{
  "id": 13287935,
  "title": "New Milford football downs Hawthorne, still loses NJIC playoffs bid",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/10/new-milford-football-downs-hawthorne-still-loses-njic-playoffs-bid",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-10-10T01:29:50.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yahoo Sports",
    "slug": "yahoo-sports",
    "url": "https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/milford-football-downs-hawthorne-still-012950554.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "New Milford secured a 47-14 victory over Hawthorne on October 9th, but narrowly missed out on a bid to the NJIC Championship playoffs. Senior quarterback Kobe St. Hilaire dominated the game with five touchdowns and over 400 rushing yards, propelling New Milford to share the Meadowlands Division title.\n\nTo win the game, New Milford needed to not only defeat Hawthorne but also keep their opponent's score under 10 points. This proved challenging as Hawthorne, boasting a quality offense, consistently scored at least 16 points in their previous five games. Despite the uphill battle, the Bears managed to score both touchdowns in the second half. The first touchdown came on the opening play of the fourth quarter, when Kenny Callaghan connected with Peter Williamson for a 9-yard TD pass, narrowing the gap to 28-14.\n\nNew Milford took the halftime lead, 14-0, thanks to a 21-yard touchdown run by Peter Psarianos and a game-changing 68-yard dash by St. Hilaire. The senior running back continued his impressive performance in the second half, scoring on runs of 52, 34, 50, and 31 yards. The final touchdown, a 31-yard run, not only gave New Milford a commanding 47-14 lead with 3:35 left on the clock but also triggered the mandatory running clock due to their substantial point margin.",
  "summary": "Despite blowing out Hawthorne, New Milford football was unable to clinch a spot in the NJIC playoffs due to a tiebreaker scenario.",
  "key_points": [
    "New Milford defeated Hawthorne 47-14 on October 9th",
    "Senior QB Kobe St. Hilaire scored 5 TDs and over 400 rushing yards",
    "Bears missed NJIC playoffs bid despite division title"
  ],
  "editors_take": "New Milford's convincing win over Hawthorne wasn't enough to secure a playoff spot, highlighting the competitive challenges in the Meadowlands Division where shared titles and narrow misses are a reality.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}