July 14, 2004
Looking ahead to the next school year
By TOM WILLIAMS
Sports Columnist
We are less than two months away from the start of another school year and things are already starting to
fall into place.
On the first night of the football season – Sept. 10 – history will be made when Bridgeton visits Carey
Stadium. It will be the first varsity football game in Ocean City played under the lights. While lighting the
stadium is a great idea, there are some of us who wish at least one or two games a year could be played
in that great Saturday afternoon setting. Maybe the September home games.
Actually, Ocean City’s third game this season will be played in daylight. The Raiders will host Atlantic City
at Carey Stadium on Friday, Sept. 24 at 4:00 p.m. The game is being played so that it will end before
sunset in keeping with Yom Kippur. OCHS will also host Egg Harbor Township and Oakcrest under the
Carey lights this fall.
By the way, there is a timeline on the website of the Ocean City Historical Museum that lists the first
Ocean City High School football game as being played on Saturday, Oct. 29, 1904 against the DeHirsh
School in Woodbine. Generally, games played before 1918, when the NJSIAA began organizing high
school sports, are suspect. Sometimes they just featured community teams, including high school
graduates and others who should not have been eligible for high school sports.
But, if you accept that game as the first real game, it does make this an interesting anniversary. It would
be 100 years since that game on Oct. 29th, the evening the Raiders visit Doug Colman and his Absegami
team.
In addition to the Ocean City-Bridgeton game, some of the other “cross over” games between
Cape-Atlantic League football teams this fall will include Buena at Millville, Hammonton at EHT, Absegami
at St. Joseph and Oakcrest at St. Augustine on the Sept. 10-11 weekend. Later in the season, Lower
Cape May will play at Vineland, Ocean City at Pleasantville and Atlantic City at Holy Spirit.
The non-league games for 2004 will include Montclair at Mainland, Williamstown at Oakcrest, Middle
Township at Woodbridge DE, Lawrenceville Prep at Atlantic City, Vineland at Kingsway, Delsea at Millville,
Mainland at Episcopal (PA) Academy and Ramapo at EHT.
A couple of former CAL stars have returned to the league as head coaches.
John Leahy, generally considered one of the five best players in CAL basketball history, has been named
the girls basketball coach at his alma mater, Middle Township. Leahy played at Seton Hall and
professionally overseas. In addition to his impact on the Middle girls program, he should also provide a
serious challenge to Dave Lewis and John Bruno in the Coaches Three-Point Shootout on All Star
Saturday.
And Matt Lucas, who led CAL soccer scoring two straight years when at Lower Cape May and had an all
star career at USC-Spartanburg, has returned to Lower as head boys soccer coach.
In another coaching change, Pat Lancetta, the longtime boys bowling coach at Hammonton, has given up
that job for another walk in the park. He will become Hammonton’s golf coach. Lancetta was also an
assistant football coach at Absegami last year but has moved to Delsea for football this season.
St. Augustine Prep made pre-season basketball news with the announcement that senior Anthony Farmer
has made a verbal commitment to Rutgers University. Farmer is widely considered the best player
returning in the CAL (possibly South Jersey) next year.
Also, Shawn Barlow, the 6-foot-11 senior who did not play for The Prep last season, has committed to
Monmouth University. Barlow transferred to St. Augustine from Cherokee but was declared ineligible by the
NJSIAA. He is recovering from an ankle injury.
Read more of
Tom Williams' columns