The schedule might have been light Saturday afternoon, but there was plenty of action for the four Big Central Conference teams in action on the final day of Week Zero play in New Jersey high school football.
The biggest win went to No. 4 Piscataway in a battle of electrifying teams, as the Chiefs nearly gave up a two-score lead late, and hung on for a 26-20 victory at East Orange.
Meanwhile, Manville pummeled their hosts in the opening game of the “Battle of the Bridge” at Keansburg, while South River dropped the second game, 43-7, to Point Pleasant Beach.
Scroll through for recaps, audio and Saturday scores.
Chiefs hang on in a wild finish…
Fourth-ranked Piscataway needed a goal line stand to come away with a 26-20 win, one that nearly – and quite literally – almost slipped through their hands.
The Chiefs scored on their opening possession, with a 29-yard touchdown run by Zaire Young, but missed the extra point left. And they fell behind 7-6 when the Jaguars answered on a 35-yard TD scamper by Jaleel Halsey early in the second quarter. But Piscataway got one back with 4:15 left, when Cody Hardy jumped a route on the right sideline on an East Orange second-and-eight from the three, taking the interception into the end zone to go up 13-7 with the PAT.
Late in the third quarter, a bad snap on a punt went over kicker Patrick Novak’s head. He was able to get it off, but the Jags got good field position and scored to make it 14-13 East Orange. But the Chiefs would answer with another Zaire Young touchdown, leaping over a defender at the goal line to reach the end zone, making it 19-14 Piscataway with the point after. Another score by Jason Harrison put them up 26-14 with 3:32 left, and it looked like the Chiefs would come back home with a win.
And they did, but they had to sweat it out. East Orange completed a bomb of a pass to Eric Williams down the left side, who looked like he would score, but his momentum took him out at the one. Jaleel Halsey punched it in for the score, but going for the PAT, a bobbled snap resulted in a botched play, and a frantic attempt to toss the ball to the end zone for two failed.
Piscataway got its hands team out for the expected onside kick, but it bounced high off the finger tips of a Piscataway player and East Orange recovered at the Piscataway 47 with two time outs left. They used one as they got it down to the one-yard line for a first down with 22 seconds left, and got stuffed on a run with 13-seconds remaining before calling their final time out.
The Chiefs then stuffed the next run into the backfield, and with only three seconds left, East Orange tried to spike the ball, but couldn’t get the play off in time, leaving Piscataway with a wild 26-20 victory.
Next week, Piscataway gets Somerville (1-0) at home, in a game you can hear live on Central Jersey Sports Radio with Mike Pavlichko and Nick Hart on the call.
Manville wins 15th straight…
The Mustangs left little to doubt in their season opener, as Manville won its 15th straight regular season game – dating back to 2024 – picking up a 56-15 victory over host Keansburg in the “Battle of The Bridge” showcase down along the Bayshore.
Five different players scored rushing touchdowns for Manville: Matthew Gorbatuk and Aidan Johnson each scored twice, while Cassius Carter, Jovani Maldonado and Kevin Camacho each scored once. And QB Jonathan Gosk connected with Elijah Bennett for a passing TD.
Johnson also added a pick on defense, while Gorbatuk had a fumble recovery. The Mustangs visit Brearley (1-0) in Kenilworth next Friday night.
SATURDAY SCHEDULE
- Manville 56, Keansburg 17 (Battle of the Bridge at Keansburg HS)
- Point Pleasant Beach 43, South River 7 (Battle of the Bridge at Keansburg HS)
- #4 Piscataway 26, East Orange 20
- St. Thomas Aquinas 36, Frank J. Macchiarola (NY) 12
FRIDAY SCOREBOARD
- #1 Phillipsburg 28, Parkland (PA) 21
- Shawnee 43, #3 Old Bridge 35 (Battle at the Beach, Ocean City)
- #5 Somerville 40, South Plainfield 21
- #6 Bridgewater-Raritan 28, #8 Woodbridge 7 (GAME RECAP)
- #7 Sayreville 23, Plainfield 19
- #9 Summit 23, Colonia 21
- Rutherford 26, #10 Bernards 20
- Warren Hills 36, Voorhees 0
- Westfield 33, Scotch Plains-Fanwood 28
- Ewing 33, Franklin 21
- Manalapan 41, Hillsborough 25
- Union 35, Edison 0
- Hillside 41, Columbia 0
- Eastern 17, Hunterdon Central 14
- Perth Amboy 33, Monroe 28
- North Warren 32, Bound Brook 0
- Hopewell Valley 34, Montgomery 0
- North Brunswick 39, Snyder 8
- Watchung Hills 14, South Brunswick 0
- East Brunswick 41, JFK 0
- Wood-Ridge 41, Roselle Park 6
- Delaware Valley 17, North Hunterdon 0 (Game Coverage from Marcus Borden)
- New Hope-Solebury (PA) 23, South Hunterdon 14
- North Plainfield 7, Orange 0
- Elizabeth 53, Carteret 6
- Highland Park 29, New Brunswick 0 (GAME RECAP)
- Hackettstown 27, Belvidere 8
- Monmouth 21, Spotswood 7
THURSDAY SCOREBOARD
- Brearley 33, Wallington 0
- JP Stevens 21, West Windsor-Plainsboro 6
- Rahway 30, Willingboro 28
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