Allentown boys finish off a successful season
Redbirds notch playoff win over Rumson-Fair Haven High School
JERRY WOLKOWITZ Allentown’s David Nicholson (l) and Rumson-Fair Haven’s Kyle Deverty battle for a loose ball during the Redbirds’ opening-round state playoff win in Rumson on Nov. 1.
When the season began, third-year Allentown High School boys soccer coach Joe Stanzione left little doubt as to what kind of goals his team had set for itself.
With a group of four third-year seniors returning, the squad wanted to give those players their first taste of the state playoffs in this, their final year.
But coming off three consecutive sub-.500 seasons, Stanzione knew his team had its work cut out for it, facing a difficult schedule in the competitive Colonial Valley Conference, which is loaded with Group IV and Group III teams, making a .500 record a hard-earned accomplishment for the Redbirds.
But the Redbirds persevered, and earned their playoff berth. And they didn’t stop from there.
Alentown drew a talented Rumson-Fair Haven squad in the first round of the Central Jersey Group II tournament. The Bulldogs were 10-7-2 coming into the game, but had played a difficult schedule in their own right, and were considered a dangerous team.
But Allentown players such as seniors Dave Griffiths, Andrew Barlow, Zack Smith and Joe Key had been waiting a long time for this chance, and were ready to give keep their season alive when they traveled to Rumson on Nov. 1.
The game began with Rumson notching the first goal at the 4:13 mark. Giving up the early goal could have rattled the Redbirds, but they regrouped and tied the score at the 6:09 mark when Key tallied a goal off an assist from Griffiths.
Allentown padded its lead at the 44:06 mark, when sophomore midfielder Dave Nicholson scored unassisted. But Rumson answered right back, scoring at the 54:08 mark to tie the score at 2-2.
Allentown got back on top for good at the 71:21 mark when Key notched his second goal. Senior Matt Vernon was strong in goal for the Redbirds, making 20 saves to preserve the win. In total, RFH outshot the Redbirds 22-12, but it’s the shots that find the net that matter.
From there, Allentown advanced to play top-seeded Colts Neck the following day. The Cougars were the prohibitive favorite coming into the tournament, and were coming off their worst performance of the season, a 3-0 loss to Ocean in the Shore Conference Tournament final on Oct. 29.
Allentown knew what it was in for against the Cougars, but would not be intimidated. On paper, the 18-1 Cougars seemed poised to run over the 9-10 Redbirds. But that’s why they play the games.
Colts Neck, last year’s Group I champion, had a number of scoring chances early, but missed open-goal shots, was denied on a penalty kick, and had a shot hit the crossbar. The game could have been over early, but Colts Neck was only able to notch two early goals, despite dominating most of the action.
Allentown got back in the game at the 36:13 mark when Griffiths notched a goal off an assist from junior midfielder Brett Marrinson. The goal gave the Redbirds some life, but it was fleeting as an own-goal at the 65:45 mark sealed the win for Colts Neck, and effectively ended Allentown’s season.
But the Redbirds had accomplished what they set out to do at the beginning of the year. And the four seniors got a chance to play in a playoff game, and win.