EWING — The Trenton High football team is 4-1 for the first time in a decade. How does that sound? “That’s amazing,” junior Jonel Lince said with a smile after the Tornadoes won on the road Saturday afternoon at Ewing, 14-12. “Ever since I’ve been here, this is my first time experiencing this type of feeling. We’re just winning.” Trenton had to grind out this one under rainy conditions against the Blue Devils (0-5), who are still searching for their first victory but have lost by only one score in four of their games. These schools are also Mercer County rivals, so it’s typically a physical battle up front and comes down to who makes fewer mistakes. Trenton hung on at the end when senior Keyshawn Warthen intercepted a pass near midfield as time expired. Ewing stopped Trenton on fourth down inside the red zone to put itself in position to make a heroic last-minute drive, but marching 91 yards down the field proved to be too difficult, especially when senior Brandon Washington sacked Ewing with 55.5 seconds left. “It’s just getting that finishing type of instinct inside you,” Ewing coach Ross Maddalon said. “That killer instinct is something we need to develop, and I think it’ll come, it’s just taking a little bit of time. But Coach Franco’s kids played very, very well and I’m extraordinarily proud of our kids. Our kids have been resilient. They have played hard in every single game this year. They don’t quit. They keep fighting. They’re fantastic kids.” Trenton grabbed an early 7-0 lead on its first drive when Lince scampered down the left sideline for a 26-yard touchdown run. Lince and Warthen, Trenton’s dual-threat quarterback, did most of the heavy lifting in a game with few pass attempts. “My linemen blocked all game,” Lince said. “My linemen, they were pushing, they just kept trying, and I appreciate that. I appreciate that so much.” Still, Ewing’s defense made life difficult much of the day against a Trenton offense that struggled to sustain drives. The Tornadoes faced a key fourth-and-1 at the Blue Devils’ 41-yard line late in the third quarter, and junior Brandon Williams came up with a sack to give Ewing possession. Unfortunately for the Blue Devils, they went three-and-out on offense and then fumbled the snap on a punt to give the Tornadoes a short field. Warthen cashed in with a 25-yard touchdown run on the next play to make it 14-6 with 10:45 remaining, despite a longer distance on the extra point by Elmer Godoy because of a penalty. Special teams were crucial also because Ewing missed its first extra-point attempt after senior Cordell Sloan had a 32-yard rushing touchdown to cap a 73-yard drive with 5:50 left in the second quarter. So when Ewing’s answered Warthen’s touchdown with a 50-yard drive to make it 12-14 on junior Ryan Greig’s 1-yard quarterback sneak with 7:06 remaining, the Blue Devils had to go for two to tie the game. Lince broke up a pass in the corner of the end zone to foil that attempt. “I actually thought it was gonna be a run, so I was surprised when he did that play,” Lince said. “But at the end of the day, I went for the ball because I actually got a pass interference (earlier in the game) because I went for the body, but this time I went for the ball and I made a play.” Ewing continued to scrap and proceeded to stop Trenton in the red zone. But the Tornadoes still ate up valuable time because an interception by sophomore Dinari Champion was wiped out by a roughing the passer penalty to continue that drive. “It’s little things here and there,” Maddalon said. “It’s just bringing everything together. The offense has played well overall throughout the year, and the defense has been clamping down over the last couple weeks and playing much better. So once we bring everything together in a total football game, we’re gonna be just fine. We’re gonna be a pretty good football team.” Trenton, on the other hand, is finding plenty ways to be successful. The Tornadoes have already won more games than the previous two seasons combined and sit atop WJFL’s Valley Division with a 3-0 record. Lince said it has boiled down to more hours in the weight room, more conditioning, more team building, and just a bit more focus in practice for what has the makings of a special fall. “We’re a team,” Lince said. “In the summer, all we did was bond as a team. I feel like this year we took a bigger step. Last year we were still a team, but we just took a bigger leap, a bigger step this year.” Trenton (4-1) 7 0 0 7 – 14 Ewing (0-5) 0 6 0 6 – 12 First Quarter T – Lince 26 run (Godoy kick) Second Quarter E– Sloan 32 run (kick failed) Fourth Quarter T – Warthen 25 run (Godoy kick) E – Greig 1 run (pass failed)