North Brunswick girls team tired of being No. 2
FARRAH MAFFAI North Brunswick’s Patty Clark (r) pushes off Sayreville’s Meredith Phair during their game in Sayreville last Friday.
By george albano
Staff Writer
The North Brunswick Township High School girls soccer team is ready to finally shed its tag as bridesmaids.
The Lady Raiders have finished second in the Greater Middlesex Conference White Division each of the last three years, including last season, when they finished 11-7 overall.
FARRAH MAFFAI Sayreville’s Kim Griffith shields the ball with her body while North Brunswick’s Kate Nastus defends during their game in Sayreville last Friday.
That old saying "Always a bridesmaid, never a bride" would certainly apply to the NBTHS booters. But the Raiders feel they have the talent this season capable of finally catching the bouquet.
In fact, the locals have shown they mean business by starting the season with an impressive 3-0-1. And, the one tie was a 1-1 deadlock on the road against rival Sayreville, the team which has beaten North Brunswick out for the divisional title the last three years.
The two teams meet again in late October at North Brunswick in a game that could decide the division. Who knows, maybe this really is the Raiders’ year.
"We hope so," said head coach Ray Bearden, now in his sixth season. "We’ve been bridesmaids the last three years. But we tied Sayreville, and they’ve been the team to beat. As long as we stay focused, we have a good shot this year."
A good part of that optimism stems from the fact the Raiders return eight starters from last year’s team, which made the state tournament for the fifth straight year under Bearden and also earned the sixth seed in the GMC playoffs.
"A lot of them have been playing together for three or four years now. Plus they get along well on and off the field, so that helps. They work each other hard in practice, and the seniors have definitely stepped up and shown the underclassmen how to work.
"I’ve been very happy so far. Hopefully we’ll continue to improve. There are still some things we need to work on."
Scoring goals, however, isn’t one of them. There is definitely no shortage of offense on the Raiders, who opened the season with a 4-0 win over Edison, then routed Metuchen 9-3 and, following the tie against Sayreville, blanked Perth Amboy 6-0 Saturday.
That’s 20 goals in four games, if you’re keeping score at home.
"We’ve been very fortunate so far that we’re scoring a lot of goals," Bearden said. "That helps take the pressure off our defense, especially our first-year keeper."
Graduation claimed last year’s keeper, Kelly Wright, as well as center midfielder Katie Decker, both two-year starters. But junior Annie Kelnhofer, last year’s JV goalie, has taken over in the nets this season and has already recorded a pair of shutouts.
"She’s doing well," Bearden said. "She’s been improving each game and getting more confidence."
But with eight returning starters, the Raiders boast plenty of varsity experience, especially on offense, where senior striker Tris Veloso returns for her fourth season as a starter. Veloso already has 10 goals in North Brunswick’s first four games, after scoring a team-high 32 last season and 17 as a sophomore. With more than three-quarters of the season still remaining, Veloso has 67 career goals.
"She always seems to be around the goal, and she’s a real good finisher," Bearden said. "But she also gets a lot of really nice passes from her teammates."
Senior Stephanie Packer is another four-year starter and is moving from halfback to center midfield to replace Decker.
Senior sweeper Tiffany Crowell, senior outside back Lauren Kelnhofer, and junior strikers Patty Clark and Cristina Valentino are all starting for the third straight season. Two more seniors, stopper Karen Mayugba and outside back Kate Nastus, are both two-year starters.
Rounding out the starting lineup are sophomore midfielders Jenna Peragallo, who saw action off the bench last season, and Ashley Kuberiet, who’s up from the JV ranks.
Bearden is also counting on three freshmen to come off the bench this season in striker Keri Petrone and midfielders Erin Folger and Katie Cosgrove.
"Our numbers are actually a little down this year, so the key is for us to stay healthy," Bearden said. "We’re looking to improve on last year’s record, but if we stay healthy and play the way we can, we definitely can qualify for the state and county tournaments again.
"But that’s been our stumbling block the last few years," he added. "We’ve been knocked out in the first round in both the state and county tournaments, so our major goal this season is to get past that first round."
And, maybe, finally become a bride.