Montrey Wright was a little apprehensive about the season finale.
The head coach of the Salem High football team saw his squad come up short in the postseason final vs. Paulsboro just five days ago.
“It’s tough,” he said. “You’ve got a bunch of teenagers who wanted to go out undefeated and learn to do the right things, but they couldn’t. We didn’t finish how we wanted to finish last week, not winning the game. We wanted to focus on this game to make sure they come out as winners.”
The Rams got first-half touchdowns from Bobby Arnold III and Ramaji Bundy, and the defense kept Woodstown out of the end zone after a failed fourth down handed the Wolverines the ball deep in Rams territory. It all added up to a 14-10 victory for Salem Thursday in Salem in the 110th meeting between the two squads.
“This means a lot; the win is great,” Wright, who has been at the helm since 2015, said. “The guys came out, wanting to win the game. Knowing how we felt about that loss last week, this was big. We have that mentality that we don’t want our kids to worry about the previous week. Winning with that mentality and getting over that hump was big for us.”
The Rams reclaimed the trophy and lead the series 64-36-10.
“For me, this feels great,” Arnold, a senior running back/defensive back, said. “I go out my senior year as a winner. We couldn’t pick up that win against Paulsboro, so we had to come out and put that behind us to come out and win this game today. I love my team for that.”
Salem closed out the first quarter with sophomore Jahki Coates connecting with Arnold on a 42-yard strike. Nathan Wilson added the extra point for a 7-0 lead.
“When the ball came, I was nervous,” Arnold, who split the secondary in the middle of the field, said. “I thought someone was going to hit me. Nobody came, and I was in the end zone. It felt good.”
The Wolverines scored with one minute left before the half. Sophomore Will Haines blocked a punt with his helmet, causing the ball to rebound high in the air. Freshman Zachary Bevis basically fair-caught the ball in the end zone for the touchdown. Senior Connor Batten added on the point-after.
Woodstown elected to squib kick the ensuing kickoff. Four plays later, the Rams were in the end zone with 26.3 seconds left. Freshman Ramaji Bundy couldn’t find anyone open on the pass attempt. He kept it himself and scored on a 10-yard run for the 14-7 halftime advantage.
“He’s a speedy guy,” Wright said of Bundy. “He’s a freshman. Throughout the year, he did a lot of great things for us. We know that if we can get him in space, he can do something big for us. That’s what he did today.”
With less than five minutes left in the third, Salem set up to punt from its 19 while facing a 4th-and-6. However, a Woodstown pre-snap penalty made it 4th-and-1, and Salem elected to go for it. The Rams were denied, handing the ball to the Wolverines.
Woodstown got a close as the 9-yard line. Junior Jayden Wright came up with a crucial sack on second down that made Woodstown settle for a 30-yard field goal by Batten. Woodstown regained possession of the ball with 7:45 remaining, but the drive sputtered after eight plays.
“All that was on my mind was to get pressure in the backfield,” Jayden Wright, Coach Wright’s cousin, said. “If we got pressure, they wouldn’t get a touchdown. I feel good that he has that confidence in us to get the stop since we didn’t get the first down. We’ve worked hard all season. I’m glad that he has that trust in us. We worked for that.”
Woodstown finished the season 4-4.
“I thanked the seniors,” head coach Jon Adams said of his postgame message to the team. “They didn’t know if they were going to have a season, and then they had to play through a season where every week was uncertain and there were no accolades or Touchdown Club dinners to attend.
“We are really young. We only graduate seven seniors. I told our team to keep their heads up and to keep working hard. That’s a really good football team; my hat’s off to Coach Wright. We knew that we were going to have our hands full. I was happy with the way our kids played.”
Salem capped its season with six wins in seven games.
“It was a short season,” the elder Wright said. “We had to expedite pretty much everything, coming into the season with practices and everything like that. It was a tough season. It was an uphill battle to play every week. You had to hold your breath. You want to keep the kids focused and doing the right things, not just on the field but off the field with COVID-19 to make sure we have a game the next week.
“It was tough worrying about the extra things going into the football game. But we got through it. We dealt with a lot of adversity, not just on the field but off the field. But we conquered it a little bit. I am proud of all the guys. I am proud of the parents for trusting us to put our kids in our program in a good situation.
“Some kids felt uncomfortable with this situation that’s going on with COVID-19. I am just happy that everybody trusted us and gave us a chance to play seven games this year. It’s a blessing.”
NOTES: Both Wright and Adams said that they intend to return their seventh and 12th seasons, respectively. Wright is 48-17 while Adams is 65-47 ... Woodstown had another opportunity to tie the game on its first possession of the second half. It made it all the way to Salem’s 3. However, a fumble, which was recovered by junior Jessiah Gildersleeve, killed the drive.