FOOTBALL RESULTS: Big Central Conference playoff roundup for Week 10
SATURDAY'S RESULTS
NJSIAA TOURNAMENT – PUBLIC SEMIFINALS
North 1 Group 3 semifinals
Hillside 33, River Dell 13: Caleb Salters rushed for two touchdowns as Hillside rallied from a halftime deficit to advance. The second-seeded Comets will play at top-seeded Old Tappan in next week’s final. Old Tappan beat fourth-seeded Sparta 37-14 in the other semifinal. Third-seeded River Dell (5-5) led 7-3 at halftime before Hillside (9-1) exploded for 14 points in the third quarter and 16 in the fourth. Kyon Simonson rushed for 155 yards and a 12-yard touchdown. The Hillside defense stepped up as Ibn Muhammad had a tackle in the end zone for a safety and Zaimir Hawk returned an interception 23 yards for a TD.
NON-PUBLIC A QUARTERFINALS
Delbarton 42, St. Joseph-Metuchen 6: Philip Folmar returned a punt 65 yards for a touchdown and caught a 35-yard TD pass from Robert Russo as sixth-seeded Delbarton jumped to a big halftime lead. The Green Wave (5-5) led 28-0 at the intermission as Ryan Trafford also rushed for two scores. The 11th-seeded Falcons (5-5) had a two-game win streak snapped.
FRIDAY'S RESULTS
North 2 Group 4
North Hunterdon 25, Morris Knolls 14: Senior quarterback Luke Martini connected on two second-quarter touchdowns to Derek Vaddis, going 46 and 63 yards, respectively, and the signal-caller added a third-quarter rushing score as part of a 25-point run to finish the game, as top-seeded North Hunterdon erased a 14-0 first-quarter deficit to move into its first sectional final since 2017. Kente Edwards capped it with a three-yard TD run in the fourth quarter for the Lions, who will play host to second-seeded Randolph next weekend.
North 1 Group 4
Ramapo 34, Ridge 27: Third-seeded Ridge kept pace with the state’s 22nd-ranked team, but ultimately fell to second-seeded Ramapo.
GAME STORY:Edison football stuns North Brunswick with late rally in Central Group 5 semifinals
North 2 Group 5
Phillipsburg 37, Paterson Eastside 6: Xavier Moore rushed for 56 yards and two touchdowns, leading a balanced rushing attack, while Jett Genovese completed 12-of-22 passes for 154 yards and a touchdown, adding a rushing score, and top-seeded Philipsburg rolled into the final. Omar Dominguez also ran in a TD in the win, while Isaiah Jackson caught a touchdown pass. Luke Brogan pitched in a 31-yard field goal as time expired before halftime for the Stateliners, who will play host to sixth-seeded upstart West Orange next weekend.
North 1 Group 5
Union City 20, Westfield 14: Senior quarterback Trey Brown went 15-for-18 passing for 117 yards and a score, adding 19-for-150 rushing and a TD, but third-seeded Westfield fell to the No. 2 seed. Dylan Wragg notched 15-for-128 rushing for the Blue Devils, who turned a 20-0 deficit into a six-point nail biter in the fourth quarter.
North 2 Group 3
West Essex 14, Cranford 7: Liam Godwin’s third-quarter touchdown run and ensuing PAT tied it for second-seeded Cranford, but third-seeded West Essex found the winner in the fourth quarter to sink the reigning sectional champs. Godwin finished with 137 passing yards and 21-for-64 on the ground. He also nabbed an interception.
North 2 Group 1
Brearley 45, Kinnelon 14: Quarterback Matt Sims rushed for 199 yards and three touchdowns, adding 6-for-6 passing for 154 yards and two scores and fourth-seeded Brearley dispatched the eighth-seeded Cinderella Colts. Brenden Fitzsimmons finished with five catches for 151 yards and two touchdowns in the win, while Alex Chuley also ran in a score for the Bears, who will visit second-seeded Mountain Lakes in next weekend’s final.
Metro League semifinals
Poly Prep (NY) 41, Pingry 18: Josh Woodford scored two rushing touchdowns, including a 65-yarder in the third quarter, but fourth-seeded Pingry fell behind 21-0 early, getting as close as 28-18 in the third quarter before top-seeded Poly Prep pulled away. Mike Hollomon hit Jason Weaver with a 22-yard TD pass for the Big Blue.
This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: Big Central Conference NJ football: Roundup Week 10
