The opening round of the playoffs saw just nine of the 24 Big Central Conference teams in action Friday night move on to the next round, with four more in action Saturday.
Bridgewater-Raritan won in dramatic fashion, as Irvington doinked a field goal off the left upright to send the Panthers to their first sectional final since 2017. Elizabeth continued its late-season surge with a win over Morristown in the same North 2, Group 5 section, and Somerville and Woodbridge cruised to victories, while Cranford edged Summit in a rematch of a regular season matchup won by the Hilltoppers.
Four of the five Group 2 schools lost – Bernards being the only exception – while all both Group 1 schools fell short as well. Manville is in action Saturday morning at Paulsboro.
Below, we recap each Group’s Friday night action with scores and notes. Projected sectional semifinal matchups are at the bottom of this story.
North 2, Group 5
(1) Union City 49, (8) East Side 0
(2) Elizabeth 34, (7) Morristown 33
(3) Passaic Tech 18, (6) Plainfield 12
(4) Bridgewater-Raritan 34, (5) Irvington 33 (OT) (Full story at the link)
The Panthers are in the semifinals for the first time since 2017, the last of their three straight trips to the North 2, Group 5 finals, all of which were won by Westfield.
Elizabeth has now won four straight after a four-game losing streak that started after the September third firing of John Fiore, and they’ll even get to play another home game.
North 1, Group 5
(1) Ridgewood 33, (8) Passaic 14
(2) West Orange 28, (7) Linden 21
Central Group 5
(1) Washington Twp. 38, (8) Hunterdon Central 0
(2) Atlantic City 47, (7) Eastern 15
(6) Cherokee 16, (3) Old Bridge 14
(5) Cherry Hill 28, (4) Southern 21
South Group 5
(1) Toms River North 55, (8) Bridgeton 6
(2) Rancocas Valley 42, (7) Edison 7
(3) Hillsborough 49, (6) Freehold Twp. 20
(5) Kingsway 13, (4) Howell 0
Jackson Jankowicz scored six of the Raiders’ seven touchdowns in their win over Freehold Township, five on the ground and one through the air in what was likely their last home game of the season. They’ll go on the road next week to take on Rancocas Valley.
North 1, Group 4
(2) Ridge 22, (7) Rahway 14 (Full story at the link)
(3) Ramapo 47, (6) Randolph 27
(4) Mount Olive 40, (5) Newark Central 6
North 2, Group 4
(1) Phillipsburg 42, (8) Nutley 0
(2) Woodbridge 35, (7) Watchung Hills 15 (Full story at the link)
(3) Northern Highlands 21, (6) Westfield 7
(5) Chatham 24, (4) Wayne Valley 7
Phillipsburg led 7-0 after one, but quickly warmed up, scoring five times in the second. Felix Matos had a rushing and receiving touchdown in the win, while Matthew Scerbo, Jr., had two touchdown receptions in the win.
The Stateliners are a win away from their third straight sectional finals berth. The last two were in Group 5, and both losses: to West Orange in 2022, and Union City last year.
North 1, Group 3
(1) Pascack Valley 49, (8) West Milford 14
(7) River Dell 36, (2) Mendham 35 (OT)
(3) Passaic Valley 27, (6) Snyder 0
North 2, Group 3
(1) Old Tappan 19, (8) Weequahic 11
(2) West Essex 43, (7) Dwight Morrow 20
(3) West Morris 28, (6) Wayne Hills 0
(4) Cranford 27, (4) Summit 22
Cranford got payback for a regular season defeat at Summit 21-7 by winning at home Friday night, as the Cougars won their fifth straight.
Central Group 3
(1) Somerville 40, (8) Absegami 0
(7) Delsea 29, (2) Burlington Twp. 12
(3) Cedar Creek 39, (6) Triton 14
(4) Ocean City 42, (5) Allentown 34
The Pioneers continued their undefeated season, improving to 10-0. All but six of their points came in the first half, with Max Nuzzi’s 36-yard pick-six before the break kicking off the running clock, up 34-0 at that point. Five different players scored touchdowns for Somerville, which got two touchdown runs from Josh Rodriguez.
South Group 3
(1) Hopewell Valley 45, (8) Nottingham 15
(2) Mainland 49, (7) Barnegat 14
(4) Seneca 13, (5) Timber Creek 10
North 1, Group 2
(1) Westwood 36, (8) Lakeland 14
(2) Bernards 35, (7) Rutherford 33
(3) Pequannock 28, (6) Madison 27
(5) Shabazz 36, (4) Caldwell 33
Bernards – the defending North 2, Group 2 sectional champion – continues its undefeated season, improving to 10-0 with the win.
North 2, Group 2
(2) Hanover Park 27, (7) Newton 14
(3) Ramsey 27, (6) Lyndhurst 24
(4) High Point 46, (5) Becton 0
Central Group 2
(1) Rumson-Fair Haven 48, (8) Spotswood 0
(3) Wall 34, (7) Haddon Heights 0
(3) Haddonfield 14, (6) Hillside 7
(4) Delran 42, (5) Delaware Valley 7
South Group 2
(1) Camden 46, (8) Middle Twp. 13
(2) Pt. Pleasant Boro 41, (7) Gloucester City 13
(3) Manchester Twp. 30, (6) West Deptford 29
(5) Willingboro 62, (4) Johnson 7
North 1, Group 1
(1) Butler 47, (8) Weehawken 8
(2) New Milford 14, (7) Park Ridge 0
(3) Mountain Lakes 17, (6) Lenape Valley 14
North 2, Group 1
(1) Cedar Grove 38, (8) Wallkill Valley 6
(3) Hasbrouck Heights 41, (6) Wood-Ridge 7
(4) Verona 20, (5) Belvidere 0
Central Group 1
(1) Woodstown 31, (8) KIPP Cooper Norcross 8
(2) Shore 21, (7) New Egypt 0
(6) Woodbury 35, (3) Middlesex 28
(5) Pennsville 41, (4) Burlington City 20
South Group 1
(1) Glassboro 64, (8) Pt. Pleasant Beach 7
(2) Schalick 24, (7) Audubon 0
SEMIFINAL ROUNDS
Here are projected semifinal matchups statewide. Dates and times are based on first round times, when available, and may be subject to change.
North 2, Group 5
(4) Bridgewater-Raritan at (1) Union City, 7 pm Friday
(3) Passaic Tech at (2) Elizabeth, 7 pm Friday
North 1, Group 5
(2) West Orange at (1) Ridgewood, 7 pm Friday
(3) Piscataway/(6) Bayonne vs. (4) East Orange/(5) Montclair
Central Group 5
(4) Southern at (1) Washington Twp., 6 pm Friday
(6) Cherokee at (3) Atlantic City, 6 pm Friday
South Group 5
(4) Howell at (1) Toms River North, 6 pm Friday
(3) Hillsborough at (2) Rancocas Valley, 6 pm Friday
North 1, Group 4
(2) Ridge vs. (1) Morris Knolls/(8) Colonia
(3) Ramapo at (2) Ridge, 7 pm Friday
North 2, Group 4
(5) Chatham at (1) Phillipsburg, 7 pm Friday
(3) Northern Highlands at (2) Woodbridge, 6 pm Friday
Central Group 4
(5) Toms River South/(4) Marlboro at (1) Millville, 6 pm Friday
(6) Jackson Memorial at (2) Brick Memorial), 6 pm Friday
South Group 4
(4) Manalapan vs. (1) Winslow/(8) Princeton
(3 Shawnee at (2) Middletown North, 7 pm Friday
North 1, Group 3
(4) Montville/(5) Sparta at (1) Pascack Valley, 7 pm Friday
(7) River Dell at (3) Passaic Valley, 6:30 pm Friday
North 2, Group 3
(4) Cranford at (1) Old Tappan, 6 pm Friday
(3) West Morris at (2) West Essex, 6:30 pm Friday
Central Group 3
(4) Ocean City at (1) Somerville, 7 pm Friday
(7) Delsea at (3) Cedar Creek, 6 pm Friday
South Group 3
(4) Seneca at (1) Hopewell Valley, 6 pm Friday
(3) Holmdel/(6) Oakcrest at (2) Mainland, 6 pm Friday
North 1, Group 2
(5) Shabazz at (1) Westwood, 7 pm Friday
(3) Pequannock at (2) Bernards, 7 pm Friday
North 2, Group 2
(4) High Point vs. (1) Glen Rock/(8) Waldwick
(3) Ramsey at (2) Hanover Park, 7 pm Friday
Central Group 2
(4) Delran at (1) Rumson-Fair Haven, 7 pm Friday
(3) Haddonfield at (2) Wall, 7 pm Friday
South Group 2
(5) Willingboro at (1) Camden, 6 pm Friday
(3) Manchester Twp. at (2) Pt. Pleasant Boro, 7 pm Friday
North 1, Group 1
(4) Glen Ridge/(5) Pompton Lakes at (1) Butler, 7 pm Friday
(3) Mountain Lakes at (2) New Milford, 7 pm Friday
North 2, Group 1
(4) Verona at (1) Cedar Grove, 7 pm Friday
(3) Hasbrouck Heights vs. (2) New Providence/(7) Boonton
Central Group 1
(5) Pennsville at (1) Woodstown, 7 pm Friday
(6) Woodbury at (2) Shore, 7 pm Friday
South Group 1
(4) Haddon Twp./(5) Riverside at (1) Glassboro, 6 pm Friday
(3) Paulsboro/(6) Manville at (2) Schalick, 6 pm Friday
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