FOOTBALL RESULTS: Big Central Conference and area roundup for Week 7
PLEASE CHECK BACK OFTEN. GAMES ARE ADDED AS THEY’RE REPORTED
SATURDAY’S RESULTS
Bridgewater-Raritan 17, Elizabeth 13: Joe Spira hit Colin Woodring with a 61-yard touchdown pass with 2:38 remaining in regulation, giving Bridgewater-Raritan (3-5) its first lead of the game and, ultimately, the victory.
Elizabeth (2-5) opened the scoring early in the second period as quarterback Vito Tropeano Jr. connected with Thian Grimano wlth a 31-yard TD pass, and the Minutemen led 6-0 after the conversion attempt failed. Sam Valeira then cut the Panthers deficit to 6-3 with a 32-yard field goal as time expired in the second quarter.
After a scoreless third quarter, Tropeano broke off a 13-yard scoring run to open the fourth, with Luis Beltran’s PAT making it 14-3 Elizabeth. But BR got a 67-yard touchdown gallop from Drew Davis just 23 seconds later, plus a Valeira kick, to cut the deficit to 14-10. Bridgewater-Raritan stopped Elizabeth at its own 28 to take over, setting up the winning drive.
GAME STORY: Hillside handles Delaware Valley
GAME STORY: Watchung Hills wins fourth straight, cruises past St. Joseph
Governor Livingston 17, South River 7: Michael Geertsma connected with Matt Schaffer on a 42-yard touchdown pass to open the scoring, and Owen Chait capped it with a 20-yard scoring run and the Governor Livingston defense did the rest as the Highlanders moved to 4-4. Liam Quigley contributed a 27-yard field goal for GL. Darius Armstrong went 61 yard for a touchdown on a hook and lateral play for South River (2-5) as the second quarter expired.
Plainfield 54, Monroe 28: Sophomore quarterback Alameen Watkins completed 16-of-30 passes for 284 yards and two touchdowns, adding eight rushes for 106 yards and three more scores as Plainfield won a barnburner at Hub Stine field. Samir Cherry caught four passes for 105 yards and two touchdowns for the Cardinals (2-5), while Yasin Wyatt rushed 11 times for 124 yards and two scores in the win. Plainfield also got five catches for 110 yards and a score from Joel Cordoba and a TD reception and an interception from Kamai Lowery. Monroe is 2-5.
Colonia 28, Summit 23: Jaeden Jones reeled off four touchdowns as the Patriots (7-1) got the road victory. Jones scored from runs of 7, 6, 5 and 52 yards. Summit (3-4) scored on Brian Bauman’s 50-yard TD pass to Carter Shallcross and on Ryan Schnall’s 7-yard run. Will Johnson added a 27-yard FG.
FOOTBALL SCOREBOARD: Final scores, story links and our Week 7 game coverage
FRIDAY’S RESULTS
Somerville 35, Hillsborough 14: Terrell Mitchell opened the game by taking the kickoff 95 yards for a score and Somerville never stopped rolling, pulling off a massive upset and knocking off third-ranked Hillsborough at Brooke Field.
The Pioneers (3-5) not only pulled off the stunner, but they did so without first-year head coach Ian Pace. Veteran assistant coach Matt Bloom – the lone remaining holdover from Dallas Whitaker’s staff – assumed the head-coaching reins Friday night. The Somerville administration would not comment on why Pace wasn’t on the sidelines, or who would be at the coaching helm going forward.
For a team that’s obviously had quite the week, it made Friday’s result even more stunning.
“I’m so proud of these kids,” Bloom said. “They have been hungry and have been working hard, and I believe that the team that plays the hardest wins the game, and the team that wants to win the most, wins. And that was evident with our guys tonight. They just gave max effort on every play, and that’s all you can ask for as a coach.”
Mitchell added a 17-yard scoring run later in the first half, while quarterback Mike Miller scored a rushing TD and hit Quinn Carran with a 35-yard scoring pass in a game that was 21-7 at halftime.
The game was full of subplots, including Somerville quarterback Mike Miller, who grew up in Hillsborough, competing for the first time against his home town team. Hillsborough head coach Kevin Carty is also a Somerville alum.
“The kids all wanted to win for Mike Miller,” Bloom said. “Whatever the situation was where he ended up with us, the kids wanted to play for him the most. And anytime you play a local school who is considered better than you, you want to prove you’re better than them.”
Shayne Powell scored two rushing TDs for Hillsborough, which fell to 5-2.
GAME STORY: Ridge rolls over Westfield
GAME STORY: Rahway edges Carteret to snap shutout losing streak
GAME STORY: Hunterdon Central cruises past Franklin
GAME STORY: Piscataway topples Sayreville
Roselle 47, Bound Brook 6: Naftee Finney rushed for 108 yards and two touchdowns, adding a 45-yard interception return for a score, and Roselle rolled to its third straight win. Samir Rivel pitched in 69 rushing yards and two scores, while Emmanuel Lyles went for 93 yards and a TD and William Peay notched 64 yards and a score for the Rams (3-4). Mousa Eldakroury hit Lucas Coleman with a scoring pass for Bound Brook (0-7).
North Brunswick 26, East Brunswick 0: Frankie Garbolino threw a touchdown pass and ran for another to lead a 26-point second-half outburst, and second-ranked North Brunswick escaped the upset, turning a scoreless game at halftime into a rout. Zahmir Duward opened the scoring in the third quarter on a scoring run, before Frankie Garbolino hit Jack Garbolino with a 52-yard TD pass. The quarterback added another on a five-yard keeper, before Alani Ajigbotosho capped it with a fourth-quarter scoring run for the Raiders (7-0). East Brunswick fell to 0-7.
Montgomery 40, Scotch Plains-Fanwood 14: Michael Schmelzer completed 9-of-19 passes for 205 yards and three touchdowns, adding another on a three-yard keeper, and Montgomery overcame a 14-0 early deficit to surge to the win. Matt Davino caught all three scoring strikes for the Cougars (6-2), finishing with eight catches for 206 yards. Chris Eubanks notched 159 rushing yards on 13 carries, with two touchdowns, while Gavin Getti added 100 more rushing yards in the win. Anthony Tittanegro’s 24-yard touchdown run gave Scotch Plains-Fanwood (1-7) an early lead, with a four-yard Khadar Jackson scoring gallop making it 14-0 Raiders after one quarter.
Bernards 31, New Providence 0: Terrence Hanratty scored two touchdowns, while Connor Laverty ran one in from 50 yards out and hit Jake Caldwell with a TD pass and Bernards rolled to 7-1. Jonas Gonzalez pitched in a 43-yard field goal for the Mountaineers, while Simon Bramwit finished 4-for-4 kicking PATs. New Providence is 4-4.
Immaculata 21, Morris Catholic 7: Cole Hayden grabbed a touchdown pass from Mason Geis, and Joe Fleming and Cameron Chadwick each ran in TDs and Immaculata moved to 3-4. Mike Tales rushed 25 times for 138 yards for the Spartans, who also got an interception from Chadwick 1 1/2 sacks from Jayden Wooten.
Phillipsburg 42, Union 14: Jett Genovese three for 139 yards and two touchdowns, running in two more scores, and Phillipsburg rolled to 7-0. Xavier Moore carried 18 times for 118 yards for the Stateliners, while John Wargo ran in a touchdown. Matt Scerbo and Kevin Burgess each caught a TD toss from Genovese. Hunter Cleaver returned an interception 67 yards for a P’Burg score. Kasie McDowell connected with Renick Dorilas for a Union touchdown, while Dorilas added a rushing score in the fourth quarter, but the Farmers slid to 2-5.
Old Bridge 28, New Brunswick 0: Brady Cavallaro threw three touchdown passes, including two to Thomas McAleavey, and Old Bridge grabbed the shutout win. Luke Triantafillou also caught a scoring pass for the Knights (5-3), while Danny Hennessy added a six-yard scoring run in the win. Joshua Endaz finished 4-for-4 kicking PATs. The Zebras fell to 1-7.
Manville 63, Highland Park 14: Shawn Purcell rushed for 166 yards and three touchdowns, including one for 82 yards, and the Mustangs rolled to 7-1. Na’Quavere Thomas picked up 80 yards and a rushing score of 42 yards to cap the game’s first drive. Quarterback Danny Wildgoose ran in a 59-yard TD for the Mustangs, who also got a TD from Brandon Rivera (43 yards). Isaiah Bennett broke off scoring runs of 19 and 80 yards, respectively, while Brian Fisher added a 41-yard score for Manville, which gained a total of 601 yards of offense – all on the ground. Alex Orzol was 9-for-9 kicking extra points. Thomas made 10 tackles and recovered fumble, while Purcell grabbed an interception.
North Hunterdon 35, Woodbridge 7: Alex Uryniak rushed 23 times for 264 yards and three touchdowns, and quarterback Luke Martini threw a TD pass and ran in another and North Hunterdon won its fourth straight, improving to 7-1. Danny Dulsant caught the TD pass for the Lions. Uryniak added a team-high 12 tackles, including nine solos and one for a loss. Derrick Vaddis grabbed an interception and recovered a fumble in the win. Woodbridge is 7-1.
Pingry 36, Montclair Kimberly 7: Quarterback Michael Hollomon threw two touchdown passes and tan in another, and Andrew Schauers returned an interception for a touchdown and Pingry grabbed its second straight win. Jason Weaver and Rafferty Harris caught TD tosses for the Big Blue (3-4), while Christian Fassnacht scored on the ground in the victory. Reilly Cavanaugh added an INT for Pingry.
Cranford 31, Linden 0: Ryan Lynskey tallied 15 carries for 91 yards and two touchdowns, and Shane Kenterman led the attack, rushing 23 times for 131 yards and a score as Cranford rolled to 5-2. Liam Godwin threw for 91 yards and a score, connecting with Jake Carter on a 24-yard third-quarter TD. Ryan Carracino posted a 25-yard field goal for the Cougars. Andrew Wozniak forced two fumbled in the win, sending Linden to 3-4.
J.F. Kennedy 21, Voorhees 7: Evan Richardson scored three times as the Mustangs (1-7) their first win after several close losses this year. He rushed for two TDs and picked up 82 yards on the ground on nine carries. He also caught a TD pass from Brandon Rivera-White and had three receptions for 40 yards. He had 12.5 tackles (1 TFL) on defense as a linebacker. Angel Ruiz added four catches for 42 yards and Gabe Perez had two catches for 37 yards.Mickey Tramutola scored a rushing touchdown for Voorhees (3-4).
A.L. Johnson 44, Spotswood 0: Robert Gallagher rushed nine times for 108 yards and two touchdowns, and Ryan George gobbled up 112 yards on seven attempts and a score to lead the A.L. Johnson attack. Matthew Froden and Emilio Menicucci also scored rushing TDs for the Crusaders (5-2). Matt Jean-Louis ripped off a 99-yd interception return for a touchdown in the win, with ALJ also getting a safety on a Vincent Pisano tackle. Brett Makowky was 6-for-6 on PATs in the victory, which sent Spotswood to 5-3.
St. Thomas 56, North Plainfield 7: Jayden Young went 7-of-8 for 126 yards and four touchdowns as the Trojans had a big first half for their seventh-straight win. Young, a four-year starter, now has 52 career passing touchdowns and added a rushing TD in the win (2 carries for 34 yards). Sherief Guinyard had three catches for 73 yards and grabbed three touchdowns, while Benjamin Bussiere had three catches for 53 yards and a score. On the ground, Joel Marellis rushed for a touchdown (5-25) and Jalen Hinnant had a 19-yard TD run. The Trojans led 49-0 at halftime before the junior varsity players took over in the second half. STA’s defense held North Plainfield to minus 20 yards in the first half and the offense piled up 210 yards on 18 plays in the half. Additionally, head coach Tarig Holman earned his 50th career coaching victory. Joshua Colazo scored on a fourth-quarter run to get North Plainfield (1-7) on the board.
South Plainfield 20, Perth Amboy 14: Michael Green rushed for 111 yards on 10 carries and Zach Bolesta intercepted a pass late in the game to seal the win as the Tigers (7-0) remained undefeated. Green scored on a 63-yard run and added the 2-point conversion, while Patrick Smith scored on an 82-yard kickoff return. Bolesta also punched in a 16-yard TD run. Additionally, Mark Molinaro blocked a punt in the win. Angel Alvarado rushed for 175 yards on 25 carries for Perth Amboy (2-5).
Metuchen 21, J.P. Stevens 12: Evan Toth rushed for 146 rushing yards on 25 carries with two touchdowns in the Bulldogs win. The sophomore added five tackles. John Bolesta also rushed for a 2-yard score and Daniel Cordes kicked three extra points. Ben Michaliszyn had a team-high 11 tackles.
Edison 42, South Brunswick 21: Matt Yascko Jr. threw for 271 yards and two touchdowns and Nyekir Eato scored three times as the Eagles (6-2) broke open the game after a 14-14 tie at halftime. Yascko threw a 52-yard TD pass to Michael Strachan and a 53-yard score to Malcolm Stansbury. Eato rushed for 109 yards on 17 carries with TD runs of 9, 4 and 9 yards. Stansbury had 7 catches for 107 yards and Strachan caught five passes for 85 yards. Ricky Harvey had four returns for 152 yards. For South Brunswick (3-4), Damarion Potts caught a 67-yard TD from Braden Paulmenn and a 47-yard score from Khiri Summers. Raffieu Deen recovered a fumble for a 30-yard TD as South Brunswick took a 14-7 lead in the second quarter.
THURSDAY’S RESULTS
Brearley 44, Middlesex 6: Matt Sims rushed for 201 yards on 20 carries with five touchdowns in the first half as the visiting Bears (7-0) remained undefeated. The 6-foot, 175-pound senior scored on runs of 19, 11, 6, 3 and 27 yards. Brearey's Michael Nwosu added a 15-yard TD run in the fourth quarter. Jacob Platten caught a 21-yard TD pass from Jax Jarvis for Middlesex (4-3) in the third quarter.
This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: Big Central Conference NJ football: Results and roundup Week 7
