Raiders topped Ridge, Central
By: Rudy Brandl
Although the Hillsborough High field hockey team did not manage to duplicate some of last year’s great achievements, the Raiders enjoyed some meaningful, milestone victories this year.
Moments after the season ended with a 2-0 loss at Bridgewater-Raritan in the North Jersey Group 4 quarterfinals, some of the players actually disagreed about which victory was the sweetest. Twin sisters Ellyn and Lauren Griggs had different opinions.
Ellyn, the team’s outstanding junior goalkeeper, felt it was the 1-0 triumph over Ridge on the second day of the regular season that marked the team’s biggest highlight. Lauren, a junior link who scored the game-winning goal in that game, believed the thrilling 1-0 double overtime victory at Hunterdon Central in the first round of the state tournament represented the high point of the Raider season.
The Raiders (12-7) showed tons of spirit and determination in that playoff game, which was played on the same field where their last three seasons had ended in heart-breaking fashion. Two years ago, Central eliminated the Raiders in strokes. Last fall, the Red Devils defeated Hillsborough in the sectional finals during regulation time, but again on a stroke.
Hillsborough senior Michelle Cilenti slapped home a hard shot from the left side off a penalty corner with 3:24 remaining in the second overtime to set off a wild celebration. All the misery and frustration of recent season-ending losses and tournament-elimination defeats went away when that ball clanged against the back of the Central cage.
Fourth-year head coach Peach Draper joined the celebration as she promised her players by wearing the red cape from the Supergirl costume from Halloween. On that day, all the HHS girls played like superheroes and deserved to win.
"It was really emotional," Draper said. "We were so excited because it was so long overdue. There was so much history leading up to that point. We had to believe we could win the big game and we finally did it. I was hoping it would be a catalyst for us."
Unfortunately, the Hillsborough playoff magic did not carry over into the next round at Bridgewater-Raritan. The Panthers officially became Hillsborough’s new nemesis with four head-to-head victories this season. B-R had already swept the Raiders in regular season play to win sole possession of the Delaware East Division title after the teams had split the crown last year. Bridgewater also knocked out HHS in a rain-soaked stroke shootout in the Somerset County Tournament semifinals.
The Raiders hadn’t lost a game by more than one goal all year but B-R ended that streak with a 2-0 victory in the quarterfinals. B-R went on to win the sectional title and finished second overall in Group 4. The Raiders weren’t that far removed from that elite status. They proved that in their second game way back in September with a surprising victory over Ridge, a team that had pounded the Raiders twice the previous year.
"We were so scorned from losing to Central in the sectional finals and losing to Ridge twice last year," Draper said. "We had the accomplishments of beating Ridge and Central, but there was the disappointment of losing four times to Bridgewater. They took the county, conference and states from us this year."
Four senior captains led the Raiders to this very productive campaign. Cilenti, a first team All-Skyland Conference and second team All-Somerset County selection, had six goals and three assists from her center back position. She did a fabulous job taking over for graduated star Megan Kubek.
Three-year varsity veteran Liz Tafaro, the only player on the team named to the first team of both the county and conference All-Star teams, led the Raiders with 12 goals and eight assists. Fellow forward Sam Schroeder completed her second varsity season with eight goals and a team-high nine assists. Schroeder was selected to the first team All-Skyland and honorable mention All-Somerset.
Kristen Derewecki, the team’s fourth senior captain, did a solid job stabilizing the defense in her third varsity campaign. Senior defender Nicole Imbriani also contributed on defense.
The rest of the varsity regulars are eligible to return, including the Griggs sisters. Ellyn finished her second year as the starting goalkeeper with nine shutouts, a 1.00 goals against average and 87.2 save percentage. She made honorable mention All-Somerset and second team All-Skyland. Lauren, with two goals and three assists, was a second team All-Skyland selection.
Three underclassmen made big contributions to the offense this fall. Junior center link Gillian Cardinale (4 goals, 3 assists), sophomore forward Danielle Czysz (3 goals, 4 assists) and freshman link Carlin Dunne (3 goals, 3 assists) will be among the team leaders in 2006. All three received some post-season recognition by the county and conference coaches.
Other players eligible to return include juniors Allie Bostwick, Jen Garoian, Gabby Gilmore, Gwen Prowse, Emily Rothschild and second team All-Skyland defender Katherine Glass-Hardenberg and freshman Dorian Gilmartin-Dzitko.
Hillsborough’s freshman team posted a 10-1 record, splitting with B-R, so there are some other talented players in the program. While the future looks bright, the present was pretty exciting.
"We have to focus on beating Central. It wasn’t a monkey, it was more like a gorilla," Draper said. "We beat two of the three teams we were looking to beat. I’m proud of my girls and I’m proud of the season we had."

