Cherokee

With his outstretched right hand, a leaping Matt McCormick punched the shot over the crossbar on Monday before his head crashed into the goalpost. Absegami coach Bill Rose said he wasn't quite sure how the senior goalie reached the ball, but McCormick did anyway and the top-seeded Braves edged No. 9 Cherokee in overtime, 1-0, in the South Jersey Group 4 boys' soccer quarterfinals. "It was one of the best saves I've ever seen a high school keeper make," Rose said. With two minutes left in regulation, the save preserved the scoreless tie and forced overtime.

Lenape was ousted from the first round of the Central Jersey Group 4 field hockey tournament, as the Indians lost to Freehold Township, 3-1, Saturday. Katie McKenna scored Lenape's goal, assisted by Taylor Neshay. Amanda Cohen made 10 saves for the Indians.   Girls' Soccer Northern Burlington gave up two goals in each half to Ocean Township in a 4-0 loss in a Central Jersey Group 3 first-round match.   Girls' Volleyball No. 12 Paul VI defeated fifth-seeded Union Catholic, 2-1, in the second round of the state's Non-Public tournament.

If rust is your preferred metaphor, then a 20-day layoff had left the Cherry Hill East football team like the Tin Man in the beginning of The Wizard of Oz . Stuck. Motionless. And unable to find an oil can before being ransacked by Cherokee in a 42-13 romp Friday night. In a game with playoff implications for both teams, Cherokee (4-4) remained alive, though it needs some help, in the race for a Group 5 berth. Cherry Hill East (3-5) saw its playoff hopes end, as nearly everything that could go wrong did for a Cougars team that had been solid, at times even playing above expectations, for much of this season.

The last time Cherry Hill East played a football game, it still was light at 5 p.m. and "Sandy" and the Jersey Shore were linked by one thing: a Bruce Springsteen song about the Fourth of July in Asbury Park. A lot has happened since Oct. 20. Late that afternoon, Cherry Hill East walked off the field after a loss at Washington Township. On Friday, the Cougars will run back onto the field to face host Cherokee in a game loaded with South Jersey Group 5 playoff implications for both teams.

The last time Cherry Hill East played a football game, it still was light at 5 p.m. and "Sandy" and the Jersey Shore were linked by one thing: a Bruce Springsteen song about the Fourth of July in Asbury Park. A lot has happened since Oct. 20. Late that afternoon, Cherry Hill East walked off the field after a loss at Washington Township. On Friday, the Cougars will run back on the field to face host Cherokee in a game loaded with South Jersey Group 5 playoff implications for both teams.

There will be more defense and less offense. That's pretty much a guarantee. But the stakes are similar - if not higher - for Cherry Hill East and Cherokee as the teams prepare to clash in Week 8 for the second season in a row. Last season, Cherry Hill East and Cherokee both entered Week 8 with their sights set on a South Jersey Group 4 playoff berth. The Chiefs were 5-2, and the Cougars were 4-3. Cherry Hill East won by a 57-56 score in double overtime in the highest-scoring game of the South Jersey season.

Girls' Soccer SOUTH JERSEY GROUP 1 FIRST ROUND Glassboro 7, Woodbury 1 Gateway 4, Palmyra 0 SOUTH JERSEY GROUP 4 FIRST ROUND Lenape 3, Vineland 0 Field Hockey SOUTH JERSEY GROUP 4 QUARTERFINALS Eastern 14, Cherokee 1 Boys' Soccer SOUTH JERSEY GROUP 1 FIRST ROUND NONLEAGUE Wildwood at Gateway, 2 Clayton at Pitman, 2 Glassboro at Riverside, 2 Maple Shade at Haddon Township, 3 Penns Grove at...

The incorrect result was reported for the Bishop Eustace-Winslow Township boys' soccer game in a roundup Saturday. Eustace won, 5-1, getting two goals from Alec Palmieri and one each from Brian Keller, Jake Heyser, and Nick Hanuscin. The Inquirer on Saturday misidentified the goal scorer in Cherokee's 1-0 victory over Williamstown in a South Jersey Coaches Tournament girls' soccer quarterfinal. Kelly Ethridge had the goal.

His team trailed by 17-7 with less than nine minutes left, and Eastern junior quarterback Tom Flacco couldn't have been more excited. "I said this is the fun time, the challenge of trying to come back," Flacco said. He was speaking moments after Eastern did come back to defeat visiting Cherokee, 20-17, Friday night in a West Jersey Football League American Division thriller. Eastern improved to 5-2, and while the Vikings might not have punched their Group 5 playoff ticket, they are awfully close to that.

Join us for Friday Football Frenzy, our live chat from the Downingtown East-Downingtown West football game, beginning around 7 p.m. Chris Melchiorre will host the chat and will take questions and comments. We'll also provide up-to-the-minute updates from Springfield (Delco)-Ridley, Highland-Glassboro, and Cherokee-Eastern, and scores of other games.