Camp, Gilbert co-op take down Oxford

WINSTED — Gilbert/ Northwestern/Housatonic football star Freddie Camp thrives in the spotlight.

Playing under rented lights at Gilbert’s Van Why Field Friday night, Camp dazzled an overflow crowd with three rushing touchdowns and threw for a fourth in the Yellowjackets’ 41-7 win over Oxford.

Camp, a fast, shifty senior, rang up 133 yards on nine carries with scoring runs of 19, 3 and 72 yards while opening the second half with a 50-yard scoring strike to tight end Devin Divita.

Camp also handles kickoffs for G/N/H, consistently booming kicks into the end zone for touchbacks while playing a major role in the Yellowjacket secondary.

What’s the most fun in his menagerie of roles?

“I kind of like defense,” he grinned. “I like going one-on-one.”

Despite Friday’s accomplishments, Camp is far from a one-man show for G/N/H, now 3-2 after losing to league powers Naugatuck and Ansonia while handling Kennedy and Wilby with relative ease in its first season in the NVL after switching from the Pequot League.

“This was a big game for us,” said G/N/H coach Scott Salius. “Oxford is a good team. Nick Cuomo is a tough runner and Julian Papst is one of the best receivers in the league.”

The Wolverines lost their starting quarterback to a broken collarbone a few games ago, but junior Mike Dorosh stepped up for Oxford, proving it with 196 passing yards Friday, including a 34-yard touchdown pass to Aiden Sill.

Nevertheless, “We thought we were stronger than them coming in,” Camp said.

The G/N/H defense stifled Oxford’s running game in four plays to open the game. A short punt gave Camp a chance to flash 19 yards for a Yellowjacket touchdown on their first play from scrimmage.

An easy win in the making? No; Dorosh threw a 60-yard pass to Cuomo on the Wolverines’ third play and, suddenly, it looked like it might be a scoring brawl.

G/N/H linebacker Ethan Koenig ended that threat with an interception, but late in the quarter, the Wolverines marched to the G/N/H 11 yard-line before a bad snap snuffed another.

Worse, Quinton Borkowski intercepted Risedorf early in the second period.

Then the Yellowjackets shifted gears. Aiden Avenia recovered an Oxford fumble on the Wolverines’ 45 yardline; Risedorf ran for 18 yards; and a steady pounding brought the ball within reach of Camp’s five-yard score for a 14-0 lead.

Avenia ran 59 yards for another touchdown on the next G/N/H possession, ending the half 21-0.