Veterans aid boys soccer, MHS falls
By Bob Nuse, Sports Editor
The West Windsor-Plainsboro South boys’ soccer team is as senior-laden as any team you’ll find.
The Pirates have 15 seniors on their roster, and to a player they don’t want to see this season end.
”It is a senior group that really likes each other and they want to keep this thing going,” WW-P South coach Brian Welsh said after the Pirates topped Hillsborough, 2-0, on Monday in their Central Jersey Group IV tournament opener.
”People questioned me for keeping 15 seniors when we knew they all would not play, but it has worked out. And a big factor is they like each other and are willing to keep it going.”
The Pirates got goals from Keisuke Murata and Alex Prieto in Monday’s win, which set up a second-round matchup with at third-seeded North Brunswick, which was scheduled to be played on Thursday. With a win, they would advance to Monday’s CJ IV semifinals.
WW-P North, the No. 1 seed in CJ III, was scheduled to host Hamilton on Thursday, while No. 4 seed Princeton was scheduled to host Point Pleasant Boro, also on Thursday. Montgomery, the No. 12 seed in CJ IV, was eliminated with a 4-2 loss to Steinert on Monday.
The Pirates shook off a sluggish start to beat Hillsborough, with Murata playing a big role.
”We had a really good second half,” Welsh said. “The team woke up. I always believe if the key kids want to continue it makes all the difference. Kei had one of his best games ever. He is that type of player. He can be infectious and when he plays like that everyone plays better. They listened to us about playing both sides of the field and it helped. The kids listened and responded.”
The Montgomery boys returned to the scene of last year’s state tournament upset, but this time fell short against Steinert. The Cougars, who finished the season 10-7-2, didn’t post a state win but put together a solid season.
”I’m happy and proud of the guys,” said first-year coach Rickey Steeb. “It’s been a great first year as head coach. The guys worked hard and I feel like they gave me everything they had. We started off a little slow, having guys gelling at the beginning of the year. We played some great teams early. After the South game, that was a turning point. We made mistakes and after breaking it down we turned our season around.”
The Cougars got goals from Matt Mayewski and Alex Seamon in the loss, but it wasn’t enough against the strong offense of Steinert.
”Steinert was very good,” Steeb said. “It was a little like deja vu because we played them last year and we came out on the other end with a win. We had a plan. We wanted to keep possession and win the 50-50 balls. They had a lot of energy from their fans and motivation from last year. I was satisfied with the second half and our guys played to the last whistle. I can’t ask for more than that.
”We had nine seniors this year and the year before we had 14. This year a lot of younger guys stepped up. We had three freshmen and three sophomores on the varsity and they got time. I’m excited for next year.”

