Tag: Watchung Hills

by Mike Pavlichko

Few changes in Bellamy & Son Paving Boys’ basketball Top Ten in Week 3, as teams go 17-8 over Christmas/New Year’s break

With only one team in the Week Two Bellamy & Son Paving Top Ten losing more than once over the holiday break, there’s very little change to the Week Three boys’ basketball rankings, with St. Thomas Aquinas remaining atop the list.

In fact, the top eight teams stayed in exactly the same place this week, while the bottom two dropped out. Previous No. 9 Piscataway (4-3) lost a pair of games this past week to Immaculata and Morristown, while previous No. 10 South Plainfield split at their own Anthony J. Cotoia Tournament, losing to Edison 61-49, abut beating JFK, 68-31.

They were replaced by Ridge (5-1) and Sayreville (6-2), respectively. The Red Devils scored a big win in the final of their own Whitey Dukiet All-Star Holiday Classic, a 70-60 upset of No. 2 St. Joseph-Metuchen, the only one of the top eight teams to lose to an unranked Central Jersey Sports Radio-area team. The Bombers played at the Huskies Holiday Classic, beating host Matawan by 15 in the opener and blowing past Old Bridge by 22. They then lost to Holmdel in the finale, 77-61.

St. Thomas Aquinas (7-1) – which held at No. 1 – actually took its first loss of the season at the Boardwalk Classic on New Year’s Eve, falling 81-54 to Middle Township. Earlier in the week, the Trojans ran their record to 7-0 with a pair of victories over East New York Family Academy (NY) and Thurgood Marshall Academy (NY) at the Vikings Invitational.

St. Joseph-Metuchen (5-1) fell from the ranks of the unbeaten in their holiday tournament final against Ridge, after beating Morris Knolls, 84-54, in their opener, but stayed at No. 2 with the team behind them – Rutgers Prep – staying put, splitting a pair with a loss to Archbishop Ryan , 75-56, on Friday, then a win in the Jameer Nelson Classic at Widener University over Camden Eastside, 83-69.

Holding in fourth is Colonia (4-3) which picked up a pair of wins in their own LeGrand Tournament over Scotch Plains-Fanwood and Union City, before falling by three to Westfield, 48-45. The Patriots’ three losses this season have come by a grand total of six points, with the loss to the Blue Devils their largest margin of defeat in the early season.

At No. 5 again is Hillsborough. The Raiders swept the Oratory Holiday Tournament, beating Morristown-Beard 57-27, then edging their hosts, 49-48 in the finale.

Also with a holiday week sweep was Gill St. Bernard’s (6-1), which won all three in its Knights Holiday Tournament, over Pope John, Bernards, and Norman Thomas (NY).

Holding in seventh is Watchung Hills, which dropped the opener of the Cougar Classic at Chatham, 54-50 to the hosts, but came back to pick up wins over New Providence and Cranford.

Eighth place is still Montgomery (6-0), the only unbeaten team left in the entire Skyland Conference, and one of just two in the CJSR coverage area (Calvary Christian is the other at 4-0). The Cougars crushed both opponents in their preset matchup Cougar Holiday Classic, topping North Hunterdon, 72-39, then Bridgewater-Raritan 88-46 in the finale. It was the most points for Monty against a Somerset County opponent under head coach Kris Grundy, who took over in 2005-06.

Below is the full Week Three Bellamy & Son Paving Boys’ Basketball Top Ten:

by Mike Pavlichko

Few changes at the top, but a big shakeup at the bottom of the Week 2 Bellamy & Son Paving Boys’ Basketball Top Ten

Undefeated St. Thomas Aquinas stays at No. 1, and the top six all remained there – with some in different spots – but the final four teams in last week’s Bellamy & Son Paving Boys’ Basketball Top Ten are out, with four new teams in.

Teams seven through ten last week – Woodbridge, Franklin, Immaculata and Bridgewater-Raritan all dropped out, replaced by Watchung Hills, Montgomery, Piscataway and South Plainfield. While a few teams had taken on early losses, some of the top teams distanced themselves, but many others could be in contention for the rankings, including Woodbridge and Timothy Christian from the GMC.

Aquinas (5-0) held the top spot on the strength of a three-win week, with victories over South Brunswick, Old Bridge, and Monsignor Scanlan out of New York City.

St. Joseph-Metuchen climbed to second after a Tuesday win at then-No. 2 Colonia, 43-42. The Falcons also beat JP Stevens Thursday by 30.

READ MORE: Seventh heaven? Seven area boys’ hoops teams head into Christmas Break with perfect records

Rutgers Prep (3-1) pulled up to third after a win Friday at Immaculata by eight. They also lost to St. Rose in a non-area game, 86-70 on Saturday.

Colonia (2-2) fell two spots to fourth after a 1-2 week, with losses to St. Joe’s and Hunterdon Central, but a win in between at South Brunswick.

Hillsborough (3-1) and Gill St. Bernard’s (3-1) are fifth and sixth, respectively. The Raiders were 2-0 in the week gone by, with wins over Morris Knolls and Franklin, while the Knights were 3-0, with wins over Franklin and Immaculata, as well as Paramus Catholic out-of-conference. Each has knocked off two ranked teams: Gill with its two league wins this week, and Boro with the Franklin win this week, and a victory in its opener head-to-head over Gill.

The next four teams all fell out. Previous No. 7 Woodbridge didn’t have a bad week, going 1-1, with a win over Sayreville, but a loss to South Plainfield, which is 3-2, but made the top ten after beating the Barrons Thursday by 12. Previous No. 8 Franklin went 0-2 this week, with losses at Gill and Hillsborough. Previous No. 9 Immaculata lost at Gill St. Bernard’s and Rutgers Prep. And previous No. 10 Bridgewater-Raritan went 1-2 with losses at Ridge and Watchung Hills (which made this week’s rankings), and a win against North Plainfield.

So, Watchung Hills (5-0) debuts in the rankings at No. 7, thanks to three straight wins over Bound Brook, Bridegwater-Raritan and Clifton.

Then, it’s Montgomery in the rankings at No. 8, with a 4-0 record and wins over Delaware Valley and Morris Knolls this past week.

At No. 9, it’s Piscataway (4-1), which had a 3-0 week, thanks to victories over Old Bridge, East Brunswick and West Orange.

In tenth is South Plainfield (3-2), which beat previously-ranked Woodbridge head-to-head this week, 76-64, while also beating Perth Amboy and losing a non-conference game at Cranford.

Below are the full Week 2 Bellamy & Son Paving Boys’ Basketball Rankings:

by Mike Pavlichko

Seventh heaven? Seven area boys’ hoops teams head into Christmas Break with perfect records

As things wind down for a few days for Christmas – with holiday tournaments just beyond – there are seven boys’ basketball teams from the Central Jersey Sports Radio coverage area with unblemished records, and a few more still unbeaten in divisional play.

Of those, five are in the Greater Middlesex Conference, with two in Somerset County.

Cougars, Warriors still perfect…

Perhaps the most notable unbeaten from Somerset is Montgomery, which is 4-0 so far, 2-0 in the Valley Division, with wins over Pingry and West Morris on the road to start the season, then a pair of home wins over Delaware Valley and Morris Knolls. It’s their best start since the COVID-shortened 2021 season, went they went 6-0 to start, and finished 10-4. Senior Steve Donahue is leading the way with 14 points per game for the Monty, which hosts its own Cougar Holiday Classic this week. They host North Hunterdon at 2 pm Wednesday, following Bridgewater-Raritan and Princeton at noon, while the Cougars and Panthers will play each other at 4 pm Friday.

Watchung Hills is the other Somerset County team not to lose yet. The Warriors are 5-0 overall, 3-0 in the newly-configured Raritan Division. Justin Salton’s club has only played two county opponents, and three from the Skyland. They have wins at Bound Brook and over Bridgewater, while they beat Phillipsburg in their opener. Out-of-conference wins have come over Morris Knolls and at Clifton. Junior Zack Patette (16.4 ppg) and senior John Kelly (15.4 ppg) are the top scorers leading a fairly balanced attack. They also play in a Cougar Classic this coming week, this one up at Chatham. It’s a three-game, four-team event, playing the host school Tuesday night at 7, New Providence Wednesday at 3 pm, and Cranford out of Union County on Friday at 1:30 in the afternoon.

GMC’s five have some usual suspects, some not…

The undefeated teams in the Greater Middlesex Conference are somewhat of a mix. On the one hand, there’s St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Joseph-Metuchen in the Red Division, which doesn’t surprise anyone. The other three? South Amboy and Calvary Christian in the Gold, and Timothy Christian in the Blue.

We’ll start with Timothy, as we broadcast their season-opener, a win against JFK in which senior Jalen Fleming eclipsed the 1,000-point mark. The Tigers followed that up with wins at Carteret, South River and Metuchen. They are scoring 73.3 points per game, with an average margin of victory a shade over 23 points. Fleming, of course, is a big reason why, averaging 22.3 points a game, but then there’s junior Myles Dickerson After dropping 20 in the opener against Kennedy, he scored 25 against the Ramblers, 32 against the Rams, and 35 against the Bulldogs, for a tidy 28 points per game. And as Nigerian transfer Chukwudi Raphael Mamah gets more comfortable with the American game and contributes more, the Tigers will be a tough out. Their schedule hasn’t been the best, but it’s not the worst either, but it could get tougher this week. They’re in the Butch Kowal Tournament at Rahway this week, playing the host Indians at 7:30 Wednesday night. If they win, they would likely play Rumson-Fair Haven (currently 31-) in the final Friday night at 7:30; the consolation tips at 6.

Myles Dickerson (#5 in black) runs the offense against JFK in a GMC Blue Division home game in Piscataway on December 15, 2023. (Photo: Mike Pavlichko)

The Gold has South Amboy and Calvary Christian, but at least one won’t be undefeated for long. That’s because they face each other on January third in Old Bridge. 

But first, the Governors are in the Middlesex/Shore Holiday Tournament at South River this week, taking on Henry Hudson at 11 am Wednesday, before Keansburg and the homestanding Rams play each other at 12:30 pm. The consolation takes place Thursday at 11, followed by the championship at 12:30. South Amboy is led by senior Jake Eberle with 16.6 ppg and 7.8 rpg, while fellow senior Gavin Pelkey is averaging 15.8 points per game.

Calvary Christian will be out at the University of Valley Forge in Pennsylvania at the Patriot Holiday Invitational. They play Thursday against Baptist Regional at 4 pm, then will get either Mount Airy Christian (PA) or Coventry Christian (PA) in the 12:30 consolation or the 3:30 final the next day.

And then, of course, the GMC Red Division, with standbys Aquinas and Joe’s. They will play each other twice this season, but the first of those meetings doesn’t come until January 16th in North Edison. They’ll rematch January 30th in Metuchen.

The Trojans are 5-0 despite turning over their entire roster save for one player, Davon Grant, who had all of 23 career varsity points entering the season. GMC wins have come over JP Stevens, South Brunswick, and Old Bridge, with the victory over the Knights’ being by almost the slimmest of margins, 54-52. They also have wins over New York non-publics, St. Joseph by the Sea on Staten Island and Monsignor Scanlan out of The Bronx. Newcomer Aiden Ur, a junior, leads the scoring with 16.4 points per game, while seniors Paris Papadatos and Rinelson Dilone are adding 14.8 and 14 points a game, respectively. In fact, Dilone is cleaning up on the glass, too, nearly averaging a double-double, with 9.8 boards per contest. Aquinas plays St. Elizabeth (DE) on the Varsity Viking Invitational on Wednesday (time TBA), the are in the Boardwalk Basketball Classic at Wildwoods Convention Center down the Shore, taking on Middle Township of the Cape-Atlantic League at 1:15 in the afternoon on New Year’s Eve.

As for St. Joe’s, they’ve been without senior Jeremy DeCaro, a major piece, but fellow senior Jeremy Clayville has been lighting it up. He’s averaging 26.8 points per game, twice scoring more than 30 points. He had 35 against JP Stevens last Thursday night in a 30-point win, a week after piling up a mammoth 43-point effort – a career high – in a season-opening ten point road win over Piscataway. Fellow seniors Owen Griffin and Dave Caruso also are averaging a shade over 10 points a contest. The Falcons are in the Whitey Dukiet All-American Holiday Classic at Livingston High School this Wednesday, where they’ll take on Morris Knolls Wednesday at 1, before Ridge and Livingston Square off at 3 pm. The consolation game is noon Friday, while the final tips at 2:00.

by Mike Pavlichko

National Signing Day: Big Central football players make it official where they’ll play in college

Wednesday begins the Early Signing period for football players across the country to sign their National Letter of Intent. They can sign on the dotted line now through Friday, or can wait for the Spring period. Here is a team-by-team look at who signed were, with information submitted by their coaches and/or announced on social media.

This list will be updated throughout the day, as we get information from coaches, players, social media and other media reports. Please check back often for additions as they come in.

Colonia: Jaeden Jones – the Central Jersey Sports Radio Offensive Player of the Year – signed on with Monmouth. In his second season as a QB – after having never played the position before – he rished for 1,454 yards and 22 touchdowns, second best in the Big Central. One of the league’s most electrifying players, he also threw for 1,202 yards and nine touchdowns. Now that he’s signed, it’s right back to playing hoops, where he’s the point guard for the Patriots’ basketball team.

Hillside: Diego Rodriguez, a two-way lineman for the Comets – will be attending the University of Connecticut.

Montgomery: Matt D’Avino – who may have had the most receptions in the state over the last two years, according to his head coach, Zoran Milich – signed on with Lehigh. He caught 67 passes this year for 1,501 yards – that’s 15.7 yards per catch – and had 16 touchdowns. He’s grabbed 122 passes the last two seasons.

Ridge: Chris Oliver, an offensive lineman/tight end, will be playing for Bucknell. The 6-3, 240-pounder played mostly defense for the Red Devils this season, logging 61 tackles, 42 solo, nine TFLs, seven sacks – with 13 in his two years playing varsity for Andy West – and also had a forced fumble.

Plainfield: Josue Cordoba – Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Two Way Player of the Year for 2023, signed on with Kent State Wednesday. ”He’ll catch a 60-yard bomb on one end, and come back and catch a pick-six on the other,” says his coach, James Williams. He caught 60 passes this year for 1,234 yards and nine touchdowns, while rushing for two. On defense: five interceptions, three for touchdowns.

St. Thomas Aquinas: Christian Magliacano – the 2023 CJSR Defensive Player of the Year – made it official he’ll be going to Colgate. ”Arguably the best linebacker in the state,” says his head coach Tarig Holman, he recorded 162 tackles this year at linebacker, 32 TFLs, three forced fumbles, two interceptions, one for a touchdown, and two blocked kicks.

Summit: Tyler Kessell singed to play football at Dartmouth. He totalled 133 tackles at linebacker this season, with 15 tackles for loss and a forced fumble.

Watchung Hills: Big quarterback Aleks Sitkowski – the younger brother of Art, who starred at Old Bridge and played at Rutgers – signed on with Colgate. After moving from Piscataway to Warren, Sitkowski threw for 1,696 yards and 17 touchdowns for Watchung Hills, while also running it over 100 times for 609 yard and another 13 touchdowns. Head coach Rich Suebert says Sitkowksi turned his traditional run-first offense into a “high octane” passing attack. Sitkowski was an Honorable Mention CJSR Offensive Player of the Year in 2023.

Westfield: Linebacker Chris Rosetti put pen to paper to play for Brown University. He was tops with 124 tackles for the Blue Devils this year, four tackles for loss, and 1 1/2 sacks. He also had a QB hurry and a fumble recovery.

Woodbridge: The winner of Central Jersey Sports Radio’s “Record Setter of the Year” award, A.J. Bosch signed with Bucknell. He graduates as No. 1 all-time in Barrons annals with career receptions (134), career touchdown catches (27) and career rushing touchdowns (12) by a receiver. He also finished with 2,842 career rushing yards, No. 2 in the Woodbridge record books:

by Mike Pavlichko

Colonia, Woodbridge join Bellamy & Son Paving Girls’ Basketball Top Ten, while Rutgers Prep remains atop the list

While two new teams – Colonia and Woodbridge – filter into the rankings this week, Rutgers Prep remains No. 1 for a record 30th straight week in the Bellamy & Son Paving Girls’ Basketball Top Ten.

The Lady Argonauts – the only team ever to hold the top spot since the debut of the rankings in January of 2021 – are 3-0, after a season-opening win against Watchung Hills and wins over St. Mary’s (NY) and West Orange in the She Got Game Classic down at the Jersey Shore, in which a number of CJSR-area teams participated this weekend.

St. Thomas Aquinas (1-1) took a loss in that event at the hands of Cherokee Sunday, but opened by clicking on all cylinders in a 90-30 victory at North Brunswick. The Trojans hold at No. 2 this week.

In third is Gill St. Bernard’s (2-0), which picked up a 76-47 win against Franklin Thursday, then topped Trinity Hall in the She Got Game Classic on Saturday, 52-43.

Monroe (2-0) edged up a spot to No. 5 with wins at South Brunswick in their opener, 49-36, and against Old Bridge Saturday, 55-32.

Hillsborough (1-0) rose two spots this week from eighth to No. 6 after the Raiders opened their season with a 51-48 victory over Morris Knolls on Saturday.

At NO. 7 is Watchung Hills (1-1). The Warriors lost their opener to Rutgers Prep, 78-33 on Thursday, then beat West Morris Saturday, 52-49.

Colonia (2-0) joins the rankings after the opening weekend-plus of play with a two blowout victories. They played in the She Got Game Classic on Friday, beating Camden 75-25. They came back and beat North Brunswick on Saturday, 64-25.

Woodbridge also enters the rankings this week at No. 9 with a 2-0 mark. Thursday, they beat Perth Amboy 56-36 in the season opener. They then knocked off previous No. 7 Edison, 56-48, sending them out of the rankings, along with previous No. 6 Middlesex, which fell out after a pair of losses to JP Stevens and Bound Brook.

And in tenth is Spotswood (1-0). The Chargers beat Carteret in their opener Friday and had the rest of the weekend off before hosting arch-rival South River Monday evening.

Below are the full Week One Bellamy & Son Paving Girls’ Basketball rankings:

by Mike Pavlichko

Rutgers Prep maintains No. 1 spot in preseason Bellamy & Son Paving Girls’ Basketball Top Ten

The Lady Argonauts have a number of streaks going.

They have won 41 straight games against Somerset County foes, and 54 straight in Skyland Conference play. They also finished last year at No. 1 in the Bellamy & Son Paving Top Ten, the only team ever to hold that position in our third season covering girls’ basketball.

And you can extend that streak to 29 weeks and counting at No. 1, where they begin the 2023-24 season.

The remarkable run is very likely to continue, with a solid returning cast. The biggest loss from last year’s 25-5 team which won the Non-Public South B title is senior Katie Ledden, who’s now at Rhode Island. But highly-recruited Mikayla Blakes – the two time CJSR Girls’ Player of the Year who has schools like Rutgers, Tennessee and Stanford, in her final seven – is back for her senior season, as are a host of other standouts like Chloe Escanillas, Ava LaMonica, Zahra Alexander and GiGi Battle, while junior Leah Crosby transfers in from St. Thomas Aquinas.

The Trojans are No. 2, coming off a 22-7 season and their second straight GMC Tournament title. They’ve got a new coach, in former Watchung Hills girls’ mentor and St. Joseph-Metuchen alum Tim Corrigan, but he’s familiar with Aquinas, serving as an assistant under Joe Whalen last year.

At No. 3 is Gill St. Bernards, 18-9 a year ago, and runner up in the Somerset County Tournament. Mark Gnapp’s team graduated just one senior, Aniyah Boston, but will have to get by loaded Rutgers Prep to win the Delaware Division and/or the Somerset County Tournament.

In fourth is South Brunswick, which comes back loaded for first-year head coach Ryan Murphy. Coming off a 19-8 season, the loss of Katie Kausch (14 ppg) will be a big blow, but No. 2 scorer Alexis Lease-Springer – a junior who will be starting for a third season and already has accumulated 500 career points in 48 games is back to lead the Vikings.

Checking in at No. 5 is Monroe, with veteran coach Leigh Votgman leading the way. At 17-10 last year, Monroe made the Central Jersey Group 4 finals, falling by eight at Jackson Memorial. Haley Higgins and Katelyn Louro are gone to graduation, but seniors Halley Cottrell and Nicole Turco return, along with junior Evangelina Francisco.

No. 6 is another sectional finalist, Middlesex, which was 20-9 last season and fell at Shore in the Central Jersey Group 1 title game. The Blue Jays graduated top-scorer Neysa Aguilar, but right behind he was Jessica Devine, who’s back for her sophomore year. Middlesex also has a new coach, as Stew Lester comes over in-house after serving as an assistant on the boys’ side to take over for Kevin Harper, who retired.

In seventh is Edison, which beat out Middlesex to take the GMC White Division title a year ago, finishing 21-7. While second-leading scorer Trista Whitney transferred to nearby St. Thomas Aquinas, leading scorer Ghelsey Go is back for Frank Eckert’s squad.

At No. 8 is Hillsborough, which was 16-11 last season, and returns their second- and third-leading scorers, junior Francesca Schiro and junior Mya Loniewski, respectively.

Watchung Hills is ninth, coming off a 20-7 season that saw them reach the semifinals of both the Somerset County Tournament and the North 2, Group 4 state playoffs. The Warriors lose a ton of seniors, but the defending Skyland Raritan Division champs should still be competitive.

And in tenth is Spotswood of the GMC. They were 17-9 a year ago, but very young, with three of their top four scorers sophomores last season, while the fourth was a freshman. With another year of experience under their belt, they should be at or near the top of the GMC Blue Division this season.

Below is the full Bellamy & Son Paving Girls’ Basketball Top Ten for the preseason:

by Mike Pavlichko

You – the fans – get to pick again! It’s the Jersey Central Sports Radio 2023 “Highlight Reel Play of the Year.” Watch the video, and vote!

Central Jersey Sports Radio is giving YOU the chance to weigh in on your favorite play of the 2023 high school football season! All five finalists are in the montage below…

Watch the video below, then scroll down
to vote for your favorite!!
Voting ends at 11:59 pm on Wednesday, Dec. 16th.
Remember: Vote early, vote often!

2025 Highlight Reel Play Of The Year

Sorry, voting is closed.

Good luck to your favorite school and player for the 2024 Highlight Reel Play of the Year!

by Mike Pavlichko

Phillipsburg, Aquinas get first-place votes, but Stateliners end up topping final Media Poll

With three first-place votes and a 10-2 record, the Phillipsburg Stateliners have finished 2023 as the top team in the Big Central Media Poll.

P’burg was the preseason No. 1, as well, and held the position until a late-September loss to Hillsborough in the Rumble on the Raritan. The Stateliners’ only other loss came in the North 2, Group 5 final to Union City; they came back to beat Easton on Thanskgiving, the first time they’ve beaten the Red Rovers back-to-back since 2002 and 2003.

St. Thomas Aquinas finished second in the final media poll, three points behind Phillipsburg. The Trojans (10-1) got two first-place votes. They finished the regular season undefeated with a Thanksgiving Eve victory at Immaculata, their only loss coming to DePaul in the Non-Public B semifinals.

Ridge – which finished 8-2 and made it to the North 2, Group 4 semifinals – came in third, whiel National Silver Champion North Brunswick (8-1) finished fourth.

Coming in fifth is Bernards (12-1), which set a program record for wins and took home its first-ever state sectional title three weeks ago when the Mountaineers rallied to beat Lakeland in overtime for the North 2, Group 2 Championship. They were also Patriot Gold Division Champions.

The bottom five includes Sayreville (8-3) in sixth, Hillsborough (8-3) at No. 7, Liberty Silver Division winner Montgomery (8-1-1) at eight, followed by Watchung Hills (8-3) and St. Joseph-Metuchen (7-3) at nine and ten.

Summit, Hillside, and Westfield also received votes.

Below is the full Final Big Central Media Poll for 2023:

by Mike Pavlichko

Philipsburg ends season right where it began: No. 1 in the rankings

The final Central Jersey Sports Radio Top Ten of the 2023 high school football season finds Phillipsburg not where they were when we last left them, rather, back on top.

The Stateliners finished 10-2 after a loss in the North 2, Group 5 title game, but a victory over Easton for the second straight year, the first time they’ve done that in 20 years. They were also Big Central Conference American Silver Division Champions, one of five division champs to finish in the Top Ten.

The Stateliners are followed by St. Thomas Aquinas, which finished 10-1 and was the champion of the United Gold Division. The Trojans are 19-3 in two seasons under Tarig Holman, and 28-4 since the COVID-shortened season.

Ridge (8-2) – which finished second to P’burg in the United Silver – finished in third in the final rankings.

In fourth is Bernards, which at 12-1 set a school record for wins, and won the North 2, Group 2 title, its first state sectional title in program history. The Mountaineers were the only Big Central team to win a championship this season, but lost at 17-0 at Westwood in the Group 2 semifinals. They also were the Patriot Gold Division Champions.

North Brunswick, the National Silver Division Champions, finished fifth, with a record of 8-1, that lone loss coming in the first round of the playoffs by a single point to Freehold Township.

Montgomery checks in at No. 6, and like North Brunswick, suffered its only loss of the season in the playoffs, ending at 8-1-1, with the Liberty Silver Division title.

The final four teams include Hillsborough (8-3) in seventh, followed by Sayreville (8-3), St. Joseph Metuchen (7-3), and Watchung Hills (8-3). Summit, which had been tied for tenth in the last ranking after cutoff weekend, dropped out, finishing 7-3.

Below are the full Central Jersey Sports Radio Final high school football rankings for 2023:

by Mike Pavlichko

Late Montclair field goal does in Watchung Hills, spoils bid to reach first title game since ’78

“One game does not define a season.”

That was one of the parting words from Watchung Hills head coach Rich Seubert to his team after a gutting 24-21 loss to Montclair in the North 1, Group 5 semifinals Friday night at Tozier Field in Warren.

In a game heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio, the second-seeded Warriors overcame a 13-0 halftime deficit and two interceptions by quarterback Aleks Sitkowski to make it a ballgame, but in the end, the visiting third-seeded Mounties were three points better.

Ben Price’s 27-yard field goal with three seconds left put Montclair (8-3) ahead 24-21. One second ticked off on the ensuing kickoff, and a last-ditch effort with a trio of laterals as time expired didn’t go Watchung Hills’ way.

Hills trailed 13-0 after one half, where they left several points on the board, having first-and-goal on two separate possessions, coming away empty-handed each time.

But the Warriors roared back in the second half on two touchdown catches from senior Jack Clintock, who scored the first on a five-yard screen pass, then got the second in triple-coverage over the middle of the field at the 20, going 43-yards in all for a score that gave Watchung a 14-13 lead.

Montclair went ahead 21-14 with a touchdown and two-point conversion to make up for a missed PAT on their second score, but Watchung Hills answered to tie it at 21-all.

The Mounties then came down field and got within field goal range, right in the middle of the field, to cue Price’s big moment.

Watchung Hills falls to 8-3 with the loss.

Click below for postgame reaction from Watchung Hills coach Rich Seubert, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen: