A tough loss in double overtime could not diminish the shining boys’ soccer season that was achieved at Bordentown Regional High School this autumn.
Bordentown’s season came to a close when the Scotties were eliminated from the South Jersey, Group 2 state sectional tournament by Manasquan High School on Nov. 5.
Bordentown ended the year with a 15-4-3 record.
Manasquan pulled out a 1-0 victory over Bordentown in the state sectional semifinals on a rainy day in Bordentown.
After fourth-seeded Manasquan and top-seeded Bordentown were scoreless after 80 minutes of play, the teams were forced into a double overtime period.
Manasquan ended the marathon when defender Tim Wheat headed in a goal from a corner kick in the 89th minute to gain the victory.
The victory moved Manasquan (14-6-2) into the South Jersey, Group 2 sectional final against Delran (16-5-1) in Delran on Nov. 8. Delran defeated third-seeded Haddonfield (14-7), 4-2, in the semifinals on Nov. 5.
Meanwhile the defeat ended the Scotties’ playoff run, which featured shutout victories against Point Pleasant Borough and Pleasantville in the first two state tournament games.
In the loss to Manasquan, Bordentown remained alive due to the solid play in goal from Stratos Gromitsaris, who recorded eight saves.
Manasquan goalie Joe Weinstein who shined, including a double-save effort in the final minutes of regulation to push the game into overtime.
Bordentown coach Jason Zablow praised the goalie play on both sides.
“Both keepers made some ridiculous saves and credit to their guy for finishing one late,” said Zablow. “Their goalie stood on his head a couple times late for them.”
In the closely contested matchup, both teams found it difficult to provide a promising through-ball or quick break for a scoring opportunity, which made set-pieces more pivotal moments throughout the game.
Setting up multiple scoring opportunities throughout the game was forward, Kevin Cryan, who led the Scotties this season with 14 goals, and Aiden Hoenisch, who looked to connect with Cryan having led the team with six assists.
Although Cryan drove in hard, direct kicks from set pieces that kept the Warriors defenders at constant alert, the Scotties couldn’t break through.
With the game-deciding goal coming off a corner kick, Zablow expected that Manasquan would be a test.
“We knew that they were going to be an organized team. They were going to be big and physical and athletic,” said Zablow. “We talked about winning the set-piece battles. We had to get more deep throw-ins, we had to get more set-pieces and we had to get more corners. In the end, they had a couple more and scored off of one.”
Despite the defeat, Zablow was proud of his squad.
“We only have five seniors on our team, and at points, we only had two seniors healthy, so there were a bunch of times where we had six freshmen and sophomores combined on the field,” said Zablow. “For these guys to battle to a 15-win season, to make the coach’s tournament and to make it to the sectional semifinal – I’m proud of them for maximizing their potential and just battling every day no matter who they had playing with them.”