Central Regional, Toms River East Barred From Playoffs After Brawl On Friday Night

Central Regional and Toms River East won't be playing in the NJSIAA playoffs or regional crossover games this season, after both teams had three players each thrown out of the Friday night game after a fight broke out, according to app.com.

NJSIAA assistant director Jack DuBois confirmed the news on Monday morning. The names of the players have not yet been released.

There won't be any appeals, because NJSIAA rules forbid them in cases involving unsportsmanlike conduct before the start of the NJSIAA tournament, he said.

Central won the game 42-0. Game officials reported the fight to the NJSIAA. The ejected players can not play in the next game nor even be on the game site on game day, DuBois said.

Central, which is 2-0, would have had a chance to qualify for the South Group IV playoffs and earn a playoff berth for the third straight season.

The incident occurred early in the fourth quarter after Central had just scored its final touchdown of the game.

Central Regional Superintendent of Schools Triantafillos Parlapanides said he could not comment on the specifics of the situation because he has not yet seen the report or the video of the incident.

"We're not happy about it," Parlapanides said. "This is not what Central Regional is about. Hopefully, this is a teachable moment for the kids and they can learn from it. It had been a great night and this scarred it. We're going to look at everything and go from there.''

Joe Arminio, the athletic director for the Toms River Regional School District, said he could not comment on the specifics of the incident because he had not seen the video or the report yet.

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