Dodgers Dominate Summit for State Title

Last year, the football team proved it could handle the spotlight of a state title game. This year, the Dodgers put on a show.

Junior tailback Justin Goodwin rushed for 164 yards and two touchdowns and passed for another to lead Madison to a 47-7 rout of Summit in the NJSIAA North 2, Group II state title game held on the turf at Kean University's Alumni Field on Friday night.

For video highlights of the game and postgame interviews, head here.

For an extensive photo gallery from Friday night's victory, head here.

Shone Register scored twice on short TD runs and quarterback Carson Lassiter ran for another score and hooked up with Ben Andersen on a 74-yard touchdown pass to help the Dodgers complete their second consecutive unbeaten season, keep a 24-game winning streak intact and earn their second consecutive state title.

“It’s an amazing feeling,’’ Goodwin said. “The defensive line, linebackers, secondary, they all did their job. I knew that they would work hard. I had full confidence in them.’’

“It hasn’t hit me yet,’’ Lassiter added. “I don’t know when it’s going to hit me but it feels pretty good right now. I don’t know how much better it can feel.’’

Madison (12-0) took control of the game with a 27-point second-quarter outburst that gave the Dodgers a 33-6 advantage at the half. They dominated play on both the offensive and defensive ends.

Madison put pressure on Summit quarterback Ryan Bringewatt to keep the Hilltopper pass-oriented, no-huddle attack out of synch most of the game. For Summit (11-1), the only bright spot on offense came on a Kyr’e Negron 4-yard run to make it a 19-7 game midway through the second quarter.

“It started with our D-line,’’ Madison linebacker Matt McDonald said. “They controlled the line of scrimmage right from the start. That definitely shut them down.”

“Our defensive front is outstanding,’’ Madison coach Chris Kubik added. “I think we’re a little underrated defensively. We proved it with what we did tonight.’’

Goodwin at times looked unstoppable. As he drew more attention from the Summit defense, Madison took advantage of his strong play by finding opportunities for Lassiter, Register and the other Dodgers to make valuable contributions on the offensive end.

“Justin is one of a kind,’’ Lassiter said. “His speed and versatility in the backfield can’t be compared. It’s great that we have him on our team. You just can’t compare him to any back.’’

Summit nearly cashed in on an early drive but Mike Badgley missed a 42-yard field goal attempt. The momentum shifted for good the next time the Hilltoppers had the ball. Summit was on its own 35 when Bringewatt, under pressure, tried to hit Luke Stephens on a long, looping pass.Goodwin picked it off. He weaved through Hilltoppers tacklers and returned the ball to the Summit 31. On the very next play, Goodwin took a pitch, rolled to his right and hit Joe Penney-Hadewycz in stride for a touchdown with 6:35 left in the quarter.

“That pass was my second, maybe,’’ Goodwin said. “We’ve always had it in our playbook and J.P. ran a great route.’’

There was no hesitation in calling the gadget play because the Dodger tailback has one of the better arms on the team.

“He’s tremendous every day,’’ Kubik said. “That’s him. He’s got a good cast around him. You can try and shut him down but you have to worry about some other people. When you are so worried about other people, he dominates.’’

Both teams were stopped on downs in the next two offensive series, but Madison had the better field position and was starting to get pressure on Bringewatt. Negron suffered a six-yard loss on a running play and Connor Higgins sacked the Summit quarterback for an 11-yard loss, forcing a third-and-28 on the Summit 18. The Hilltoppers decided to quick kick but Negron’s attempt was blocked by Matt McDonald.

“Our defense was great today,’’ Lassiter said. “We made stops. That was a really high-tempo offense they had with the spread and the no-huddle but they did a great job stopping them.’’

Madison got the ball on the Hilltoppers 25. Four plays later, Goodwin ran a sweep to his left for a 20-yard score to make it a 12-0 game just seconds into the second quarter.

Great Dodgers special teams forced Summit to start its next drive on its own 15 and the Madison defense forced the Hilltoppers to punt. The Dodgers got the ball on their own 45 and scored five plays later. A 22-yard sweep by Goodwin set up a two-yard plunge by Register and Madison had a 19-0 lead.

After Summit got a score back, the Dodgers posted a pair of touchdowns going into halftime. One score came because of an alert play by Madison’s Layton Lassiter. After Summit scored, the Hilltoppers tried to squib a kick to gain a chance at recovering.

Lassiter, Carson’s twin brother and one of the up men, alertly fielded the ball on a bounce, broke two tackles and rushed to the right side before he was pulled down at the Summit 25. Five plays later, Carson Lassiter plunged in from the 1-yard line to make it 26-7 with 4:16 left in the half.

A holding call crippled the Hilltoppers' next possession and forced a punt. Madison got the ball on its own 44. The Dodgers marched 56 yards in six plays, which included double-digit runs by Goodwin and Carson Lassiter. Goodwin ran the ball in from six yards out to make it a 33-7 game with 25 seconds left in the half.

There was still a half to go, but Summit had no answers for Goodwin’s ability or Madison’s defensive effort.

“That’s a great Madison team,’’ Summit coach John Liberato said. “We did not underestimate them. We wanted to play our best game today. I think they played their best game today. They have a lot of weapons and their offensive lines and defensive lines did an outstanding job. We knew they were well-coached. They are a big, strong team and we tried our best.’’

In last year’s title game against Caldwell, the Dodgers admitted they played a little tentatively in the second half and let their opponents back into the contest. This time they were not going to indulge the Hilltoppers any second-half magic.

“Last year we learned a lesson,’’ Kubik said. “That was my fault. We played soft last year. We let Caldwell back in the game. The bottom line is we came to play. We played like it was 0-0 — that’s what happened in the second half.’’

A third-quarter drive by Summit did push the ball to the Madison 14, but the Hilltoppers needed touchdowns and the drive eventually stalled after a couple of incomplete passes.

The combination of Carson Lassiter and Ben Andersen thrilled the already cheerful Madison fans when the pair hooked up for a 74-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter. By the time Register rushed for another touchdown with just more than two minutes left, there were no doubts. Madison would be crowned champs once again.

“Two times in a row,’’ McDonald said. “I don’t know how many people can say that. It feels pretty great. Words can’t describe this right now.’’