High School Football

Sparta 48, Newton 26 Sparta roared to a 35-0 lead and went on to defeat Newton 48-26 on the Braves' turf last Saturday. It was the second straight win for the Spartans, who will host unbeaten Lenape Valley on Saturday with the kickoff set for 1 p.m. Ryan Skorupka ignited the early explosion and finished with 153 yards rushing on just nine carries as he scored three touchdowns and was selected the SCIL's player of the week. Skorupka found a seam in the Braves' defense on the first play from scrimmage and raced 73 yards into the end zone. He added a nine-yard TD run that boosted the Spartans into the 35-point advantage entering the second quarter. Following Newton's first TD, Skorupka fielded the ensuing kickoff and raced 90 yards to paydirt in the second quarter. Anmdrew Passerelle scored twice, the first coming on a 24-yard reception from Tyler Reese and the second on a nine-yard run. Newton quarterback Steven Zander stood out for the Braves, connecting on 15 of 27 aerial attempts for 165 yards including TD passes of 1 , 8 and 41 yards. Lenape 33, Kittatinny 7 Lenape Valley prepped for its showdown with Sparta this weekend by romping to a 33-7 victory over Kittatinny in Stanhope on Friday evening. Joe Farruggia, a senior halfback, rushed for 90 yards on only six carries, including a TD run of 69 yards in the third quarter. He also hauled in 20-yard TD aerial from Rob Klinck. LVR opened the scoring on a 64-yard TD pass from Klinck, who completed three of six passes for 88 yards and two touchdowns, to Dan Pregno. D.J. Russo put the final six-pointer on the board when he picked up a loose fumble and raced 26 yards into the end zone in the fourth quarter. Vernon 28, High Point 14 Vernon took a second big step on the "Road to the Crown" as the Vikings defeated High Point 28-14 on Saturday in Vernon to improve to 2-0. Tailback Justin Gannon ignited the Vikings to a 12-0 lead early in the second quarter and the outcome was never in doubt. Gannon, who toted the pigskin 21 times for 160 yards, bolted 10 and 16 yards into the end zone. Fullback T.J. Diggles blasted one yard over the goal line on two occasions sandwiched around High Point's only six-pointer, scored by Ryan Van Orden. Diggles picked up 18 yards rushing on only five carries. Pope John 14, Hopatcong 7 Pope John rebounded from its opening day loss to Vernon by edging Hoaptcong 14-7. Jeremy Tucker, who rushed 37 times for 160 yards, scored twice for the Lions on runs of one and 16 yards. The Chiefs' Joe Martinek ran 19 times for 124 yards. Hopatcong's touchdown that opened the scoring in the first quarter came when Aaron Rey pounced on a blocked punt in the end zone. Jefferson 18, Montville 13 Jefferson defeated Montville of the Northern Hills Conference 18-13 as quarterback B.J. Stokes flipped a pair of TD strikes to junior wideout Matt Valentini. Stokes, who connected on 1 of 23 aerial attempts for 186 yards, connected with Valentini on a 15-yard pass in the opening quarter and tossed a 20-yard TD pass for the game-winning six-pointer in the third quarter. Valentini finished with 56 yards on four receptions, while Buddy Miller pulled in four passes for 60 yards. John Kaschak bolted 14 yards to paydirt in the second quarter and finished with 57 yards rushing. Mahwah 20, Wallkill Valley 0 Wallkill Valley was blanked 20-0 by Mahwah of the North Bergen Interscholastic Athletic League on Saturday in Hardyston. This week's schedule Saturday, Sept. 24 Hopatcong (1-1) at High Point (0-2) 1 p.m. Lenape Valley (2-0) at Sparta (2-0) 1 p.m. Newton (0-2) at Pope John (1-1) 1 p.m. Vernon (2-0) at Jefferson (1-1) 1 p.m. Wallkill Valley (1-1) at Kittatinny (0-2) 1 p.m.