The West Orange PAL 10U Mustangs had their first loss of the year to Clifton in the Twin Valley Football Championship this past Sunday. The Mustangs beat Clifton earlier in the season and it was clear Clifton wanted to avenge that loss. It was a very hard fought game that ended with Clifton on top 21-12. The back and forth game started with Clifton taking the lead 7-0. Then Makhi Green scored on an amazing run that went for 68 yards to make the score 7-6. He then put West Orange on top 12-7 with a 56 yard run. It was an amazing effort for the running back. He finished with 143 yards on 13 carries. Fullback Zander Lipsey (17 yards) also played a great game in the backfield, picking up tough yards and leading the way for Green with his blocking. He also completed an option pass in the game. Quarterback Sean Brown left it all out there and completed 3 passes 32 yards. Jayson Raines had two catches for 21 yards and Jordan Quiles had 2 catches for 22 yards. The line was faced with a tough opponent and worked as hard as they could all day. Chris Parsons, Zander Timothy, Syncere Flanagan, Adrian Charles, Jahsil Ashe, Quiles, Raines and Aidan Healey were deserve a lot of credit to never give up in this tough physical game. The Mustangs put up 199 yards on 31 plays.
The defense played hard, but could not hold the lead. Clifton scored a big touchdown at the end of the 1st half on a great 4th down pass to take the lead and momentum. There were still some outstanding defensive efforts in the loss. Parsons was all over the field and was a huge force, recording 10 tackles, 2 sacks and a forced fumble. Shakhi Carson was equally as intense and added 7 tackles on the day. Jared Massay, Jordan Quiles and Jayson Raines each had 4 tackles. Also adding to the defensive effort were Lipsey, Charles, Timothy, Flanagan, Adam Ashby, Pharele Brun, Dorian Rawls, Divine Zaire, Hunter Bonaparte and Bowen Wright. Clifton finished the game on top ending West Orange’s historic 17 game win steak. Even though Clifton won the championship game it is important to note that both Clifton and the Mustangs ended the season with a 9-1 record. Each team had just one lose to the other. Head Coach Andrew Mazurek along with coaches Tom Brennan, Tommy Brennan Jr., Russ DeSantis, and Carmen D'Aiuto have nothing short of pride and high praise for this team.
This 10U team began their season 108 days ago with dedicated parents bringing their equally dedicated sons to practice. The team this year was comprised of many boys who have played 3 years for Mazurek. The 3rd year players include Ashby, Brown, Carson, Quiles, Parsons, Raines, Syncere Flanagan, Colton Lehrer, Zander Lipsey, Divine Zaire, Adrian Charles, Aidan Healey and Zander Timothy. All but Timothy will move up to the 12U JV Mustangs next year. Those boys moving up clearly wanted the season to end with another victory for their Coaches, but fate wouldn't have it. Without a doubt heads should be held high, those third year players had a great 3 year run and finish with a 26-3 record including a 17 game win streak and one championship.
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Additionally moving up to the 12U team are Austin Cowley, Pharelle Brun, Tajir Brown, Dorian Rawls, Gilberto Robinson, Jason Scavalla, Hunter Bonaparte, Anthony Brown, Tommy Minichillo, Bowen Wright, Miles Morgan, Anthony Chapman, and Jahsil Ashe. These boys gave it their all this year and will definitely be missed.
Luckily, Mazurek will have 14 strong players returning next year, Zander Timothy, Makhi Green, Syhan Webb, Andrew Merklinger, Aidan Carter, Jared Massay, Surpreme Zaire, Jordan Reynoso, Marcus Green, Brandon Ali-Ramproop, Marco Davino, Gavin Rembert, James Flowers and Sean Tandy. These 14 played hard this year and will surely be a force to be reckoned with next year. The coaches and boys are already thinking ahead to next year as of this posting there are only 254 days, 7 hours and 33 minutes until practice begins again, but who is counting.
