Cedar Creek was facing a 9-7 deficit late in the third quarter against Haddonfield on Friday night, and the Pirates’ dreams of playing for a state championship hung in the balance. When the chips are down and you’re facing playoff elimination, the best course of action is to put the ball in the hands of your most dynamic playmaker. And that’s exactly what the Pirates did on the decisive drive in Cedar Creek’s 14-9 win over the Bulldawgs that propelled them into the South Jersey Group 2 championship game against top-seeded West Deptford. Haddonfield chewed up nearly four minutes of clock in the middle of the third quarter, but came away empty as a 32-yard field goal was missed. Cedar Creek took over at its own 20-yard line with 3:24 remaining in the third and facing a two-point deficit. Quarterback Jesse Milza hit wide receiver Ahmir Mitchell on a quick swing pass, but the play was read well by the Haddonfield defense and Mitchell was stopped after just a 2-yard gain. Isaiah Watson — who didn’t have a ton of yards but came up with some important second-half runs — plowed his way up the middle for an 8-yard gain that left Cedar Creek facing a third-and-1 at its own 29-yard line. Milza picked up a yard, and a first down, on a quarterback sneak. Then, on first down at the 30, junior Bo Melton took the game over. 
Bo Melton scored on a 70-yard touchdown run late in the third quarter that gave Cedar Creek the lead for good, 14-9, in the Pirates’ win over Haddonfield on Friday night in the South Jersey Group 2 semifinals. (Glory Days Magazine photo/Dave O’Sullivan) Melton — sort of a half wide receiver and half running back — took a handoff in the backfield and cut to his left. He picked up a huge seal block from Watson, hit the left sideline and was gone, 70 yards for a touchdown that gave the Pirates a 14-9 lead. Near the Haddonfield 30-yard line, with just the free safety to beat, Melton cut from the sideline to the middle of the field and turned on the afterburners, beating the final defender to cruise into the end zone. Haddonfield had three possessions in the fourth quarter, but punted on the first one and was stopped on downs on the next two as Cedar Creek held the lead and punched its ticket to the championship game. “I think there’s a little bit of pressure off. We came in knowing the outside didn’t have a lot of expectations for us, so it’s almost a situation where these guys can get after it and let the chips fall where they may,” said Cedar Creek coach Tim Watson. “Just the grit and determination that they showed when things were getting tough the last couple of weeks. It’s the end of the season and we have a bunch of guys who are banged up, but I’m just so proud of the way they battled, especially being down at halftime. (Haddonfield) had clearly taken the momentum, but we came out (in the second half) and made some things happen.” Melton finished with a game-high 109 yards rushing and scored both of Cedar Creek’s touchdowns. The first came on a 13-yard touchdown run late in the first quarter that gave the Pirates an early 7-0 lead.
— Dave O’Sullivan, publisher
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