Cherry Hill East football makes a stand, earns 'The Boot'

CHERRY HILL – "The Boot" is back on Kresson Road.

For the first time in 12 years, the trophy named after the late, beloved Cherry Hill educator and administrator Alexander DiBartolomeo, will reside on the Eastside following the Cougars’ 28-7 victory over Cherry Hill West before more than 2,000 fans on Thursday night.

There are plenty of big goals left for Cherry Hill East (6-0) to tackle this season, but make no mistake: A victory over its crosstown rival was definitely sweet.

“One hundred percent, it’s a humungous win,” senior running back Denzel Lee, who rushed for 186 yards and two touchdowns. “We always lose to West, it was like a tradition.

“To be able to beat these guys, it’s so emotional because of all the hard work we’ve put into it.”

Senior Jaxson Bowman added, “It’s been three tough years (resulting in losses to West). We knew we had it from the first snap. We came out and dominated like we knew we would.”

Cherry Hill East hadn’t beaten the Westsiders since 2012, a 28-0 triumph. Current head coach Tyler Drob remembers that game well – it was the final time he put on the Cougar jersey.

“For our guys, it establishes that all the hard work and dedication, it’s paying off,” said Drob, still drenched from the celebratory Gatorade bucket shower on this chilly October evening. “They will always remember this game. We wanted to give them that experience. We wanted our seniors from last year to experience it too, but we lost on the last play of the game. A lot of them texted me this week.”

Cherry Hill East has Deptford and unbeaten Bridgeton coming up over the next two weeks with the West Jersey Football League Memorial Division title on the line. The Cougars are also eyeing a spot in the Group 5 playoffs.

“We’re not done here,” Lee said. “We still have a half a season left. We’re going to keep ballin’ out. … Make the playoffs and go as far as we can.”

Play of the game

Cherry Hill East was close to ending the drought against West last season, but watched the Lions celebrate with "The Boot" following a two-point conversion in double overtime that ended a 29-28 thriller.

“I thought about that play every day until this moment (Thursday night),” Bowman said.

East was faced with a goal-line stand in this game and stuffed the Lions on four plays inside the Cougar 2. Linemen Ona Pela and Bowman and linebacker Sean Haney were several of the players who helped clog up the middle on the play.

While the defensive stop came midway through the first quarter, it cemented the momentum in East’s favor for the rest of the game.

“That goal-line stop, it really summed the game up,” Drob said.

Patient Cougar

Lee might be anxious when his No. 22 is called, but he knows that patience makes him a successful runner with the football.

“My coaches always tell me to be a patient running back, not an antsy one,” Lee said. “You have to be patient, sometimes the hole isn’t going to be there automatically, you have to wait for it to happen, and make the play.”

Lee made plenty of plays in this game as he had a season-high 21 carries for 186 yards. He has seven rushing touchdowns in the last three weeks, nine for the season and 29 for his career.

East wasted no time grabbing the momentum as Lee ripped off a 51-yard touchdown run on the Cougars’ opening possession. He added a 22-yard TD run on the first play of the second quarter.

Game notes

Bowman, who has been battling a nagging injury in recent weeks, looked completely healthy in this game, especially on a 23-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.

“I figured if I got the ball, I might as well score,” Bowman said about his first scholastic touchdown.

Cherry Hill East owns a 32-24 lead in the all-time series, which began in 1969. The rivalry was played on Thanksgiving and then Thanksgiving Eve for many years.

Thursday's contest marked the first time the game had ever been played at night on the East campus.

Isaiah Donaldson also rushed for a touchdown for East. Quarterback Hayden Baker accounted for West’s lone TD on a 17-yard run in the third quarter.

The Lions fell to 2-4 on the season.

Tom McGurk is a regional sports reporter for the Courier-Post, The Daily Journal and Burlington County Times, covering South Jersey sports for over 30 years. If you have a sports story that needs to be told, contact him at (856) 486-2420 or email tmcgurk@gannett.com . Follow him on Twitter at @McGurkSports. Help support local journalism with a digital subscription.

This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Cherry Hill East football makes a stand, earns 'The Boot'