And they keep getting tougher: Bridgewater-Raritan travels to top-seed Union City Friday in North 2, Group 5 semifinals

There’s no doubt Union City will be heavily favored to win its North 2, Group 5 semifinal playoff game Friday night when Bridgewater-Raritan comes in, but there’s an old saying: The games is played on fields, not on paper.

Technically, Friday’s game will be played on the roof, perhaps the most unique high school football venue in the country. But either way, sign up the Panthers.

Just 3-6 on Cutoff Weekend – with a brutal schedule, in the toughest division in the Big Central Conference – Bridgewater-Raritan earned a four-seed and a first round home game, in which they survived fifth-seed Irvington, 34-33 in overtime, when a point after try by the Blue Knights in overtime bounced off the left upright, sending the home crowd into a frenzy.

But this Friday, things get much tougher. They’ll play top seed Union City (8-1) up on the rooftop at 7 pm for a trio to the sectional finals. Bridgewater hasn’t been since they made three in a row from 2015 through 2017, losing all three title games to Westfield, which went 12-0 all three seasons with those wins.

The Soaring Eagles are a different animal than most anyone the Panthers have played this season. They dropped their season opener, a 42-18 loss to multiplier St. Peter’s Prep in Week One, and haven’t lost since. In eight straight wins – including in the opening round over eight-seed East Side, Union City has allowed a grand total of 26 points, no opponent has scored more than 14, and they have pitched five shutouts.

That’s right, no one has scored on Union City since September.

Click below to hear Bridgewater-Raritan coach D.J. Catalano talk about the Panthers, and Friday’s playoff matchup at Union City: