A Big Night Ahead For Central's Golden Eagles

By Patricia A. Miller

Willie Jacobs Jr. was a three-sport varsity athlete during his years at Central Regional High School.

Now Jacobs - Class of 1990 - has come full circle. He is the head football coach for the Golden Eagles. And tonight he will be inducted into the Central Regional Hall of Fame, along with Jason Pozo, Class of 1994, Cheryl Zellman-Scherer, Class of 1997 and Keri Lages, Class of 1998.

The induction ceremony will take place at 6 p.m. in the high school gym lobby. The three will be recognized again at halftime during the game against Pinelands Regional, Superintendent Triantafillos Parlapanides said.

Jacobs was a member of Central's 1988 football team that won the B South championship. He rushed for over 1,000 yards two years in a row.  He was named all B South his junior and senior year.

He was also a member of the winning B South wrestling team and also participated in track and field. Today he coaches all three sports at Central and was named head football coach earlier this year.

• Pozo also rose to the top in three sports. He was Central's football quarterback and was named most valuable player in 1993. He led his basketball team to Divisional Championships in 1992 and 1994. He won the Kerwin Award for Jersey Shore Player of the Year in 1994 and finished as a 1,000 point scorer.

Pozo also  lettered all four years in baseball and helped lead the team to three divisional titles (1992-1994). He hit .494 in 1992 and was named most valuable player, 1st Team All-County and 2nd Team All-Shore. He finished his high school career with a record 114 hits, earned MVP, 1st Team All-County and All-Shore.

He was later drafted in the 27th Round by the Atlanta Braves. He went on to play baseball at Northwood University in Florida and signed as a free-agent with the Milwaukee Brewers in 1997.

• Zellman-Scherer, Class of 1997, won varsity letters in softball all four years  At Central. Shewas selected as 1st team All County, three time AP 1st Team All-County, three time 1st Team All-Shore and twice to 1st Team All-State.

• Lages, Class of 1998, earned varsity letters in soccer, winter track and spring track. In soccer, she scored 78 goals and finished her high school career holding the All-Time leading goal scoring record.

She earned local and national accolades including First Team All-County, All-Shore, All-State, and Top 17 in the Region. Lages was also selected as the New Jersey Sports Writer’s Association for Girls and Women in Sports. She played played Division I soccer at Villanova and Rutgers on a full scholarship. At Villanova, Keri was a season leading scorer at Villanova and was named to the Big East All Rookie Team. At Rutgers she was captain, and named Offensive Player of the Year, MVP and led them to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament. She also earned First Team Big East and Mid-Atlantic All-American honors.