U-23 team looks ahead to bright future
By: John Beisser
The Hillsborough Warriors built on the success they achieved last summer in the ultra-competitive Mid-Atlantic Summer Showcase League (MSSL), fashioning an 11-2-1 record.
With a roster comprised of mostly 18-19 year old Division 1 collegiate players, the Warriors were perhaps the youngest team in the league but their desire, skill and sense of team carried the way all summer. A year ago, the Warriors went 5-4-1 in their inaugural MSSL season but with 75 percent of the roster back for year two, they were a more cohesive, unified group and this was reflected in the team’s play.
With the season complete, these young men are now enjoying their final summer days before returning to their respective college campuses and collegiate soccer careers. They will return to college as better soccer players, enriched by a positive, albeit physically draining, summer of competition. The best news of all for head coach Chuck Ruggieri is that every single player has committed to returning for year three next summer.
"The team overall came in with a great attitude, with something to prove," Ruggieri said. "I am so proud of this team. They really trained hard, day in and day out, and really developed camaraderie and it showed in how they play. Last year, they were more individual-oriented and you can’t do that in this sport. This is the ultimate team sport and this year we played together as a team."
Ruggeri’s pride in this team extends to the fact that this is most advanced team ever produced by the Hillsborough Youth Soccer Association. In the past, Hillsborough teams advanced as high as U-17 but this is the first time a team a township team has competed at the U-23 level.
The Warriors improved their record to 9-0 on July 10 with a win over the Jersey Knights that sent them into the 16-team USASA Men’s U-23 Region I Championships in Horsham, Pa. Region I is comprised of top teams from New England, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Delaware. The contest vs. the Knights was tied 1-1 after regulation before the Warriors won the match 3-2 on penalty kicks. Chase Barbieri, whose brother Chad was also a standout for the Warriors, notched the goal in regulation for Hillsborough on a brilliant individual effort. Eric Corsini, John Burke and Chase Barbieri found the net during the PK portion to seal the victory
In Game 1 of the Regions played at the Ukranian American Sports Center in Horsham on July 15, the Warriors improved their overall record to 10-0 with a 2-0 blanking of Howell United. Kevin Nunez and Chad Barbieri were the goal-scorers for Hillsborough.
In Game , the Warriors suffered their first loss of the season vs. The Ambassadors Club Team of Maryland. Chase Barbieri gave Hillsborough an early 1-0 lead but the Ambassadors scored twice on second half penalty kicks to post the come-from-behind win.
"Sometimes in soccer, one team can dominate play and still end up on the short end and this game was an example of that," Ruggieri said.
Hillsborough rebounded in the third game of the Region I Championships with a 1-0 win over U.S. Parma, the goal coming off the foot of Doug Musya on a tremendous individual effort where he hit a bending shot into the upper corner of the net.
This win raised the Warriors’ record to 11-1 overall and gave them a 2-1 mark in the Regions. However, by virtue of their head-to-head win over Hillsborough, it was the Ambassadors who advanced and they eventually went on to win the Region I championship and the accompanying trip to the MSSL Championships in Seattle, Wash.
While Hillsborough narrowly missed out on a chance to reach the MSSL Championships, the Warriors did compete in the MSSL Cup in Fort Dix, N.J. on July 27. In a nip and tuck affair, the Warriors and West Chester Coppa battled to a 1-1 tie (there were no penalty kick tiebreakers in this format). In the second round of the MSSL Cup, Hillsborough dropped a 1-0 decision to A.C. Perngia Grifos, a team that, much like the Ambassadors in the Regions, would go on to claim the MSSL Cup title.
"We took both eventual champions to the limit," said Ruggieri, who singled out goalkeeper Brian Lee for his outstanding, and often times brilliant play all summer. Lee consistently took charge of the Warriors’ defense, communicating well with his backs and coming up with a host of critical, game-changing, and in some cases, game-saving saves.
"We finished 9-1-1 in MSSL play and 11-2-1 overall and won the league point championship with 28 (three points awarded per win and one point for a tie),"Ruggieri said proudly. "The guys just did a tremendous job and they’re all coming back next year which is great. I won’t have to do any recruiting. These guys are a real pleasure to coach and we can’t wait for next summer."