Dominant D, a healthy dose of Moore send Phillipsburg past East Orange, 31-13, and into fifth straight sectional title tilt at Maloney

The East Orange football team has a lot of options at wide receiver and a talented running back who can keep defenses honest.

But on Saturday afternoon in the North Jersey, Section 2, Group 5 semifinals, third-seed Philipsburg’s defense had just about all the answers. And it led them to a 31-13 win over the second-seeded Jaguars – as heard live on Central Jersey Sports Radio – to send them to their fifth straight sectional title game, a Big Central Conference record.

Senior running back Shane Moore had 120 yards on 20 carries and three rushing touchdowns in the win, which will send the Stateliners back home on Friday night to play fourth-seed Passaic Tech in the North Group 5 final, an unexpected home game since the Bulldogs upset top-seed Elizabeth on the road Friday night in the section’s other semi.

Phillipsburg (8-2) dominated play in the first half and held a major time of possession advantage. After Moore’s first two touchdowns put the Stateliners up 14-0, East Orange (7-3) got on the board after getting great field position on a fumble by the State liners. They cut the deficit to one score on a 32-yard catch-and-run touchdown by Je’zi Lewis, but the extra point was blocked, leaving the score at 14-6.

Moore added another TD run from 38 yards to make it 21-6 heading into halftime.

Phillipsburg added to the lead late in the third on a 40-yard pick-six by linebacker David Pacewicz – the ‘Liners’ second of the game – making it 28-6, and a field goal in the fourth put the Stateliners ahead 31-6.

Eat Orange’s Sean Smith scored on a 64-yard rushing touchdown in the final minute, breaking free against the Stateliner subs just playing out the last few minutes.

Xavier Campbell-Graham rushed eleven times for 33 yards wile fullback Vincent Berger racked up 57 yards with some big first down gains, while QB Dominic Bracco was 4-for-8 for 42 yards.

Not only will Phillipsburg play in its fifth straight sectional final next Friday night, but it will also be their fifth straight title game played at their home field, Maloney Stadium.

Phillipsburg made sectional finals in Group 5 in 2022 and 2023, but lost both times, to West Orange and Union City, respectively. They moved down to Group 4 in 2024, and not only won a sectional title over Northern Highlands, but went to the state Group 4 final at Rutgers, where they lost to the juggernaut that is Winslow. Last year, they won again in North 2, Group 4, beating Montogmery in the title game, but falling to Ramapo in the state semifinals.

Now, thanks to Passaic Tech’s upset of Elizabeth, they get to host another title game in front of their devoted home fans.

Click below for postgame reaction from Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Nick Hart with Phillipsburg runningback Shane Moore, linebacker David Pacewicz, and head coach Frank Duffy, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen!