RUDE AWAKENING
By: Rudy Brandl
BERNARDS The Hillsborough High boys’ soccer team went trick-or-treating a few days early in last Saturday night’s Somerset County Tournament championship game at Ridge High.
After believing they had treated their school and many loyal fans who braved the blustery conditions to the first HHS county title since 1984, the Raiders were tricked by an official who waved off the game-winning golden goal in the second overtime.
The two referees closer to the play didn’t see any foul, but the trailing official on the other side of the field called a hand ball that nullified the game-winning goal by junior midfielder Achille Confuorto with 6:53 to play in the second extra session.
The HHS boys already had started celebrating on the field, mobbing each other after what they believed was a dramatic county championship victory. The hand ball call against Confuorto stood and the game ended in a 2-2 draw, leaving Hillsborough and Pingry as Somerset County co-champions.
"The strangest feeling is thinking you’ve won and then not," HHS head coach Eric Puma said afterward. "It really was a surreal experience."
Hillsborough’s disallowed game-winner wasn’t the first eerie event to take place on this night. Something creepy happened in the first overtime that left the frigid fans feeling like they were part of a horror movie. It’s somewhat fitting that Halloween came just three days later.
Suddenly, with Pingry’s Kim Kimber winding up to take a long throw-in from the left touch line with 3:47 showing on the clock, the stadium went completely dark. Ridge athletic director Rich Shello had set the lights to turn off at 9 p.m., which did not allow enough time for an overtime game to be completed.
Almost on cue, heavy winds began to swirl around Lee Field and papers from the HHS stat binder flew all over the place. The sky was clear and the moon and stars were clearly visible, but nobody could see the field.
Judging from some of the calls made in this game, including the one that kept the Raiders from claiming sole possession of the title, the referees were in the dark. This was a very physical match between two talented teams, yet the Raiders somehow piled up three yellow cards while Pingry drew none. Hillsborough also owned a 17-12 edge in fouls.
HHS standouts Chase Barbieri and Yannick Smith were getting hacked all night long, but very rarely got a call. Both Raiders drew yellow cards for fighting back against vicious fouls.
It would have been hard to say the officials decided the outcome of this game until the final crucial call that nullified Confuorto’s overtime goal. At least the Raiders managed to tie for part of the county trophy. It would have been a real travesty if Pingry had scored after that controversial ruling.
The Raiders should feel proud of their status as county co-champions. Some of the state’s finest teams play in Somerset County. That includes Pingry, which had won eight of the last 12 county titles. The Big Blue has owned Hillsborough in recent county tourneys. I can’t remember one time in my 17 years covering HHS when the Raiders knocked Pingry out of the county tournament.
It’s ironic that the last time Hillsborough won a county title it was a shared crown with Ridge. HHS played the Red Devils to a 1-1 tie in 1984. It took the Raiders 22 years to get back to the big game and they certainly made their school proud.

