West Morris did whatever it wanted on the MetLife Stadium turf in taking down previously unbeaten Cranford, No. 11 in the NJ.com Top 20, in a 53-14 win in the NJSIAA/Rothman Orthopaedics North, Group 3 regional championship Friday evening.
Below are the 5 stars of the North, Group 3 contest.
1-Stefano Montella, West Morris: The workhorse tailback put together another masterful performance on the biggest of stages. The junior rushed 17 times to the tune of 145 yards and a 1-yard scoring plunge, helping out in the passing game as well for West Morris’ first score when he took a middle screen to the house for 53 yards in the first quarter.
2-Collin Leonhardt, West Morris: Leonhardt and his ‘hogs’ in the trenches had their way with Cranford as the offensive line helped spur over 400 yards of offense while holding a Cranford team averaging 40 points per game to just 14 points and 182 total yards.
3-Shane VanDam, Cranford: The Cranford QB helped score both of the Cougars’ touchdowns, first on a 3-yard run in the first quarter then finding Will Gallagher for a 37-yard throwing TD in the third quarter.
4-Trevor Hillier, West Morris: The signal caller for West Morris did a bit of everything to lift West Morris to a dominant effort. As the quarterback, Hillier completed 11 of his 15 passing attempts for 165 yards and 3 touchdowns, the 4th time the senior has thrown for a trio of scores in a game this year.
5-Ryan Brady, West Morris: Whether it was flying to the ball on defense or breaking off a big reception, Brady did it all. Offensively Brady hauled in 3 catches for 74 yards and a 38-yard touchdown. He was also a menace defensively with a pair of sacks and a fumble recovery.