BRHS girls soccer return core

Scotties return field players from state tourney team

By: Justin Feil – The Packet Group
Dominick Castaldo already is seeing the benefits of a season’s experience together on this year’s Bordentown Regional High School girls soccer team.
Last year, without a senior, they went 7-9-1 and reached the Group II state tournament, where they lost to Governor Livingston, 3-2.
"So far, in what we’ve done over the summer, you could see they’re a year wiser, they have a year under their belt and they’re more determined," said Castaldo, who is beginning his 27th season as the Scotties head coach. "Last year was the first year with this group that we got into the state tournament. The way things turned out last year against Governor Livingston, we had a 2-0 lead at halftime, and it was still 2-0 with 20 minutes left and we lost, 3-2. A lot of that is learning to close out a game. I think this team is wiser. I think they took their lessons well."
The Scotties open the season Sept. 9 at Riverside. Their home opener Sept. 14 could be special. It is expected to be their first home game on the new turf field.
"They’re looking forward to that," Castaldo said. "It’ll be nice since they’ve been in the new school for a while."
Expectations are higher for the team that lost only its goalie, Jess Dixon, who has chosen to focus on softball year-round. Newcomer Allyson Potts, who also plays softball, is the front-runner to replace her.
"We’ve had success in the past using softball players there," Castaldo said. "Right now, we have a girl who’s a good softball player. The biggest thing is hands and hand-eye coordination. She’s willing to be out there. Her brother used to play goal and has been working with her. We’re trying to get her as much play in as little time as we can."
The Scotties have plenty of experience with which to surround their goalie. Returning to the team are: seniors Breanna Hudik, Melanie Bakeman, Alicia Marsala, Megan Messina, Lindsay Johnson, Alyssa Donahue and Kayla Pagnani; juniors Jenna Adams, Lauren Donoher, Samantha Martinez and Olivia Geisel; sophomores Alexis McTamney, Kaylee Creegan and Kelly Yanucil. Newcomers along with Potts are sophomores Giselle Chica and Alexis Kalargheros.
"This team, for the most part, has a lot in their own hands," Castaldo said. "It depends how they respond to whatever’s thrown at them. They’re good enough to win and show that they have the ability and the talent to do it.
"I think it’s a very deep team. We have a couple goal scorers. We have players that can build the play. Most of these girls have been around me for the last two or three years in one way or another and they know what I expect and the type of game I expect. We’ll make some changes to try to make us a little more creative and exciting."
He is predicting an even better year from McTamney and Pagnani up top. They were Bordentown’s top scorers a year ago, and come back even more familiar with each other’s strengths.
Castaldo sees a hungry group in this year’s Bordentown team, one that showed promise last year as well as its youth. They have returned stronger, which has shown through the early workouts.
"So far, everything is looking good," Castaldo said. "We’re staying injury free. In the first week, sometimes you start to see a lot of injuries because they’re not in that good of shape. This group has worked hard in the offseason, over the summer. We played through the month of July at TCNJ. We played the one-day round robin at Monmouth in July."
Castaldo is cautiously optimistic that the team can remain injury free, particularly given the bad luck he has seen before.
"We had a group of girls that had been in with no seniors," he said. "They became seniors and they were ready, then all of a sudden, we had the injury bug. Four or five went down with knee injuries that needed surgery.
"The girls that were around, they got some experience because of the injuries. The experience is good, but they really have to learn how to win. Last year, that took them a long way. That last game left a bad taste in their mouth. They did everything they could to make sure they came in ready to play this year."
Castaldo is expecting a lot of the typical challenges in the Burlington County league, though it has been realigned again.
"The Burlington realignment caused us to drop to the middle group, the Freedom Division," he said. "We were in the top group before. Burlington City presents numerous problems, and we’ll have Delran and Holy Cross twice. We did keep Moorestown and Rancocas Valley on the schedule to know that we’re tested and can get ready. We need to get prepared for the state tournament.
"I’m not sure of the final make-up of the league, but we play Delran on a consistent basis. We’ve played them twice every year for almost as long as I’ve been here. They’re a tough team. They’re a little more physical, and well coached. City is another good team. A lot of people don’t know they present a lot of problems. They’ve been well coached and play within the system they’re trying to play. I think Maple Shade is in our division. It’s been a while since we played them. I know we have Holy Cross on our schedule. A lot of times when you play a parochial school that draws good players and has a good coach, they’re good games for us."
Bordentown is ready to prove it will be a tough opponent for anyone. In Castaldo, they have a coach who has coached more than 500 games in his Scotties career. He has seen it all and sees a potentially big year ahead for Bordentown.
"I feel we’re going to score goals," Castaldo said. "The biggest key for us is I feel we have to play good team defense. We have to play tight and stay disciplined and do the things we want them do. If they fall into place, we’ll be fine."