There were no Valentines for the Patriots from Phillipsburg on February 14th, as the Patriots fell to the Stateliners 57-24 in their penultimate game of the 2022-2023 season.
Despite a strong third quarter, the North Warren boys were dominated for most of the game by Phillipsburg, which has a student body more than four times that of North Warren and one of highest-ranking programs in the state.
“These guys are good. They’re athletic and fast,” Head Coach Rob Steingall said after the game. “This is a tough school.”
North Warren did start strong in the first quarter, but Phillipsburg regained its footing going into halftime with a 34-17 lead. The Patriots then kept pace with the Stateliners in the third quarter scoring 10 against Phillipsburg’s 11.
“The effort was better in the second half. The energy was a little higher, but we just couldn’t get shots,” Steingall said. “That’s been the story this season. It’s just been shooting turnovers. We have to keep getting better.”
Christian Otufale led the Pats’ scoring with 11 points, followed by Craig Shipps with six. Shipps led on rebounds with eight. Lucas Csezmadia scored the only North Warren’s three-pointer.
Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer
Joe was lured out of retirement by the opportunity to be a part of the Ridge View Echo. During a decades-long career in publishing and journalism, he has covered government on many levels from local school boards to the United States Supreme Court.
Along the way, Joe has worked at American Lawyer Magazine, The National Law Journal and The Record among other publications, and as the Press Officer of Columbia Law School. His work has been recognized with several first place awards from the Society of Professional Journalists and the New Jersey Press Association.
Being part of the Ridge View Echo brings Joe back to his roots and the kind of news coverage he loves: Telling the stories of people and local communities as well as keeping an eye on how their money is spent by their government officials.
Joe lives in Blairstown with his wife Rose, the founder of Quilting for a Cause, and their two wiener dogs. He is an artist in his spare time.
