Senior quarterback Jonathan Gosk rushed for two touchdowns and threw for two more as Manville defeated arch-rival Bound Brook, 35-7, in the Big Central Conference Freedom Silver Division opener for both teams.
Click below to listen to Mike Pavlichko and Vin Ebenau call all the play-by-play live from Ned Panfile Stadium in Manville, NJ, on September 11, 2026:
It may have been a little sloppy on both sides of the ball Friday night at Ned Panfile Stadium in Manville, but the home Mustangs got two touchdown runs and two touchdown passes from Jonathan Gosk to help beat arch-rival Bound Brook 35-7 in a game heard live on Central Jersey Sports Radio.
Manville led 21-0 at the half thanks to three touchdowns Gosk was involved in.
The first capped the longest scoring drive of any of the five in the game, an eight-play, 74-yard march on the opening possession, capped by Gosk’s one-yard run, with 6:28 to go in the first.
Just 13 seconds into the second quarter, he hit Mohamed Abdelmageed for a 46-yard strike on the first play of that drive, then Aiden Johnson bookended the period with a five-yard touchdown catch just 16 seconds before the half.
In between, Bound Brook’s athletes proved they could move the ball, but penalties and a fumble, the first of two on the game, kept them off the board.
Their lone touchdown came on the second half kickoff, when Zahmir Moore took the boot 78 yards to the house to slash the deficit to 21-7. But Elijah Bennett scored with 3:13 to go in the quarter, and Gosk ran one in from 21 yards out midway through the fourth to provide the final score.
Manville has won two straight to improve to 2-1, with a second home game in a row coming up next week against Dunellen, while Bound Brook drops to 0-3 with a home game against South Hunterdon next week.
Click below for postgame reaction from Manville head coach Dave Markowitch and senior QB Jonathan Gosk with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen!
Taking an encore after a season like Manville had last year isn’t always easy.
After all, the Mustangs had a season for the ages last year, going 9-0 in the regular season – their first undefeated campaign since 1968 – and winning their first playoff game in school history, coming over Asbury Park in the first round of the Central Jersey Group 1 playoffs.
Repeating is never easy, but it’s especially difficult when 95 percent of the team’s offense has graduated.
They’ve got some players, but head coach Dave Markowitch is still figuring out how it will all come together, as new leaders emerge in 2026. At 1-1 thus far – with a season-opening blowout win at Keansburg and a narrow loss to Brearley that we’ll get to in a moment, their next test comes Friday night when arch-rival Bound Brook comes to town.
That’s our Friday night Bellamy & Son Paving Big Central Game of the Week, and you can hear it live on Central Jersey Sports Radio beginning with pregame at 6:45 pm. Kickoff is at 7, with Mike Pavlichko and Vin Ebenau on the call; click here to listen.
Certainly, Manville is at no loss for talent. Senior QB Jonathan Gosk – though they don’t throw the ball a lot – has tossed for 136 yards, connecting on 6-of-12 passing for 136 yards and two touchdowns in his first year in the starting role, but perhaps more importantly, no interceptions. And three backs – Cassius Carter, Matty Gorbatuck and Aidan Johnson – all have upwards of 100 yards rushing across two games, while the Mustangs as a team have averaged 300 yards a game in the first two.
But there have been some other mistakes, namely in the special teams department. Last week, in a 21-18 loss at Brearley, the Mustangs missed two PATs, and a two-point try on their third and final touchdown of the game also failed.
And not directly related to Xs and Os, there’s the Jimmies and the Joes: Manville has seniors, and has leaders, but head coach Dave Markowitch says they’re still working on communications, having those leaders assert themselves, while holding each other accountable.
Surely, they’ll work through it, but against Bound Brook (0-2) Friday night, a team Markowitch knows has athletes, it’ll be yet another early season test for the Mustangs.
Click below to hear Manville head coach Dave Markowitch talk about the Bound Brook game with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko:
In rivalry games, anything can happen, and it often does when Bound Brook and Manville get together regardless of the sport.
That said, while the Crusader football team went 5-5 last season and made the Central Jersey Group 1 playoffs, they have had struggled against the Mustangs – who have had some of their best years of late – in their last couple of meetings.
Last year, it was a 49-7 defeat on Cutoff Weekend, and 42-3 Manville the year before. But the Crusaders took their 2023 meeting, winning 25-15.
In 2026, it’s been tough sledding out of the gates for Bound Brook in more ways than one. The defense has given up 75 points in the first couple weeks while only scoring a pair of touchdowns adding up to 12 points overall on offense.
But Manville had some issues last week, too, after a season-opening blowout at Keansburg. They missed two extra points and a two-point conversion on their three touchdowns, and wound up losing 21-18 at Brearley last Friday night.
So maybe Friday night’s meeting between the two arch-rivals is anyone’s guess. Either way, you can hear it on Central Jersey Sports Radio on our Big Central Game of the Week presented by Bellamy & Son Paving. Kickoff is at 7 pm with Mike Pavlichko and Vin Ebenau calling all the action. Pregame is at 6:45; click here to listen.
Moving forward, seventh-year head coach Dave LePoidevin says Bound Brook also needs to clean up the penalties on offense.
“We have to eliminate them and we have to do a much better job with that, something we try to work on everyday at practice,” LePoidevin said.
On the positive side, their running game led by senior Amero Diaz is something to keep an eye on moving forward.
“We thought we’d rely more heavily on the pass but we’re seeing that we’ve been doing a much better job with the run, so we’re looking to really build on that and watch it grow,” LePoidevin said.
Click below to hear Bound Brook head coach Dave LePoidevin talk about the Manville game with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Vin Ebenau:
Dayton senior quarterback Adrian Bernknopf had himself quite the night, and the game was only half over.
Bernknopf threw five touchdown passes before the break to four different receivers, and by the time Bound Brook got on the board, the Bulldogs already had staked themselves to a 43-0 lead.
All that led to a running clock in a fast second half in Springfield Thursday night, as the Bulldogs (1-1) picked up their first win of the season 43-12 over visiting Bound Brook.
Bernknopf opened the scoring 2:03 into the game with a four-yard touchdown pass to James Babiarz. Then, after the defense came out and Dominic Pintado returned an interception 68-yards for six, he hit Babiarz again to make it 22-0 with 3:22 left in the first quarter.
The senior QB would hit for one more score late in the first – 48 yards to Kevin Paiva to make it 29-0 – then toss a 21-yard TD strike to Kevin Lunch with 9:08 to go before the half, and another 13 yards to Aiden Delpeche to make it 43-0.
Bound Brook (0-2) would get on the board with a six-yard touchdown run before the half. The PAT was blocked, and Dayton went into the home locker room with a 43-6 lead, kicking off a running clock to start the second half.
With that, and the jayvee in, Bound Brook added one more score, on a 16-yard run by sophomore Guy Pugh.
Click below for postgame reaction from Dayton head coach Nick Iannacone and senior quarterback Adrian Bernknopf, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen!
Week Two of high school football preseason camp has come to an end in New Jersey, and on Saturday morning, Central Jersey Sports Radio analyst Marcus Borden wrapped up his Camp Caravan 2026 tour with a visit to Bound Brook, where the Crusaders hosted a scrimmage against Point Pleasant Beach.
Watch Borden’s full coverage below of Saturday’s scrimmage, featuring interviews with head coaches and key players.
Click below to watch Marcus Borden’s Camp Caravan coverage of Bound Brook with sixth-year head coach Dave LePoindevin along with seniors Jayden Cruz (QB/MLB) and Zahmir Moore (WR/FS), junior Dallas Kelton (WR/DB) and sophomore Elijah Viera (DT):
Just like some of the large school divisions, no change was made on the opposite end of the spectrum by the Big Central Conference when it comes to the Freedom Silver Division, which will keep the same six teams it had last year.
Manville is coming off a 10-1 season and a year in which it scored the first playoff win in school history, but they will see some significant graduation losses that could allow others to make a move. Bound Brook and Belvidere are coming off .500 seasons, while Middlesex will look to gain some ground, South Hunterdon has a new coach – but one who’s been with the program – and Dunellen will enter its second year with head coach Phlip McGuane, who took the post last season after longtime mentor Dave DeNapoli retired.
Here are the preliminary schedules for the Freedom Silver Division teams – in order of 2025 finish – compiled from the official league schedule and other online sources to the best of our knowledge as of the date of publication, along with a few notes on each squad. Division games are starred.
Manville Mustangs (10-1, 5-0, Freedom Silver Division Champions)
Head Coach: Dave Markowitch, 4th season (20-11)
It was a dominant year for the Mustangs in 2025, who went 10-1, beating Asbury Park for their first-ever postseason victory, before falling in the second-round at Burlington City. Manville posted four shutouts during the season, and never scored fewer than 31 points in league play. But, there are some big graduation losses, starting with senior quarterback Josh D’Ambrosio, who threw for 720 yards and nine TDs (with no picks!) while also rushing for 1,268 yards and 18 scores. No. 2 rusher Isaiah Bennett (925 yards, 17 TDs) also was the top receiver, with 262 yards and three TDs, but he’s also graduated. At QB, rising junior Aiden Johnson could get a shot. He threw just one pass last year, a 37-yard touchdown in a win over Highland Park. Senior tight end Collin Shimp is gone, too, and he was solid on the other side of the ball as well, logging three sacks and three TFLs last season. So is Evan Canica, who had three sacks and ten tackles for loss. But two freshmen who made an impact will return: linemen Levan Chankotadze (3 1/2 sacks, 8 TFLs) and Matthew Gorbatuck (3 sacks, 4 TFLS).
Bound Brook Crusaders (5-5, 4-1, 2nd place Freedom Silver)
Head Coach: Dave LePoidevin, 7th season (17-37)
The Crusaders are coming off their best season since the COVID-shortened year, when they went 5-2. Going 5-5 was a big step for Dave LePoidevin’s group, and they even made the playoffs, falling at Burlington City in the opening round. Rising senior Jayden Cruz should get a look at QB after the graduation of starter John Archer (829 pass yards and 7 TDs, 609 rush yards and 8 TDs), but he only threw one pass last year. The Brook also will have to replace top rusher Jake Markey, who carried 124 times (ten more than archer) for 910 yards and seven scores. But they will bring back top receiver, Zahmir Moore (22 catches, 347 yards, 4 TDs), for his senior season. The defense was very senior heavy, too, but Moore should continue to make an impact there, after logging three TFLs and three interceptions, including one for a touchdown last season. Rising junior Kayden Bailey (2 TFLs, 1 fumble recovery, 1 INT) also could have an impact.
Belvidere County Seaters (5-5, 3-2, 3rd place Freedom Silver)
Head Coach: Jordon Schreffler, 5th season (16-23)
Primarily a running team, the Seaters should be set at the quarterback position, with sophomore Jake Enderley (457 yards, 8 TD) back for his junior year, with No. 2 Elijah White (162 yards, 1 TD) also back for his senior year. Top rusher Geoffrey Young is gone with his 729 yards and six touchdowns, but White could make an impact there, and on the receiving end, where he caught 10 passes for 157 yards, while rising senior Kayden Thorpe also is back at wide receiver, with 14 catches for 141 yards and two scores last season. Defensively, the loss of senior lineman Brayden Duckworth (5 sacks, 1 TFL) will have an impact, but sophomore Nick Muha (5 sacks) should make a bigger impact now as a junior, while White also had two picks and a fumble recovery playing defensive back last season.
Middlesex Blue Jays (2-8, 2-3, 4th place Freedom Silver)
Head Coach: Robert Swercheck, 3rd season (8-12)
The Blue Jays struggled last season, but were young, with a sophomore QB in Matthew Petti, Jr., who threw for 681 yards and seven touchdowns, while top rusher Gerard Boateng – also just a tenth-grade – rushed 70 times for 343 yards and two more scores. The experience should pay off there, and in the receiving unit. The top defensive players were a bit more senior-heavy, so Swerchek will have to work on that, looking to younger players like defensive back Tyler Orts, who ha d a TFL, two forced fumbles/recoveries and two interceptions last season. There’s talent, and Middlesex should be improved this season.
South Hunterdon Eagles (1-7, 1-4, 5th place Freedom Silver)
Head Coach: Kyle Hart, 1st season
The first new coach out in Lambertville in 16 years, Hart’s No. 1 job is to increase numbers in the program, part of what led to a one-win season last year. But he played for the Eagles, and has spent the last several years working under Jefferis, so he’s intimately acquainted with the scenario out there. The bright side is their QB last year, Tucker Hicks, was a junior. he threw for 284 yards and a touchdown last year, while top rusher Kellen Healy (119 carries, 541 yards, 5 TDs) is back for his junior year. Their defense was young, too, and will be more experienced in 2026. That includes freshman Brendan Paciulli (3 sacks), freshman Tommy Silagy (1 sack, 2 TFLs) and Healy, who had two interceptions, one for a touchdown. The Big Central notes Week 8 is open with the possibility of picking up an NJIC squad later in the year.
Dunellen Destroyers (0-9, 0-5, 6th place Freedom Silver)
Head Coach: Phlip McGuane, 2nd season (0-9)
The Destroyers were shut out four times last year, and scored in double figures just once, but the team was young. Never a big passing team, they only managed 90 passing yards and just a shade over 700 yards on the ground as a team, but Dunellen also was young. Of the three quarterbacks on their roster to play, two were sophomores and one was a freshman. Of eleven players to rush the football, only three were seniors. That could bode well for the program as many will be back, with another year experience under their belt. On defense, they’ll miss seniors line linebackers Kahbir Casey (3 1/2 sacks, 10 TFLs) and Jackson Portik (1 1/2 sacks, 14 TFLs), but freshman lineman Colin Reynolds had seven TFLs, and sophomore Ben Howard had 12, so the cupboard isn’t bare. Again, they’ll look to bank on a baptism by fire in 2025 to make 2026 a more successful season.
The coaches from the Skyland Conference have unveiled their 2026 All-Division teams, honoring 139 players from across its four divisions, including the 14 Somerset County schools in the Central Jersey Sports Radio coverage area.
Here’s the full list of players honored, by division, with teams in alphabetical order:
SKYLAND CONFERENCE – DELAWARE DIVISION
First Team
Second Team:
Honorable Mention:
SKYLAND CONFERENCE – RARITAN DIVISION
First Team:
Second Team:
Honorable Mention:
SKYLAND CONFERENCE – VALLEY DIVISION:
First Team:
Second Team:
Honorable Mention:
SKYLAND CONFERENCE – MOUNTAIN DIVISION
First Team:
Second Team:
Note: The Mountain Division coaches did not choose any Honorable Mentions.
Both higher seeds advanced Friday afternoon in the opening round of the Somerset County Tournament, with 11-seed Bernards and 12th-seed Pingry both coming up with wins.
They’ll both move on the the second round, scheduled for Monday, with eight games on tap, and winners heading to Thursday’s quarterfinals, with all games at higher seeds.
(11) Bernards 13, (14) Bound Brook 3: In a ten-run rule walk-off, the Mountaineers (12-6) scored in every inning, including two in each of the first two innings, five in the third, one in the fourth, and three in the bottom of the fifth to end it when James Renz singled to left field, bringing in Casey Hocekele. Sean Arcelay had a 3-for-4 afternoon with a double, one RBI, two stolen bases and three runs scored in a complete effort; seven different players drove in runs, with James Ferrante and Sonny Liranzo each knocked in in a pair.
On the mound, starter Landon Farmer went four innings, giving up three runs, only one of them earned. He also fanned six, then Tucker Gallagher pitched a scoreless fifth.
Bound Brook falls to 2-11.
Next up, Bernards will visit sixth-seed Hillsborough (7-9) Monday afternoon in the second round at 4 pm. It’ll be their first meeting since 2023, a meeting the Mountaineers won 5-0.
(12) Pingry 8, (13) Manville 1: The Big Blue (8-9) never trailed, scoring one in the second and three in the fourth before the Mustangs (7-9) could get on the board. Freshman Connor Lahey drove in two runs and scored once on a 3-for-3 day, while Langston McDonald also went 3-for-3 on the afternoon, and scored twice.
Zach Zaslow improved to 3-0 with the win, going the distance and scattering four hits over seven innings, giving up one unearned run, while striking out seven.
On Monday, Pingry will head to 5th-seed Bridgewater-Raritan (6-14). The two have not met since at least prior to 2008, the last year for which records are available online.
Here’s the Monday Somerset County Tournament second round schedule, with a look ahead to projected quarterfinal matchups on Thursday, all at higher seeds:
Sure, the Rutgers Prep girls’ basketball team won 20 games last year, but it still wasn’t up to Mary Klinger’s standards. The coach calls the regular season the “preseason.” A division title is nice, but the county and state tournaments are the goals. Win those, and it’s a good year for the Argonauts. In 2025, they won neither.
But this year, with much of the same crew back, the Argonauts returned to their familiar spot as Somerset County Tournament champions, and finish the year No. 1 in the Bellamy & Son Paving Girls’ Basketball Top Ten.
Led by four-year varsity standout Ava LaMonica – the team’s top scorer, who will be playing collegiately next year at Buffalo – as well as fellow seniors Ava Frith and Sophia Georgiades, as well as super sophomore Hailey Benbow – the Argos’ second-best scorer and top rebounder – Rutgers Prep (25-4) didn’t lose a single conference game this season, its three regular season losses coming to Red Bank Catholic, Cardinal O’Hara (PA), and Blair right before the state tournament. Their fourth came to Gloucester Catholic in the Non-Public South B Final.
Prep beat Franklin – the eventual Central Jersey Group 4 champ – in the Somerset County Final, and won the Skyland Division title with a 6-0 record.
Gill St. Bernard’s checks in at No. 2. With a 22-6 mark, the Knights won the Non-Public North B title with a victory over Saddle River Day, then lout to Gloucester Catholic in the state Non-Public Group B final at Rutgers, the same Rams’ team that beat Rutgers Prep in the semifinals. Gill lost its only meeting with Rutgers Prep this season, 51-44 in late January, in a game heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio.
Finishing third is St. Thomas Aquinas (24-7). The Trojans – with the senior trio of Jordan Barnes, Trista Whitney and Kayla Navarro – blew through the GMC this season, going 11-0 to win the Red American Division, and stormed to their seventh straight GMC Tournament championship, beating resurgent East Brunswick in the final. They would bow out to eventual state champion Red Bank Catholic in the Non-Public South A semifinals.
Checking in at four is Franklin (22-9). A Somerset County Tournament finalist under first-year head coach Jimmy Kreie, the Warriors returned to their former – and fairly recent – glory with a win in the Central Jersey Group 4 title game over neighboring Hillsborough. They were knocked out of the state tournament by Lenape in the state Group 4 finals.
Fifth is Hillsborough (21-7). The Raiders had won two sectional titles in a row – in North 2, Group 4 in 2024 and Central 4 last season – but fell at Franklin in the Central Jersey Group 4 title game.
East Brunswick checks in at No. 6 with a 23-6 record. Ava Catanho and Julianna DelosSantos-Branson led the Bears back to prominence this season, as they got to the GMC Tournament title game, where they lost to now seven-time reigning GMCT champion St. Thomas Aquinas.
Bound Brook (25-4) – re-ignited by freshman sensation Peytan Pugh – finishes at No. 7, thanks to a Mountain Division championship, going 8-0 in divisional play. They nearly knocked off Rutgers Prep in the Somerset County Tournament semifinals, and reached the Central Jersey Group 1 title game, falling on the road to top-seed New Providence.
Finishing eighth is Bernards (24-5), which started the year 10-0, and was the Skyland Conference Valley Division champion at 11-1. They lost to defending champion Madison in the North 2, Group 2 semifinals.
At No. 9, it’s Colonia. After a down season, head coach Jill Bachonski has the Patriots looking solid, finishing 20-4, and going 8-0 to win the GMC Red National Division. They reached the GMC Tournament semifinals, falling to eventual champion St. Thomas Aquinas.
And No. 10 is Piscataway, making its season debut in the final rankings of the year. The Lady Chiefs finished 17-9, and went 6-0 to win the White American Division title, reaching the GMC Tournament semifinals, where they lost to East Brunswick.
Below are the complete final Bellamy & Son Paving Girls’ Basketball Top Ten rankings for 2025-26:
