’s ready for this.
“He got a ton of reps last year in practice and already what I’ve seen from him early on in the summer is a lot of good stuff. This is a great opportunity for him today to get some live reps. I think the sky’s the limit for him. He could have a real special year.”
Pennsville and Woodstown aren’t scheduled to play during the regular season. so Saturday’s meeting will be the only time they play this season — unless, of course, they get matched up in the playoffs.
Cherokee won the tournament. The Chiefs’ Evan Bryfogle was the most valuable player.
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