Somerville seeks second title game berth in three seasons when Pioneers visit Wayne Hills in North 2, Group 3 semis

In their first year playing on the North side in Group 3, sixth-seed Somerville is just a win away from a sectional finals appearance, which would be their second in three seasons.

And go figure, right?

The Pioneers were 8-1 heading into last year’s Central Jersey Group 3 playoffs, the second-seed, and dropped their opener to seventh-seed Matawan, 14-3.

This year, they were 6-3 entering the North 2, Group 3 first round as a six-seed. And again, it was a one-point game, but this time they came out on the right side, beating third-seed Holmdel on the road, 27-26.

Friday night, they Pioneers (6-4) get back on the bus to head up to second-seed Wayne Hills (9-1) for a 7 pm kickoff in the sectional semifinals.

The Patriots have won five straight coming in, following a 42-35 loss at Old Tappan, which remains unbeaten at 9-0, and is the top seed in the North 1, Group 3 bracket. Solid wins have come over Northern Highlands, Lakeland and Ramapo, all of whom are very much still alive in the playoffs.

They’re also a team with offensive balance – throwing for over 1,500 yards and rushing for over 1,800 – led by senior quarterback James Wolf and junior runninback Ethan Zacharski.

Somerville’s quarterback is just a sophomore, but Dylan Boehm was a starter last year as a freshman. He’s thrown for 1,324 yards and eleven touchdowns, a year after throwing for 1,449 and ten TDs. But more importantly, he’s slashed the number of picks more than in half; he threw eight last year, but has only three this season. And the ground game has been balanced, with two different backs – Justin Bowen and Peyton Akins, as well as receiver Justin Bowen – with at least 68 carries.

After a 4-1 start, the season has been a bit up and down. They’ve split their last six games, with wins over St. Thomas Aquinas and Hunterdon Central in the regular season – plus Holmdel last week in the playoffs – and losses to Montgomery, Sayreville and Elizabeth. Keep in mind, as a Group 3, their schedule includes Group 5 teams like Piscataway, the Bombers, and the Minutemen; all three were losses.

Click below to hear Somerville head coach Matt Bloom talk about Friday’s playoff game at Wayne Hills with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko: