By Bob Nuse, Sports Editor
The Hun School girls’ soccer team came into the season knowing it was going to have to overcome some injuries to key players in order to be successful.
If their first two games are any indication, the Raiders look like they will be just fine.
Hun opened the season with a 2-1 victory over Ewing before improving to 2-0 with a 3-1 decision over the George School on Tuesday. Bryonna Worthy scored all three goals in the triumph over George. Worthy and Nicole Angelini scored in the verdict over Ewing, while Livia Kooker and Leah Sutphen have shared the decisions in goal.
“So far we have,” Hun coach Joanna Hallac said of dealing with pre-season injuries that have kept some key players out of the lineup. “It has definitely been a challenge and it is not the ideal situation. But we have been finding a way. We have some young and relatively inexperienced kids at the level we are playing. They are working hard and are giving us what we need off the bench and we are making it work.”
Worthy, who led the team last season with nine goals, already has four in the first two games this season. But the key to the season for the Raiders has been a defense that has come together quicker than Hallac may have imagined.
“Kendall Dandridge is a senior captain and a four-year starter,” Hallac said. “We had to move her inside to center back last year but we have been able to move her back to an outside back position this year which is better for her. We have two new players at center back. Junior Brenna Wehner is a transfer from Notre Dame and we also have a freshman, Amanda Jenkins. Both are doing an outstanding job. Our other outside back is Olivia McNulty.
“So we have experience with the outside backs and the inside backs are starting to get more comfortable. They are doing a tremendous job. Once we get to the middle of the season we could be a very strong defensive team. Leah Sutphen and Livia Kooker are two outstanding goalkeepers and they have been splitting time.”
Even with some key players out of the lineup, the Raiders look like a deep enough team to be successful this season.
“We have a solid starting lineup and subs that are athletic enough and doing enough to help us get through these games,” said Hallac, whose team was scheduled to face Princeton Day School on Thursday. “It is kind of a patchwork situation trying kids at different spots, but we are getting what we need. Bryonna has been productive up top and our back four is a really solid back line. And both of our goalkeepers are really good.
“Hopefully (Worthy) keeps finding her rhythm and producing. Without Kara (Borden) it takes away a major scoring threat. But we have been making it work. Nicole Angelini and Nicole Apuzzi in the center midfield are both dangerous players. They have been able to help offset some of the injuries.”
While the Hun girls’ soccer team has gotten off to a quick start, the Hun boys’ soccer squad has come up short in their first two games of the season. The Raiders opened the season with a 3-0 loss to West Windsor-Plainsboro South before falling to Springside Chesnut Hill Academy, 5-2, on Tuesday.
“We have to build off the positives,” Hun coach Pat Quirk said after Tuesday’s loss. “I thought we played a really solid first half and maybe 10-15 minutes into the second half we were doing well. We weren’t able to bounce back when we faced some adversity and that is something we are working on with them.”
Hun led, 2-1, in the first half thanks to a pair of goals by Alex Peeters. But the Raiders wore down in the second half and we outscored, 4-0, down the stretch.
“We’re a small team, numbers wise,” Quirk said. “We have some guys who are hurt that we are hoping will come back. We are relatively young. We have a strong junior class and some talented sophomores.”
The schedule to open the season is a tough one that didn’t get any easier as the Raiders were scheduled to face Academy of New Church of Pennsylvania on Thursday and will face Archbishop Curley of Maryland on Sunday at Malvern Prep in the Mainline High School Jamboree in Malvern, Pa.
“We always jump right in,” Quirk said of the schedule. “It’s a quick pre-season to try to get the guys ready and it has only been a couple of games and we’re trying to sort some stuff out.”
