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North Warren Falls to Hackettstown 42-32

September 11, 2023

**Landon White shakes off a tackle. Photo by Joe Phalon, 9/2023.**

Even old football tropes are accurate sometimes. North Warren’s 42-32 loss to Hackettstown September 10 was closer than it looked. Patriot Head Coach Eugene Fluri agreed—to a point.

“The game was closer than the score indicated,” Fluri said. “But we didn’t play well. Too many penalties.”

The Pats played their home opener Sunday morning, shoehorned in between thunderstorms that rocked the area all weekend and forced the game to be moved from Friday night. Rain, snow, mud, yes. Lightning, no.

The loss sets the Patriots—last year’s league champions—back to an 0-2 start to the season after last week’s loss to Whippany Park.

While they stumbled in the first half, North Warren pulled their game together for the second half, scoring touchdowns on all their possessions. They went into the locker room behind 21-6 and came back to outscore Hackettstown 26-21 in the second half. But it wasn’t enough to overcome the deficit.

**A gaggle of Patriots valiantly held out against the Hackettstown Tigers. Photo by J. Phalon, 9/2023**

The Pats had a hard time executing points for most of the game until quarterback Luke Stefankiewicz connected with Lucas Csezmadia for two points following a touchdown by Landon White in the third quarter.

Lucas Csezmadia elbows his way out of bounds after completing a pass. Photo by Joe Phalon,
9/2023.

Fluri said overall he was pleased with the game Stefankiewicz played Sunday. He was also happy with progress the front lines made since the previous week.

“I thought the line did better this week,” Fluri said. “They picked up their signs better.”

North Warren’s next game will be at Parsippany September 15 at 2:00 p.m.

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer

Contributing Writer

Joe brings decades of journalism experience to the Ridge View Echo, covering everything from local school boards to the U.S. Supreme Court. A former National Law Journal editor and Columbia Law School press officer, he now enjoys telling community stories in Blairstown, where he lives with his wife, Rose, and their two dachshunds.