After nearly an hour delay due to the Jenkintown bus being caught in traffic, this game finally kicked off. A strong defensive showing in the first half gave the Green Wave the lead heading to the locker room. A mistaken-ridden second half led to 21 unanswered Jenkintown points as they get their first win of the campaign 21-7.
The Green Wave were haunted by penalties and missed tackles in the second half giving up 90 yards in penalties. With senior wide out Jeff Yordy on the shelf for most of the second half the inexperienced Green Wave offense struggled.
Nativity (0-2) found the board first, Senior Gino DiNicola scored on a 22-yard run. DiNicola led the Green Wave’s ground attack running the ball 19 times for 75 yards and a touchdown. The Green Wave defense was the real story in the first half giving up just 60 yards and pitching a shutout. Green Wave went up 7-0 at intermission.
After a Jenkintown (1-1) turnover to start the second half, the Green Wave looked to tack on to their lead inside the red zone. The Drakes cornerback Jake McGrath wasn’t going to let that happen as he picked off the Dominic Piccioni pass and took it 80 yards to the house. This was a momentum changer as that was the last time the Green Wave would see the red zone.
The Drakes added another score later in the third quarter as tailback Steve Charlemange pulled in a Jamie Griffin pass and shook off Green Wave tacklers on the way to an 85 yard touchdown. The Drakes dominated the third quarter as they pulled ahead 14-7.
The Drakes added a score early in the fourth on a Steve Charlemange 35 yard run giving the Drakes a 21-7 lead. Nativity cornerback Sonny Matharu picked off a Jamie Griffin pass that gave the Green Wave sideline a little life halfway through the fourth. A stagnant Green Wave offense however, struggled to move the ball as they fall to 0-2 on the season.
A struggling Green Wave team hosts Columbia Montour Vo-Tech in its All American Conference opener. The Green Wave looked to get their first win of the season and shake the dust off the victory bell at Veteran’s Memorial Stadium next week.
