ERMA – The Lower Cape May Regional High School football team jumped out to a two-touchdown lead early in its final regular game for the 2025 season and held on to win the West Jersey Football League Liberty Division title with a 28-20 win over Oakcrest.
Head Coach Billy Damiana told his players after the win that Oakcrest was a talented team, despite its 2-7 record.
“This team beat you 50-0 last year, and now you are the outright division champions,” Damiana said. “You’re winners, and winners always win.”
That was not always the case.
Despite having talent, such as LCMR graduate and multisport standout Matt Szczur, division titles were elusive.
“This is only the fourth in school history,” Damiana said.
The coach said that the team did win a division title two years ago, but it was in a smaller division. This season, they accomplished the task against Group II and Group III schools.
His team, now 7-2, carried the burden of the victory on its legs, with junior quarterback David Douglass running for three touchdowns. Junior running back Ryan Mallon carried the ball 24 times for 141 yards, and junior Jonathan Fernandez carried 12 times for 96 yards. Douglass carried 16 times for 68 yards.
Douglass scored midway through the first quarter to put LCMR on the board, and again with 16 seconds left in the quarter, making it 14-0. With defensive stops in between, it looked like the Caper Tigers might run away with it. However, with some good runs by Oakcrest, aided by penalties on Lower Cape May, the score was 14-6 after a failed extra point attempt.
Lower ended up running the ball down the field again, this time with Mallon punching the ball in from the 2 yard line, and it was 21-6. After returning the kickoff to the 40, the Falcons ran the ball 60 yards to score, and it was 21-12 after another failed two-point attempt, and remained that at the half.
In the third quarter, LCMR picked up a fumble after a completed pass and shortly returned the favor, turning the ball back over to the Falcons. Douglass scored his third touchdown midway in the fourth quarter to make it 28-12, and that would complete the scoring for the Caper Tigers. Oakcrest came back at about the 5-minute mark, and with a successful two-point conversion the score was 28-20.
Lower managed to control the ball and run the clock for much of the remaining time, taking the ball to the Oakcrest 13 before taking a knee to end the game.
Asked if he was pleased with his team’s performance, Damiana said, “I’m pleased with the result.” Asked about the number of penalties his team racked up, he said, “Some of them we earned, others just didn’t seem necessary.”
Still, nothing was taking the sweet taste of victory away from the win. The Caper Tigers are now scheduled to play Gloucester City Jr.-Sr. High School at noon Saturday, Nov. 1, at LCMR stadium in the first round of the state playoffs.
Contact the reporter, Christopher South, at csouth@cmcherald.com or call 609-886-8600, ext. 128.
