If they keep this up, Freehold Borough is going to have to proclaim the third Saturday in November as Girls Soccer Day.
PHOTOS BY JEFF GRANIT staff Above: Freehold Boro’s Amy Flannigan (l) and Ramapo’s JoJo Pisani go up for a head ball in the NJSIAA Group III final in Ewing. Freehold Boro went on to win 2-1 in double overtime. Left: Shannon Mayrose celebrates with Jamie Battaglia (l) and Amy Flannigan (back to camera) after scoring the winning goal against Ramapo. For the second straight year, the Colonial girls were given a police and fire escort through downtown Freehold Borough in celebration of their state championship win on Nov. 17.
Last fall, it was the school’s first-ever NJSIAA State Group championship and it mattered little that the Colonials shared it with Ramapo after the two teams played to a scoreless tie at The College of New Jersey (TCNJ).
This year, the Colonials (21-2) were more possessive of the state title and are the outright Group III state champions, after settling the score with Ramapo (16-2-4), by beating the Raiders, 2-1, on Shannon Mayrose’s golden goal in the second overtime with 4:16 remaining.
“We worked so hard for this,” said Mayrose. “It’s unbelievable. These girls are my sisters.”
Keeper Ashley Lewis said the Colonials didn’t want to settle for a co-championship this time.
“The [championship] banner at school reads co-champions,” she said. “We wanted it to read state champions this year.”
Mayrose scored both of the goals at TCNJ, taking advantage of a questionable defensive strategy by the Raiders, who were playing off the high-scoring forward, who came into the match with 28 goals on the season.
“They were giving me so much room, I realized I had to take advantage of it,” she said. “I just couldn’t sit back.”
With the Raiders giving Mayrose space, she was dominating the field of play. It was only a matter of time before she was going to strike.
Freehold Borough had been dominating play throughout the final, winning the 50/50 balls and constantly attacking. For all its control of play, however, the score remained 0-0.
It would be Allison Maresca of the Raiders who would break 140 minutes of scoreless ball between the teams scoring off a corner kick. She was in the right place at the right time to put a loose ball in the back of the net at 29:24 of the second half.
Mayrose would answer scoring on a blast from 30 yards out with 16:54 left in the match.
There was a sense of déjà vu as the teams headed into overtime. Were they destined to share the state title for a second straight year? Mayrose recalled thinking “not again” and eventually did something about it as Freehold Borough continued the overtime mastery that started last year.
Again given space to run up the field, she curved a right-to-left floater that tucked inside the far post. Just like that, the match was over and Freehold Borough was again the state champion.
“I was kind of floored,” Mayrose said of her game-winning goal. “It’s a dream, it’s crazy.”
There would have been no golden goal without the alert play of defender Simone Dixon.
Just moments before Mayrose struck, Ramapo had its best scoring chance of the overtime off a crossing pass. Lewis left the goal to punch the ball away. Dixon had the presence to back up and deflected a shot on goal.
“I didn’t want the ball to go in,” said Dixon. “The ball hit my side. I was in good position.”
It was no accident that Dixon was in the right position.
“We work on it in practice,” she added. “Alexandra [Eagle] is always telling me to get back.”
Lewis pointed out that the Colonial defense instinctively knows where to be through game experience and practice time.
Dixon has played as well as anyone on defense in the state tournament. The junior blended in well with veteran Eagle, Jenn Paulucci and Amy Flannigan.
“I didn’t play much last year,” she said. “It made me work harder.”
The same can be said for all the Colonials who beat the odds against repeating. They faced pressure from the first practice and handled it with poise and grace.
They are a unique group. They love playing soccer and they love playing with each other. But, above all, they love winning. Complacency was never a factor. They have too much pride.
First-year coach Elyze Bizzozzaro had some enormous shoes to fill in replacing a legend in Heshy Moses. It was a no win situation
for the former Manalapan High School great, but she accepted the challenge, held the team together and left her own imprint on it.
“It’s incredible, absolutely incredible,” she said. “There are no words to describe it.”
The Colonials will have nine starters returning next year, including Mayrose, Eagle and Lewis.
“We’ll try to do it again,” said Lewis.
The legacy of this Freehold Borough run isn’t complete. As Lewis pointed out, they will have nine starters returning next year as they look to build on their magnificent record of the last two years where they have gone 42-3-1. The Colonials mark the last three years is 56-5-2.