The Old Bridge High School boys soccer team is looking to close its season with a strong performance in the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association Central Jersey Group IV tourney.
Coach Rich Mould’s Knights are 11-5-3 overall, and reached the semifinals of the Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament before losing 3-1 to East Brunswick. It was the third Old Bridge loss to the Bears this fall.
"We’ve played pretty well against East Brunswick and they’re a tough team to beat, but we might see them again in [CJ] Group IV," said Mould, whose team was scheduled to open the tournament yesterday against Hunterdon Central, a team the Knights downed 2-0 early in the season.
Old Bridge has done well thanks to a solid offense led by Scott Gahagan. The senior forward has 19 goals, a new team record, and five assists to lead the team in scoring. Derek Wubbenhurst previously held the Knights’ single-season scoring mark with 12 goals in 1994.
Sophomore John Leone has proven to be another force up front with four goals and seven assists, and senior Dom Zinna has three goals and five assists. Old Bridge has received some timely scoring from center midfielder Steve Humiston, a senior, who has six goals and four assists, as well as stopper Ed Cwiek, who has seven goals and seven assists.
Mould also noted that sweeper Ian Gorham has done an excellent job of controlling the middle for the Knights. Marking back Alexandro Battle has been strong despite an ankle injury, and midfielder Steve Villalobos has played through a leg injury.
In goal, senior Anthony Pugliese and junior Bob Karmel have been a winning formula as they split time.
"This is a wonderful group of kids and it’s great to be around them," Mould said. "The effort is always there. They’ve weathered a few injuries and they’ve been focused. Now they’ll get to see how far they can go."
The Knights were set to host Hunterdon Central yesterday in their first round game. With a win, they would advance to the next round and, perhaps more importantly, would be one step closer to a fourth meeting with East Brunswick.
— Warren Rappleyea