Tag: Perth Amboy

by Mike Pavlichko

Four titles earns Gill St. Bernard’s No. 1 ranking in final Bellamy & Son Paving Boys’ Basketball Top Ten

When high school basketball teams open their preseason, hitting the gym in earnest for the first time, they can set all kinds of different goals. For most with high-end aspirations, there are four main ones: win the division, win the county, win a sectional, win a state championship.

In 2025-26, it was check, check, check, and check one more time for Gill St. Bernard’s. And that’s why they finish as the No. 1 team in the final Bellamy & Son Paving Boys’ Basketball rankings of the year.

With a mark of 28-2, the Knights won the Skyland Conference Delaware Division, and while they played though the division only once due to the new alignment, they decided to play Rutgers Prep twice anyway, the last meeting coming after the SCT seeding meeting, and took both matchups. They then beat the Argonauts in the Somerset County Tournament final, went on to avenge a defeat at the hands of Roselle Catholic in the Non-Public Group B title game, then put on a defensive masterclass in the Non-Public B state final at Rutgers, beating Holy Cross Prep of Delran to win the program’s first state title in school history

The Knights are followed by a very close second in St. Joseph-Metuchen. In their first season under alum Mark Taylor – in his second go-round coaching the Falcons – they went 29-2, their lone loss coming to South Plainfield by one on the road before falling in the Non-Public South A final to St. Peter’s Prep – which, by the way, beat every Central Jersey Sports Radio-area team it played this year: Colonia, Gill St. Bernard’s, Rutgers Prep, St. Thomas Aquinas (twice) and St. Joe’s.

Montgomery finishes in third. At 26-5, the two-time defending champion Cougars won a third straight Central Jersey Group 4 title, but this time had to go on the road to do it after being the top seed each of the last two seasons. Not only did they win at top-seed Hillsborough in the final, but the Cougars dominated Cherry Hill East in the Group 4 semifinals, and made it all the way to Rutgers for the state Group 4 final, where they lost back on Saturday to Plainfield for a second straight season, in a tight game most of the way.

Close behind in fourth is Colonia, which finished 21-11 after a 2-6 start, and having lost several key starters, including Aiden Derkack (transfer to Spire Academy in Ohio) and R.J. Wortman (early football enrolee at Rutgers) among others. The Patriots bowed out to Piscataway in a tight GMC Tournament semifinal game, but wound up getting the top-seed in North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3, and won the sectional title for a fifth straight year, and sixth time in the last seven playoff seasons, all under head coach Jose Rodriguez. They made their first state final ever, too, but fell to Ocean City Sunday in the Group 3 finals at Rutgers, giving the Red Raiders their first state title in over 60 years.

Checking in at five is Piscataway (23-8). The Chiefs – despite a lack of height – were tough again in the GMC Red American Division this year, and took St. Joe’s to overtime in early January. They made it all the way to the county final, where they fell to the Falcons in the title game, and bowed out of a brutal North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4 playoff section in the semifinals to eventual state Group 4 champion Plainfield.

At six, it’s Rutgers Prep (18-10). The Argonauts still had Will Brunson, but had to deal with the loss of Andrew Kretkowski, who transferred to St. Joseph-Metuchen. But they still showed out this season, reaching the Somerset County Tournament final, where it was another battle with Gill St. Bernard’s, who won the championship.

Hillsborough (22-8) checks in at No. 7, after putting together their first 20-win season under head coach Tim Palek, who just wrapped up his fifth season on the bench. The Raiders had fans enthralled through their playoff run, with an exciting win over Jackson Twp. in the Central Jersey Group 4 semifinals, and they took Montgomery to overtime in the championship before taking the loss.

At No. 8, it’s Immaculata (21-7), the Skyland Conference Raritan Division champs. Season highlights included a home win over in-town rival Somerville, and handing Bridgewater-Raritan its first loss on the road after an 8-0 start by the Panthers.

The last three teams were unranked in the final poll before the postseason.

East Brunswick comes in at nine – going 21-7 this season, and winning the GMC Red National Division with an 8-0 mark – while two others share the tenth and final spot.

We put Perth Amboy (22-6) in at the ten spot along with Manville (19-9), honoring two teams for their full body of work, teams that might not otherwise get recognized in a crowded field of 48 teams between Middlesex and Somerset Counties. The Panthers won their first division title since 1993, claiming the GMC’s White American with an unblemished 12-0 record. The Mustangs, meanwhile, were Skyland Conference Mountain Division champions at 8-0, and beat rival Bound Brook twice this season, with the first of their two victories being their first against the Crusaders in 20 years.

Dropping out were Pingry (13-10) and South Plainfield (18-11).

Below is the complete final Bellamy & Son Paving Boys’ Basketball Top Ten for 2025-26:

by Mike Pavlichko

Perth Amboy’s season for the ages comes to an end with loss to Union in North 2, Group 4 quarters

In its fourth season under head coach Donnie Reid, a Perth Amboy native who starred across the victory bridge at Cardinal McCarrick in South Amboy, the Panther basketball program reached heights it had not seen in a long time.

They won the GMC White American Division title, going 12-0 in division play, for their first title in 23 years. They Thursday night, they won their first state tournament game since 2015. Their 22 wins doesn’t happen every day in the Bay City either.

But all good things must come to an end, and while the future of the program is bright, and maybe next year will be even bigger in these parts, it did, indeed come to an end Saturday afternoon, as sixth-seeded Perth Amboy lost 69-30 at third-seed Union in the North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4 quarterfinals of the NJSIAA state tournament.

Amboy took a 3-0 lead, then fell behind 8-5, and took an 11-10 lead into the second quarter, which is when things started to take a turn.

After the Panthers got an early bucket to make it 13-10, the Farmers went on a 9-0 run before Perth Amboy cut it to 19-16. But Union followed it by scoring the next 16 points to take a 32-16 lead that would be narrowed to a 14-point deficit at the break.

While that second run included four treys – Union couldn’t seem to miss, with Ezenna Asawabelem and Reed Flood each connecting twice from beyond the arc – head coach Donnie Reid said after the game that the Farmers’ switch to a zone defense is what really affected them.

In the end, the Panthers finish the season 22-5, and energized the city for the last two-and-a-half months. It’s a run that won’t soon be forgotten.

That is, until they pull of another one. And the way things are going with the Perth Amboy boys’ basketball program, that’s a distinct possibility.

Click below for postgame reaction from Perth Amboy head coach Donnie Reid with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen:

by Alec Crouthamel

Sayreville comes from behind, grinds out GMC Tournament win over Perth Amboy for Wojcik’s 200th

Midway through the second quarter, it appeared Sayreville basketball coach John Wojcik would be stuck at 199 career wins for at least another couple of days.

The seventh-seeded Bombers (15-9, 4-4 GMC Red National) trailed 25-13 to tenth-seeded Perth Amboy at home, as the Panthers (21-5, 12-0 GMC White American) controlled the physicality on both sides of the floor in the early goings.

But Sayreville rallied on its home floor and had to survive late in the game for a 59-53 victory in the GMC Tournament’s round of 16, giving a relieved Wojcik a milestone victory, and an extremely hard-fought one at that.

Senior guard Sam Jones — the school’s all-time leading scorer — finished the game with 23 points to lead all scorers. He knocked down a trio of three-pointers and hit clutch free throws late as the Bombers nursed a one-score lead in the final minute. Senior forward Chidi Chukwurah battled foul trouble all night long, including three first-half fouls, but scored all but one of his 19 points in the second half, even while dealing with four fouls for much of the half. It was an extremely physical matchup all night long, with both teams combining for 44 personal fouls (22 apiece). Eight players finished the night with at least three fouls.

Senior guard Ziyan Jones scored 14 points — including nine in the second half — to help make up nearly all of Sayreville’s scoring. Sophomore guard Trevor Yan knocked down a transition three in the second quarter — just his third basket and 13th point of the entire season — to help the Bombers weather the storm, and was the only Sayreville basket not from the trio of Sam Jones, Chukwurah, and Ziyan Jones.

Perth Amboy put together an impressive opening quarter with a 19-9 lead after eight minutes, led by a balanced scoring effort and hard-nosed play at the basket. Senior guard Bryham Paulino knocked down two of his five three-pointers in the opening stretch, and the Panthers got five and four points from Kasey Abreu and Yandel Susana, respectively. The Bombers struggled to consistently get into their half-court offense to start the game thanks to a hounding perimeter defensive effort from Perth Amboy, and the Panthers were able to get easy baskets early with their ball movement against the opposing zone.

Those trends continued into the second quarter, as the lead continued to grow. Ricardo Reyes scored three times at the rim and it appeared that Perth Amboy had Sayreville rattled on its home floor.

But the Bombers finally got going on defense, and started putting together productive drives at the basket to either score or set up an open shooter. Jones hit a three and a midrange jumper, as Sayreville put together enough momentum to trail 27-20 at the half.

And whatever Wojcik said at halftime worked pretty well.

The Bombers stormed out of the gate with two straight baskets sandwiching a forced turnover to bring it to a one-possession game, and Sayreville controlled the rest of the quarter. Chukwurah made his presence felt amid foul trouble, battling through double- and even triple-teams in the post and avoiding the eliminating fifth foul countless times. He added ten points in the quarter, and the Jones duo scored five apiece as Sayreville matched its first-half point total of 20 in the third quarter alone. It also held Perth Amboy to seven — all from Susana — and took a six-point lead into the final eight minutes.

The Panthers weren’t quite done yet, though.

Both teams turned up the pace as Perth Amboy knocked down big shot after big shot to prevent the Bombers from truly pulling away, led by a trio of threes from Paulino, each more critical than the last. Susana continued his savvy scoring with drives to the basket, and all of a sudden, Perth Amboy found itself back in the lead with under four minutes to play.

But just like the third quarter, both Jones’s hit timely shots as Chukwurah controlled the post, and by the end of the frenzy, Jones knocked down two critical free throws with 30 seconds to play to put the Bombers up by four, a lead they would not relinquish.

Sayreville moves on to the GMC Tournament quarterfinals, where it will travel to Piscataway and face the second-seeded Chiefs on Saturday, February 14th at 1 pm. They defeated 18-seed North Plainfield 95-40 on Thursday. Piscataway defeated the Bombers 73-62 in last year’s GMC Tournament semifinals.

Click below for postgame reaction with Sayreville senior guard Sam Jones and head coach John Wojcik in his 200th victory, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen:

by Mike Pavlichko

Partying like it’s 1993, Perth Amboy wins tenth straight, tops JP Stevens to clinch GMC White American Division

The season began like gangbusters for Perth Amboy. Four straight wins gave them their best start in a long time.

Then, they dropped three of four around the holidays, a situation that could make any coach reconsider their chosen profession.

But not Donnie Reid, and not this edition of Panther Basketball.

How did they respond? Well, they’ve won ten straight since, including Saturday’s 73-57 victory over at JP Stevens that clinched the Greater Middlesex Conference White American Division title with an 11-0 division mark and one game left against second-place South Brunswick (8-3 in division) this Tuesday.

It’s their first division crown since 1993, when they went 12-0 in the GMC Red and earned the top seed in the GMC Tournament.

While there are no more guaranteed seeds in the GMCT – the four division winners used to get one of the top eight seeds regardless of overall record – The Panthers will be a tough out wherever they are.

Yandel Susana – the No. 3 scorer last year – is back and leading the team at 18.8 points per game. He had 25 Saturday afternoon, and Reid says “when he gets going, he can shoot lights out.” But he’s far from the only one contributing. It’s a true team effort.

There’s Jeremy Garcia-Peralta, who Reid says is “always on the boards, and does the little things for us.” Kasey Abreu “started on fire,” Reid says, before he hit a little lull, but notes he’s been consistent with other things. “He didn’t change what we needed him to do,” Reid says.

And the list goes on: Point guard Justin Ramos “controls the game,” Reid says. Then there’s Ricardo “Ricky” Reyes, a senior transfer from Woodbridge who had to sit early in the season by NJSIAA rule. But when he took the floor, Reid says the Panthers “got a little extra pep in our step.” He’s now leading the county in assists.

“That’s big for us,” Reid says, “having two point guards out there.”

For Reid himself, he almost didn’t get tho this point. After head coaching stops at the Academy of Urban Leadership in the Bay City as well as Perth Amboy Magnet, he applied for the open Perth Amboy High School job a few years ago and figured if he didn’t get it, maybe he’d move on to something else.

Good thing he got it. The team went from 8-13 his first season to 15-12 last year, and now they’ve matched that total in 2025-26, but have just three losses.

And after a couple tough defeats in the Butch Kowal Holiday Tournament in Rahway between Christmas and New Years, the Panthers opened the 2026 part of the schedule in fine form: on the third day of the New Year, they picked up a home win over Edison, 73-52, that gave Reid his 100th career coaching win.

They haven’t lost since.

The perseverance probably came in large part from his scholastic playing days, across the bridge in South Amboy, at the now-shuttered Cardinal McCarrick High School.

With the Eagles, coached by Joe Lewis, Reid won a Non-Public South B title in 2005, as well as in 2003, when he was a sophomore. McCarrick won the GMC Tournament title that year, too, beating St. Joseph-Metuchen with players like Vinny Rosario and Tourney MVP Mika Wilson.

Reid looks back fondly on those days. Some day, the current Panthers may be thinking the same thing about 2026 and Coach Reid.

Click below to hear Perth Amboy coach Donnie Reid talk about the Panthers’ season, his time at Cardinal McCarrick, and the influence of his former coach, Joe Lewis, with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko:

by Mike Pavlichko

Perth Amboy gives Carteret all it can handle, but Ramblers’ big third-quarter gives them fourth straight win over their arch-rivals

In the 98th meeting between rivals Perth Amboy and Carteret, it was the Panthers who dominated play in the first half. Miscues and penalties helped Amboy, no doubt, but they took advantage. Even if that advantage was just keeping the Ramblers off the scoreboard.

But in the end, a three-touchdown third quarter for Carteret was the difference in a 28-2 win over Perth Amboy heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio, in the “Big Central Game of the Week” presented by Bellamy & Son Paving.

Perth Amboy had the only score of the first half. It came with 1:55 left in the opening quarter when Carteret went to punt from their own 20. The snap was high, and then bobbled by both teams in the end zone before it went out the back for a safety, giving the Panthers a 2-0 lead.

Logo for Bellamy & Son Paving promoting the Big Central Game of the Week.

Amboy did a good job in the first half of squelching the Rambler offense, which also hurt itself with some penalties and other miscues. They got a pick, and even stopped them in the red zone to end the half.

But Carteret made some adjustments in the locker room. They came out on the opening possession in the wildcat and got a 10-yard touchdown run from Ronelle Nimneh-Gilbert to go up 7-2. Derrick Boakye then punched in a three-yard score to make it 14-2 after the Ramblers got the ball first-and-goal from the seven following a pick. And an 80-yard pick-six by Thomas Battle made it 21-2 with 4:15 to go in the third.

That was all they would need to swing the momentum. A third-quarter snowball for the Ramblers slowly built into an avalanche, to beat their arch-rivals. The Carteret defense held the rest of the way, holding Amboy to well under 100 yards of total offense, and no offensive points.

They added some insurance with six minutes to go in the game, a three-yard run by quarterback Danyun McKill, then blocked a punt with just under five to go.

The win was the fourth straight in the series for Carteret (1-0), but Perth Amboy (0-2) still lead the all-time series, 50-46 with two ties.

Click below for postgame reaction from Alec Crouthamel with Carteret head coach Kevin Freeman, Ronelle Nimneh-Gilbert, and Derrick Boakye presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen!

MVPs: After the game, MVP trophies were awarded to both teams. Anthony Mejia-Puntel was named MVP from Perth Amboy, while Carteret’s Nimneh-Gilbert was named MVP from the Ramblers.

by Alec Crouthamel

Carteret seeking fourth straight win over rival Perth Amboy to kick off Ramblers’ 2025 season

Since Carteret head coach Kevin Freeman took over in 2021, the Ramblers have built themselves into a steady program, essentially from scratch, after a COVID-canceled 2020 season, including back-to-back seven-win seasons in 2022 and 2023.

Most importantly, however, Carteret has beaten its longtime rival Perth Amboy three consecutive times.

The Ramblers and Panthers face off for the latest edition of Middlesex County’s longest Thanksgiving rivalry – now played in September for the sixth straight year – with Carteret kicking off its season with the big-time matchup, while Perth Amboy looks to get back on track after a Week 0 loss to JFK.

The two teams will battle for the 98th time, with Perth Amboy leading the series 50-45-2. This year’s version serves as the “Big Central Game of the Week” presented by Bellamy & Son Paving.

You can hear Friday’s game live on Central Jersey Sports Radio, with kickoff time set for 6 pm at Perth Amboy’s Waters Stadium, with pregame set for 5:45. Mike Pavlichko and Alec Crouthamel will call all the action; click here to listen.

The Ramblers do bring back four starters each on offense and defense, but they have a multitude of big shoes to fill. Carteret’s leading passer (Eric Thompson), rusher (Jakir Thomas), and receiver (Darius Armstrong) all graduated, leaving behind returning depth, but limited proven production.

Junior Danyun McKill – who did not play as a sophomore but was a part of the program as a freshman – takes over the reins at quarterback, while upperclassmen Al-Naiquan Boseman and Derrick Boakye return at running back. The former finished second on the team with 607 rushing yards and five touchdowns in 2024.

McKill will have his fair share of targets, led by senior Jeremiah Arrington – who also starred on the hardwood averaging a double-double – after a junior season that saw him finish second on the team with 134 receiving yards and a touchdown.

Thomas and Armstrong also graduated as two of the Rambler’s best players in the defensive backfield, grabbing all five of Carteret’s interceptions in 2024. Linebacker Chris Prosser and defensive lineman Jacob Bess also departed, taking their combined 113 tackles – 24 for loss – with them.

But in 2025, it’s a new season, with new standouts surely to come.

Senior Ronelle Nimneh-Gilbert returns after a strong season at linebacker, flanked by returning tackle leader Nick Gomm. Add in plenty of depth and experience along the defensive line – led by seniors Jonathan Hughes and Masihah Long – and the defense has all the makings of a unit built on principles Freeman preaches: be physical, disciplined, and stop the run.

Though Perth Amboy heads into this matchup at 0-1, as the old adage in sports goes, when it comes to heated rivalry games, throw all the records and stats out the window.

There is only one stat Freeman and the Ramblers will be looking for on Friday: Going 1-0 against the Panthers.

Click below to hear Carteret head coach Kevin Freeman talk about his team and the season-opening rivalry showdown with Perth Amboy:

by Mike Pavlichko

Perth Amboy looks to rebound from season-opening loss with win over rival Carteret Friday

Perth Amboy football hasn’t put together a season with more than three wins in some time, but when it’s a big rivalry game, you can throw all that out.

Now in his seventh season, William Clark has coached against the Ramblers six times. And though the wins, overall, haven’t come, the Panthers are 3-3 against Carteret under Clark’s tenure, and they’re one of the teams Amboy has had success against.

Throw in the fact that Friday night’s matchup – the the “Big Central Game of the Week” presented by Bellamy & Son Paving – is a big rivalry game, once played on Thanksgiving and considered “the granddaddy of ’em all” dating back to 1927, and the fact Amboy has a game under its belt, you never know what can happen.

This will be the 98th meeting all-time in the series, with Perth Amboy leading 50-45, with two ties, in 1937 and 1970.

You can hear Friday’s game live on Central Jersey Sports Radio, with kickoff time set for 6 pm at Perth Amboy’s Waters Stadium, with pregame set for 5:45. Mike Pavlichko and Alec Crouthamel will call all the action; click here to listen.

While Carteret has yet to play a game, Amboy is 0-1, after a 36-0 loss to JFK in it season opener. The biggest issue for the Panthers is replacing the talent that graduated. That includes senior quarterback Laivon Balthazar, who threw for 1,447 yards and 12 touchdowns last year, while also leading the team in rushing, with 415 yards and four scores. Top receiver Brandon Bradsher also graduated, along with his 55 catches, 1,055 receiving yards and nine touchdowns.

The only offensive player – starter or backup – who recorded any varsity stats last year was Ricky Henriquez, who rushed 45 times for 290 yards last season.

And it’s much of the same on defense, as only Henriquez (20 tackles, 12 solo) and defensive lineman Cesar Marquez (40 tackles, 20 solo, 1 TFL) recorded any varsity stats last year from a group that had 9 1/2 sacks, 29 tackles for loss, two fumble recoveries and six interceptions, three of which came from Bradsher.

Click below to hear Perth Amboy head coach William Clark talk about the Panthers as they get set to take on Carteret in an old Thanksgiving Day rivalry:

by Mike Pavlichko

Gameday with Marcus Borden: Week 1

Opening Week is behind us, it’s Week One where everyone gets into the act in high school football, and it’s time to talk about it with Marcus Borden!

Mike and Marcus look back at the week gone by, including a big win for Old Bridge down at the Battle of the Beach over Cedar Creek, Arique Fleming’s masterful performance for Elizabeth in a rivalry game win over Linden, and then peek ahead to this week’s games, including those Coach Borden will see: Somerville at Cranford on Friday night, and Bernards at Hillside on Saturday.

Also on the show, we discuss other key games in the BCC, Montgomery adding longtime founding coach Zoran Milich’s name to Cougar Stadium, and our new feature, the “Speedster of the Week” presented by Higgins Speed Lab, with the Week 0 winner being Summit’s Alex Schwark.

Click below to listen to the Week One edition of “Gameday with Marcus Borden”:

by Mike Pavlichko

2025 Big Central Preview: Liberty Gold Division

Even with two new head coaches, the Liberty Gold Division in the Big Central Conference could see another really competitive year in 2025.

Last year’s division champ Woodbridge loses some key parts, including the Derek-Bryan Anderson twin tandem, but second-year veteran mentor Joe Goerge has shown he can adapt over the years, and we may even see more of the option from the Barrons this year as well.

There are new coaches at Plainfield and Linden, with the Cardinals opting for alum and NFL veteran Donald Jones. Coming off a 6-4 year in which they also beat arch-rival Westfield in their Thanksgiving Day game, Plainfield hopes to be even better this year, while Linden went with veteran coach Mark Ciccotelli to replace Al Chiola, who stepped down and will spend some time watching his son play at Colonia this year.

Speaking of the Patriots, they have key parts like Dylan Chiera and Julien Jones back, both of whom have been on the basketball team, which won the GMC Tournament and the North 2, Group 3 championship last year, the second of which was their fourth straight title, so they know more than a little about winning.

And then there’s Perth Amboy, which has a brand-new high school and new administration to support their push to make a move up in the Liberty Gold Division.

Click below to hear our preview of the Liberty Gold Division from Big Central Conference Media Day: