Steinert boys soccer compiles standout season

By Josh Lashley, Special Writer
When a particularly difficult and/or unfulfilled season is about to conclude, many people involved in a sports program are happy that the end is right around the corner.
    When considering the Steinert High School boys soccer team, quite the opposite is true.
    The Spartans enjoyed a considerable amount of success this fall on the pitch and the jubilation felt by the student-athletes on the roster as well as the coaching staff and fans may well linger far into the future.
    Steinert finished the season with an overall record of 14-4-3, won the Colonial Valley Conference Valley Division title and advanced to the semifinal rounds of both the Mercer County Tournament and the NJSIAA Central Jersey Group III Sectional Tournament.
    “The tone of the season was set at Hopewell, our first game of the 2014 season,” Steinert head coach Todd Jacobs said. “Our approach to the game was fantastic. The focus was there in our pre-game meeting in the classroom and continued throughout the bus ride for the night game at Hopewell on their newly installed turf field.
    “The minute the whistle sounded to start the game we were a team that was determined to walk out of there with a win. We were a team on a mission that night, and we won a hard fought game against a very good Hopewell team (2-0 score).” Coach Jacobs mentioned victories over Trenton, Princeton, Nottingham, Princeton Day School, Burlington Township and New Brunswick as being quite memorable this season as well.
    “This team brought Steinert soccer back to where it needs to be on a consistent basis,” he said. “The players were able to experience what it feels like to play in big time games. We have 11 seniors that will be moving on, but also have 17 players returning.”
    As expected when a team achieved a great deal, a number of individuals stepped to the forefront for the Spartans this year.
    “Mike Fornaro, senior sweeper, was definitely the leader,” he said. “He has been a varsity player for four years. Three out of the four he was nominated captain by his teammates. Our defense was outstanding all year. They ended the season with 11 shutouts. They shut down or limited the opportunities of the top goal scorers in the county game after game.
    “They deserve to be recognized and they will be at the end of the year banquets — goalie John Warwick and defenders captain Chance Eggert, Ryan DiChiara, Ed and Andre Michalec, along with Fornaro.”
    “Our midfielders were workhorses — Tyler Strang, Brandon Rivera, Rich Kozlowski, Dean Klemmer and Adrian Strama. Our forwards (Joe Helminger and Anthony Remboski) got stronger as the year went on. They were getting more and more dangerous as each game went by. It took them a little time to develop some chemistry with one another, but they started clicking at the right time,” the coach said. 