FHS - Girls Soccer Schedule

[Marc LeVine]

Another possible FB champion...

2006 - 2007 Soccer

Girls Varsity


Sat 09/09 Away Neptune High School
-- 10:00AM -- -- --

Mon 09/11 Home Matawan Regional HS / MS
-- 3:45PM -- -- --

Mon 09/11 Home ***Cancelled-Holmdel High School
-- 3:45PM -- -- --

Tue 09/12 Home Long Branch High School
-- 4:00PM -- -- --

Sat 09/16 Away Ocean Township High School
-- 10:00AM -- -- --

Tue 09/19 Home Monmouth Regional High School
-- 3:45PM -- -- --

Thu 09/21 Away Matawan Regional HS / MS
-- 7:00PM -- -- --

Fri 09/22 Home Wall High School
-- 3:30PM -- -- --

Fri 09/22 Home Wall High School
-- 3:30PM -- -- --

Tue 09/26 Home Neptune High School
-- 3:45PM -- -- --

Thu 09/28 Away Long Branch High School
-- 4:00PM -- -- --

Tue 10/03 Home Ocean Township High School
-- 3:45PM -- -- --

Thu 10/05 Away Monmouth Regional High School
-- 3:45PM -- -- --

Tue 10/10 Away Wall High School
-- 7:00PM -- -- --

Tue 10/10 Away Wall High School
-- 7:00PM -- -- --

Thu 10/12 Away ***Postponed to 10/16/2006 - Saint John Vianney High School
-- 3:45PM -- -- --

Sat 10/14 Away ***Postponed to TBA - Freehold Township High School
-- 2:30PM -- -- --

Mon 10/16 Away Saint John Vianney High School
-- 3:45PM -- -- --

Wed 10/18 Home Howell High School
-- 3:45PM -- -- --

Fri 10/20 Home ***Postponed to 10/21/2006 - SCT vs Southern
-- 3:00PM -- -- --

Sat 10/21 Home SCT vs Southern
-- 3:00PM -- -- --

Mon 10/23 Home ***Postponed to TBA - Pinelands Regional High School
-- 3:45PM -- -- --

Wed 10/25 Away SCT semi vs. Middletown North at Neptune
-- 5:00PM -- -- --

Sat 10/28 Away SCT final vs. RBC at Neptune
-- 5:00PM -- -- --

[glow=red,2,300]REMAINING BIG GAME

Thu 11/02 Home State Tourney vs. Princeton
-- 2:00PM -- -- -- [/glow]

[Freehold Resident]

Colonials state their case with SCT win
Freehold Borough girls are Shore's best after beating RBC
BY TIM MORRIS
Staff Writer

With the Shore Conference Tournament trophy secure under his arm and feeling light as a feather, Heshy Moses took stock of what his girls had just accomplished.

His Freehold Borough soccer team had provided him with one more special moment in this, his final year on the sidelines. Their 2-0 win over Red Bank Catholic Saturday night at Neptune High School's Memorial Field left no doubt as what team is the best in the Shore.

"This ranks with anything I've done," said Moses. "I wasn't sure if they would play up to their potential, but they have.

"I've always said high school soccer isn't about who has the most skill, it's about who has the most heart, and my girls have that," he added.

Alyssa Mayrose, who scored the game-winning goal just 55 seconds into the game, agreed with her coach.

"This team leaves everything on the field," she said. "This is a huge accomplishment. Everyone underestimated us. We wanted this. I'm so proud of the team. No one was going to take it away from us."

Not with a team that takes giving up a goal personally and contests every shot. When someone does get through, in goalie Ashley Lewis they trust. The sophomore collected her 16th shutout of the year in the SCT final and was again clearly a difference maker, coming up with what are becoming routine saves for her, but sensational for others.

After the Colonials (17-1) had upended No. 2 seed Middletown North in the semifinals on Oct. 25, Moses told his team if they scored one goal on Saturday, they'd win. Neither he nor anyone else would have thought it would only take 55 seconds. But that's all it took for Mayrose to knock in a rebound off an Alexa Rozzi shot that Casey goalie Christy Osborn couldn't handle cleanly.

"Coach keeps telling me to get into the box and tonight, it paid off," said Mayrose.

Before the first half was over, sweeper Alexandra Eagle, again following the dictates of her coach, put the game out of reach, putting in a header off Amy Flanagan's well-placed corner kick.

"I'm not really a scorer," she said. "Since last year, coach has been telling me to go up for corner kicks on offense and head the ball.

"I didn't think about it, I just headed it, and it went in," she added about her goal at 37:39 that put the Colonials up 2-0.

The two first-half goals were a very bad sign for the Caseys (13-4-1), who were playing with the strong blustery wind to their backs. If they couldn't dent the Colonial defense with the aid of the wind, what were they going to do against the best defense in the Shore without it? Answer, nothing.

The Caseys did have some chances in the first half, but Lewis was always there. At the 21:00 mark, she absolutely stoned RBC's Fran Yaccarine, who had gotten through to the goal box only to have her shot stopped by a diving Lewis.

Eagle said the Colonials' success on defense (they did not allow a goal in four SCT games) was the result of a total team commitment by everyone. For the defenders themselves, she noted, "We stay without marks and we communicate." She added that it's always nice knowing they have Lewis to clean up any mistakes.

This was the second SCT crown for the Borough girls. They last won it in 1997.

"From the freshmen to the seniors, this is special," said Mayrose. "Last year was a disappointment for us and this has been one of our goals since the start of the season. We deserve it. It feels great."

Freehold reached the final by beating A North Division champion Middletown North, 1-0, in its semifinal.

It was the opportunistic Jenn

Paulucci, who scored the golden goal in a 1-0 overtime win against Wall earlier in the season, who converted a feed from Alyssa Mayrose, just 7:50 into the second half.

The play began with Mayrose winning a 50-50 ball and racing up the right sideline, taking the Lion defense with her.

"I saw Alyssa beat her girl on the sideline and was looking to set a screen for her," said Paulucci. "She passed it to me and I put it in with my left foot."

Mayrose has hooked up with Paulucci before and knew to look for her.

"I just saw Jenn running up the field and passed it to her," said Mayrose.

Freehold had what would be the only goal of the match, but the Colonials were far from out of danger.

The Lions showed why they were the top-ranked team in the Shore for much of the season when they began a barrage on Lewis in the final 20:00, led by Julie Lancos. Lewis, as she has all year, was up to the task, deflected shots, racing out of the goal to smother through passes, and when all else failed, do her best Patrick Roy impression making a kick save.

"I saw the ball going by me and I just kicked it," said Lewis of the scramble play in front of the goal.

It's now on to the states for the Colonials. They are the No. 1 seed in Central Jersey Group III and will have the luxury of playing every game at home. The Colonials will begin play tomorrow against the winner of the Princeton-Monroe game.

[Marc LeVine]

[glow=red,2,300]Freehold Boro ends Princeton’s season [/glow]

GEORGEO’GORMAN, Staff Writer
11/03/2006

FREEHOLD -- There were the customary teary eyes once the final whistle sounded.

But they didn’t last long.

Instead of lamenting the bad luck they experienced in a 1-0 loss to top-seed Freehold Boro in the second round of the Central Jersey Group III girls soccer tournament, Greg Hand and his Princeton High girls had a lot to be proud of as they closed out a very rewarding 10-7-1 season.

It took a goal kicked in among a group of players inches from the net for newly-crowned Shore Conference champ Freehold Boro to finally survive a gutty effort by a young Little Tigers team that did its best to enhance the reputation of Colonial Valley Conference girls soccer.

Alysa Mayrose scored the only goal in a game marked by solid defense and a few missed shots by Princeton that could have broken this game open early.

The win earns Freehold Boro a Monday date with another CVC team -- Valley Division champ Hightstown, which won a 2-1 classic at No. 4-seed Moorestown.

"I’m so proud of these girls. They fought so hard to try to get us seniors one more game," said Tigers’ sweeper Merle Redding, who closed a great career with an inspired performance on the back line.

"I put all my heart into this game because I didn’t want it to be my last," said Redding, who made a final play that typified the intensity she showed during her career when she took a hard spill in the last seconds but still crawled several yards to clear a ball from Princeton’s back line.

"We all left it on the field and played with such heart because we didn’t want to see this end. It was so inspiring and showed why we’re so close, like a family," said Redding. "We knew we had to risk it all. Risk your body, risk your sould so we’d play again."

Princeton won’t play again until next season ... and what a season that could be based on how well the underclassmen who played yesterday performed in a high-pressure match.

Junior goalie Mary McNutt had her best game yet, diving all over the goalmouth to punch, kick or tip away shots she could not catch. In one sequence late in the first half she kick-saved a low shot at the right post, then ran to the other post to push out an seemingly sure goal created by a long crossing pass.

"That was the best I’ve ever seen her play, practice or game. She stepped it up so much," said co-captain Redding. "I didn’t know she had it in her to make any of those great saves."

The inspired play of Redding and McNutt was matched all over the pitch by girls like Carly Edgcomb who controlled midfield for long periods, Olivia Johnston and Hannah Deming who shut down Colonial runs down the flanks, and freshmen Emma Karp and Chantal Celestin who put plenty of pressure on Boro goalie Ashley Lewis.

Princeton’s best chance came late as Deming put a ball from the deep left corner off the crossbar. It was sent back to the middle of the goalmouth where Edgcomb’s first-time 6-yard shot was deflected over the crossbar.

"Freehold is very talented, but our girls fought every step of the way," said coach Greg Hand, who knew the experience his girls got playing in the strong CVC and against the likes of Pennington got them ready to be a contender once NJSIAA play began.

"I think Princeton soccer came a long way this year, and the talent and mentality of the team developed so well that we were able to match Freehold all the way. Mary (McNutt) made some great decisions and kept us in the game the entire way."

The same can be said about the other Little Tigers, who played so well this loss wasn’t that hard to swallow because it indicates the future should be even better.

Princeton (10-7-1) 00 -- 0

Freehold Boro (18-1-0) 01 -- 1

Goal: Mayrose. Shots: P-14, F-14. Saves: P-McNutt 9; F-Lewis 7.

[Freehold Resident]

NJSIAA GIRLS SOCCER
Freehold hits its mark

Rozzi, Mayrose supply offense for Colonials
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 11/7/06
STAFF REPORT

At the start of the season, Freehold coach Heshy Moses set three goals for his team: making a run at the Shore Conference Class B North title, faring better in the Shore Conference Tournament and bettering its fate in the NJSIAA Tournament.

After Monday's 2-1 come-from-behind Central Jersey Group III semifinal victory in overtime over Hightstown, the division- and conference-champion Colonials have officially reached all three goals. The Colonials, who were knocked out in a sectional quarterfinal a year ago, will play host to Hopewell Valley on Thursday in the championship game.

Alyssa Mayrose netted the winner with a 20-yard direct kick at 95:40. Alexa Rozzi had tied it at 51:19, when she made a diagonal run on a ball from Amy Flanagan and popped it over the keeper's head before colliding with her.

"It was a big goal for Alexa," Moses said. "The keeper is a big girl, about 6-foot and Alexa is pretty small, but she kept running right through without any fear."

[Freehold Resident]

Princeton Packet

PHS girls give No. 1 a scare
By: Justin Feil, Assistant Sports Editor
11/07/2006

Little Tigers turnaround year ends

Freehold Boro came away with a win over the Princeton High School girls' soccer team Thursday, but the Central Jersey Group III top seed certainly knew how hard they had to work for it.

"It was our team's best game of the season," said PHS head coach Greg Hand after the 1-0 loss. "We were aware we were playing the No. 1 seed. The girls really wanted to win. They wanted to advance. I think it was a terrific effort to do that. It's a tribute to the girls that they believed that their best effort would give them a chance to move on."

The Little Tigers end their season at 10-7-1 record, but it was a far cry from last year's four-win season. PHS ultimately earned the No. 9 seed for the CJ III tournament and topped No. 8 Monroe before falling at the hands of No. 1 Freehold.

"The girls just wanted to become as good as they could," Hand said. "It wasn't just in terms of their skills and tactics and so on. They went through a process as every team does of working out team values and just considering what they would have to do to become their best. One of the best things about this year is the girls worked so hard to figure out how to be a great team."

Striving for that goal never ended until the final whistle Thursday. PHS had its chances, but like many teams before it had discovered, it found Freehold equal to the task.

"We definitely sent some good serves across the face of the goal," Hand said. "We almost got a couple of finishes. Certainly, we did our share of ball winning and playing the ball forward to our attacking third.

"It was far and away the team's best defensive effort of the year in all parts of the field. Defenders did an excellent job with Freehold's forwards through the midfield where we did a lot of ball winning. Up top, we tried to keep the pressure on their defense, which came in with 13 shutouts already. The girls stayed focused and played with more composure and tenacity than they have all season."

They were spurred on by the usually vocal PHS parents contingent which made the trip to Freehold.

They gave the Little Tigers a boost and witnessed the final game for four Little Tigers seniors who were key parts of the turnaround this season.

"Coach (Jason) Carter put it well at the end of the game," Hand said. "He said the seniors were critical to leading the team to that second round of states. They set a great example. Merle (Reading) and Dani (Vildostegui) got better and better as this season went along at figuring out how to motivate the team.

"Chelsea (Wittman), who's a senior, didn't play in goal today, but gave us great work throughout the year. Zanna (Crowley) had her best game of the season today when we needed everyone's best. Dani has been picking it up a notch in the last phase of the season, doing a lot of ball winning against a lot of tough midfielders and forwards. Merle was just a dynamo in the back today and inspired everybody."

They leave behind a team that now knows how good its best can be. It wasn't quite good enough to top Freehold on Thursday, but it serves as the base for next season.

"It may be far away, but given the way today's game went, there was a sense of being anxious to come back and try to take the next step," Hand said. "These girls developed a lot of heart and more of a winning mentality as the season went along. They learned a lot from the losses. They learned a lot from the close contests, whether they were wins or losses."



©PACKETONLINE News Classifieds Entertainment Business - Princeton and Central New Jersey 2006

[Marc LeVine]

Colonials advance in CJ behind Mayrose's goal
Freehold Borough advances to section semifinals
BY TIM MORRIS
Staff Writer



Fortress Freehold held firm once again and the Freehold Borough girls soccer team is one match away from playing for the Central Jersey Group III championship on Friday.

The top-seeded Colonials got a scare from No. 8 seed Princeton on Thursday, needing a late goal from Alyssa Mayrose to escape with a 1-0 win.

The Freehold defense, anchored by goalie Ashley Lewis and the relentless play of Alexandra Eagle, Amy Flanagan and Nikkie Paulucci, held the visiting Tigers in check while Freehold failed to cash in on one chance after another on long throw-ins by Mayrose and corner kicks from Flanagan.

"We played to their level in the first half," said coach Heshy Moses. "We didn't play the ball to the field enough. We were playing it in the air. We played better in the second half.

"I thought we controlled play, but they [Princeton] started to believe they could win," he added. "That's what happens when you don't put a team away."

The Colonials could well have been suffering championship hangover. The CJ III quarterfinal was their first game since winning the SCT final, one of the biggest wins in school history. Moses thought it only natural that the team would have a letdown after beating Red Bank Catholic, 2-0, on Oct. 28 in the SCT title game.

After squandering all those first-half opportunities and keeping the Tigers in the match, the Colonials finally struck when Flanagan served up a perfect direct kick from the right side. Caity Kane won control of the ball, and her crossing pass in front of the goal was put in by Mayrose, who was following up the play in the box. She knocked it in with 12:30 left in the match.

Flanagan's direct kicks and corner kicks have been a big part of the Colonials' arsenal this fall.

"She puts the ball exactly where it should be put between the 12- and 6-yards," said Moses. "Goalies don't know whether to come out or stay."

Fortress Freehold was rock solid, as it has been all year. It was only in the last five minutes when the Tigers moved everyone upfield to try and generate some offense, that they were able to attack the Colonials' goal. But, as has been the case in 17 of the 19 games played by Freehold, they couldn't put the ball in the back of the net. When she wasn't making a save, Lewis was leaving the goal to break up through-balls and crossing passes.

"When we don't give up a goal, we win," said Moses.

Freehold Borough, now 18-1 for the season, hosted Monday's semifinal against Hightstown, the fifth seed that knocked off No. 4 Moorestown. If the Colonials won, as the No. 1 seed they will host the sectional final tomorrow afternoon at 2 p.m.

Freehold is turning the retiring Moses' final season into the special campaign his players wanted for him. With two championships already won, they have something going for them. They have been able to keep teams off the scoreboard and at the same time, finding a way to score that one goal that is the difference. It won't be a surprise if Freehold Borough is playing at home tomorrow afternoon for the Central Jersey title.

Colts Neck, Freehold Township and Manalapan all qualified in Central Jersey Group IV.

Colts Neck made its Group IV debut an impressive one, toppling Jackson, the fifth seed, 2-1. Kassie Jordan's restart kicks were the difference, setting up both goals for the 12th-seed Cougars. Her first indirect kick was put into the net by Gabby Haden with just over seven minutes remaining in regulation to tie the game. In the second overtime, her kick from near midfield was headed in by Kim Campfield, advancing the Cougars to the round of 16 and a third meeting with A North champion Middletown North, the fourth seed.

The third time was not the charm for the Cougars, as the Lions scored a 2-0 win in Middletown. Colts Neck finished the season 10-6-3.

Manalapan, which finished its regular season on a roll, won its first-round match at South Brunswick. The Braves rode Lindsay Berman's goal, assisted by Amy Carhart, at 35:11 to the 1-0 win. This was a wide open game with Manalapan out-shooting the Vikings 20-16. Cassie Dipaolo stopped 13 shots to get the shutout for Manalapan.

The Braves then traveled to Steinert in Hamilton Township and fell 6-0 in the round of 16 to finish the season at 10-8.

Freehold Township saw its fine run end in the round of 16 at East Brunswick, falling 4-0 to the host Bears. The Patriots were 8-6-3 this year.

[Marc LeVine]

GROUP III FREEHOLD 1, SHAWNEE 0
Freehold's Shannon Mayrose "golden"
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 11/15/06
BY NEIL SCHUMAN
STAFF WRITER

TOMS RIVER — It was a rare sight, as Shannon Mayrose waved her hand in exhaustion with about 5 minutes left in regulation, very much in need of a rest.

Chalk it up to the non-stop outpouring of energy she displayed throughout the course of the game without the benefit of any such breathers. But once overtime began, with her batteries recharged, Mayrose was in position to deliver the latest in a series of monumental goals for Freehold. Heading in Amy Flanagan's corner kick 1:53 into overtime, Mayrose scored the golden goal that sealed the deal for the Colonials in a 1-0 NJSIAA Group III semifinal victory over South Jersey champion Shawnee on Tuesday evening at Toms River North's Gernerd Field.

"It was hard for me to breathe, but after I came out I realized how much I love this team and how much I would give up for them," said Mayrose, a sophomore midfielder. "I told coach that I wanted back in and from there, there was no looking back."

Freehold (21-1) will attempt to send off retiring coach Heshy Moses in triumphant fashion on Saturday at noon when it takes on Ramapo at The College of New Jersey for the overall Group III title.

"We don't call it overtime," Moses said. "We call it our time. Our kids played extremely well. We had a lot of close chances. People have to remember that Shannon is only a sophomore and that once she's a senior, she's going to be incredible."

Mayrose and her sister, senior captain Alyssa Mayrose, a forward, kept peppering Shawnee keeper Khristina Lucas with one hard shot after another, as they took turns feeding each other for what seemed like an inevitable breakthrough score.

Meanwhile, the Colonials defensive unit combined to frustrate yet another potent attack. Renegades (15-4-3) junior Barbara Previ, a major scoring threat, found herself under the watchful eye of Shannon Mayrose and Flanagan, which limited her chances to contribute. Just under four minutes into the second half, Alyssa fed Shannon for a blast that Lucas punched up against the football crossbar. A minute later, Shannon got a head on Alyssa's throw-in and sent a screamer toward the far post, on which Lucas made a diving save. She hit her head on the post, causing a cut that forced her out of the game for about 7 minutes.

Freehold's tough defensive play insulated keeper Ashley Lewis for most of the game, but when the time came for a tough save, she was ready. With about 10 minutes left in the second half, Shawnee's Courtney Lazos sent a free kick off the crossbar. Quinn Daly gathered the rebound and sent it back at Lewis from point-blank range. But the sophomore caught it, helping her to preserve her 19th shutout of the season. "It's pretty much an instinctive kind of thing," Lewis said. "I just had to make that one save."

[Marc LeVine]

By MARK ZIMMARO
Burlington County Times

TOMS RIVER — The look of disappointment couldn't escape the faces of the Shawnee Renegades.

After achieving a laundry list full of accomplishments this season with a talented and close-knit group, the Shawnee High School girls soccer team couldn't help but shed a few tears after being defeated by Freehold Boro, 1-0, last night in the Group 3 state semifinals.

“This was a great group of kids, a real special group,” Renegades coach Drew Wagner said. “I hate to see them go. I wanted more for them and I wanted to see them go a lot further.”

The most disappointing revelation of the night was the fact that the Renegades won't get the chance to suit up and take the field one more time this year. Freehold Boro earned that right thanks to Shannon Mayrose's goal 1:53 into the first overtime.

After a questionable call just outside the right side of the Renegades' penalty area, the Colonials were awarded a free kick and Mayrose charged into the crossing pass from Amy Flanagan and headed the ball home to earn the Colonials a date with Ramapo in the Group 3 state finals on Saturday.

“We didn't follow our marks on that play,” Shawnee senior defender Katie Nichols said. “We should have gotten a head on that ball and cleared it but we didn't. We thought we had it covered but (Mayrose) got open by the back post.”

It was one of only a few good scoring chances either team was able to register in a strong defensive battle. Both teams combined for just seven shots on goal.

“I thought we played pretty well,” Wagner said. “We just didn't win the balls in the air and that ended up hurting us. (Freehold) was very strong in the air. You have to give them credit for that.''


Shawnee's best scoring chance came with just over 12 minutes left in regulation. Courtney Lazos' free kick from 35 yards out caught a piece of Freehold keeper Ashley Lewis's hand and glanced off the crossbar. The rebound came out to Shawnee's Quinn Daly about chest high but she was unable to get a solid touch on the loose ball.

It was one of the few chances that Freehold Boro, which recorded its 19th shutout of the season, allowed.

“We should have been able to score one or two goals early in the game,” Nichols said. “They were a tough team but I thought we would be able to score.''

The loss dropped the Renegades to 14-5-3, but not before they won the Olympic Conference Patriot Division and won their first sectional title in nine years.

“This was the best season ever,” Shawnee junior midfielder Brittany Balentine said. “Even though we didn't win tonight we still had a lot of accomplishments. It's sad that the season is over now but hopefully we will have an even stronger team next year.

“We will miss all the seniors on this team a lot, but we have a good talented bunch of juniors and sophomores coming back next year so hopefully we can get back here again.”

E-Mail: MARK ZIMMARO

[Marc LeVine]

Hopewell loses final in OT to golden goal
By: Tim Falls, Sports Editor
11/16/2006
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GIRLS SOCCER



Kim Fearnbach would have needed superpowers to stop the shot that won the NJSIAA Central Jersey Group III Final.

Hopewell Valley Central High School's junior goalie dove to her right after a sudden shot in overtime, but the ball arced away from her and into the net for the golden goal as top-seeded Freehold Boro defeated Hopewell, 1-0 in the sectional final.

"There was nothing I could do," said Fearnbach. "Maybe, if I was superwoman, I could have stopped it."

The game-winner came with seven minutes left in the first period of overtime when Freehold Boro's Shannon Mayrose ripped a shot from over 25-yards out on a quick give-and-go.

Mayrose's goal even earned admiration from the Bulldogs, who described it as beautiful and perfectly placed.

Fearnbach may have needed the ability to fly to stop the golden goal in overtime, but the junior goalie did defy gravity a little late in the second half as she tipped another blast by Mayrose over the crossbar to force overtime.

"Kim was incredible," said Hopewell senior Sam Germano. "Kim's always incredible."

Fearnbach recorded five saves for Hopewell, which led the top-seed in shots, 10-7.

The Bulldogs generated a lot of offense against Freehold Boro and controlled much of the play.

"We had some opportunities to score and we didn't," said Hopewell coach John McGinley. "I thought we were going to get one. We put so much pressure on them, I really thought we'd get one in overtime."

Leah Kulp had the Hopewell's best opportunity in the second half with a close-in shot soaring over the crossbar.

With all the offense Hopewell had, it seemed like the Bulldogs were ready to upset the top-seed. Hopewell had its share of upsets this season. The third-seeded Bulldogs upset second-seeded Wall, 2-0, in the sectional semifinal, and had edged Pennington, a higher-seed, in the Mercer County Tournament. Unfortunately for Hopewell, the top seed in both tournaments, Freehold Boro and Steinert, prevailed in the finals.

"We gave everything we had," said Germano, "and that's something we can be proud of when we walk off the field."

As much Hopewell's offense tried, a physical and aggressive Freehold Boro defense managed to record its 18th shutout of the season as the Colonials improved to 20-1.

"It was a really physical game," said Germano. "It's always physical against the physical against the Shore Conference teams and it's always physical in states."

Germano had to play an extremely physical game as she contested with Freehold Boro's Mayrose through most of the game.

Mayrose barreled through Germano just outside the penalty box in the first half in a hit more fitting for a football field. Despite objections from Hopewell's coaches and fans crying for a penalty, play continued setting the tone for more physical confrontations.

It got a little more violent in the second half, when Mayrose punched at Germano as the two got up after the Hopewell senior slide-tackled the ball and brought down the Freehold Boro sophomore. Again, that flagrant foul went unpunished, though the official did take a moment to talk to both players.

With the way the two teams were playing it looked like a penalty kick would decide the game. Whether that penalty kick came in a shootout after the two teams played to a scoreless tie or if it came as a result of a foul was hard to tell.

"It was a very physical game," said McGinley. "I would have liked a penalty kick. I though we should have had a few."

Hopewell didn't shy away from the contact. The Bulldog's defense of Margi Emhof, Arrielle Wolfe and Gina Colati played aggressively throughout the game, while players like Rosie Rarich and Ali Newman won many 50-50 balls at midfield.

While Freehold Boro won out in the end, and Hopewell had an emotional moment after game, the Bulldogs were able to take pride in a very successful season.

"I think we played really hard," said Germano. "We're a family. This has been my favorite year of high school because all these girls are amazing."

[Marc LeVine]

Colonials ride overtime magic to Group III final
Mayrose's goal beats Shawnee in state semifinal
BY TIM MORRIS
Staff Writer




PHOTOS BY CHRIS KELLY staff Above, Freehold's Alexa Rozzi collides with a Shawnee player during their Nov. 14 Group II semifinal game at Toms River South High School. Below, Freehold's Alyssa Mayrose tries to advance the ball up the field.

Heshy Moses, fittingly, coached his final game at Freehold Borough in the state championship finals.

In a season in which the Colonial girls wanted to win one for Moses and make school history themselves, Freehold Borough again rode overtime heroics to a 1-0 win on Nov. 14 at Toms River North High School in the NJSIAA State Group III semifinal against Shawnee.

For the second straight match, it was Shannon Mayrose who delivered the golden goal in overtime, heading in a perfectly placed restart kick from Amy Flanagan.

Mayrose's goal, just 1:53 into the first overtime, put the Colonials in the State Group title game for just the second time in school history (the last time was 2001). The state final was played Nov. 18 at The College of New Jersey (after the News Transcript deadline).




No matter what happened, Moses had high praise for his 21-1 squad, which has matched the school record for championships in a season with three - Shore Conference B North Division, Shore Conference Tournament and Central Jersey Group III.

"They're not the most talented team I've had, but they've come as close to their potential as any," he said. "And they have more heart."

The Group semifinal followed a script that the Colonials have been writing throughout the tournament: owning overtime. They bested Hightstown, 2-1, on Alyssa Mayrose's golden goal in the Central Jersey Group III semi-finals. It was Shannon Mayrose striking in overtime in the sectional final against Hopewell Valley, a 1-0 Colonial win.

"Overtime, we feel it's our time," said Moses, whose team has not lost an overtime match this fall, including two thrillers with Wall during the regular season. "They just don't believe they're going to lose."

Freehold dominated South Jersey champion Shawnee for most of the match. Keeping the ball on the ground, as was part of their strategy, they continually moved up the field in waves. Alexa Rozzi and the Mayrose sisters all tested Shawnee goalie Kristen Lucas, but she kept coming up with the save. One save, early in the second half, put her on the sidelines for a few minutes. She made a diving save on a Shannon Mayrose header and hit her head on the post, opening up a cut that had to be mended. When she returned to action, she was just as effective as before.




The Colonials' best scoring chance had actually come just seconds before that save when Shannon Mayrose unloaded a scorching shot from 30 yards out that Lucas got a finger tip on and deflected off the cross bar. Rozzi, following up the shot, was not able to get enough power on her rebound shot, and Lucas recovered in time.

Many of the Colonial opportunities came off corner kicks and direct kicks by Flanagan and long throw-ins by Alyssa Mayrose.

"My kids played hard and we had a lot of close calls," noted Moses.

Shawnee, however, would start to counter-attack in the final 15 minutes of the match, led by Barbara Previ, and see its one opportunity to steal the win smothered by Colonial goalie Ashley Lewis.

Because of the play of the Colonial defense, led by Alexandra Eagles, Flanagan and Kim Bauernfeind, Lewis isn't tested very often during a match, but when she is, she shows why she is an exceptional goalie.

Shawnee's best chance in regulation came with 12:00 left. It was a 20-yard blast by Courtney Lazos that Lewis got her out-stretched hand on. The ball caromed off the cross bar into the goal mouth, where Quinn Daly was waiting to put in the rebound. But Lewis had other ideas.

"I had to be the first one to the ball," she explained.

A diving Lewis was able to smother Daly's shot, and the Colonials could breathe a little easier.

The Renegades should have known they were playing into the Colonials' hands when the match went into overtime.

Just 1:53 in, the Colonials had a direct kick from just outside the right-side 18-yard line.

Flanagan served up a beauty that Shannon Mayrose ran onto and headed inside the far post for the goal that put the Colonials in the state final.

"I treated it like a corner kick," said Flanagan.

"I told Shannon to run onto it."

Mayrose followed Flanagan's advice, and the Colonials were headed to the state finals.

"There are no words to described her [Amy]," said Mayrose.

"Shannon has been huge," said Moses. "She is a sophomore. She'll be incredible when she's a senior. Alyssa is already going to college for basketball and a lot of players in that situation wouldn't even come out for their senior year. She has given me everything she has.

"My defense, what can I say, they've had 19 shutouts," he added.

A 20th would bring the Colonials a state title and officially make them the best team in school history.

Moses would deserve to go out no other way than coaching Freehold's finest.

[Marc LeVine]

Colonials get their share of a state championship
Freehold Boro girls play 0-0 tie in state final
BY TIM MORRIS
Staff Writer




MIGUEL JUAREZ staff Freehold Borough's Alyssa Mayrose fires a ball at the net during the Group IIIfinal in Ewing on Nov. 18.

The silent bus trip back to Freehold Borough said everything about the Colonial girls' soccer team that made them a state champion.

"The bus ride told you a lot about my kids," said coach Heshy Moses. "They were crying. You'd have thought we'd lost.

"I told them, 'You won four championships,' " he added. "They're the best team that ever played in the school. You beat every other team's records."

The Colonials didn't feel like record-breakers on Nov. 18 after playing Ramapo to a 0-0 draw on the carpeted pitch of The College of New Jersey in the NJSIAA State Group III final. The scoreless tie created a co-championship.

"They were disappointed that they didn't win," said Moses.

They didn't lose, either, and the '06 Colonials became the first team to claim a state championship while finishing the season with a sparkling 21-1-1 record. Only one other Freehold Borough team had reached the state finals and that was in 2001. They fell to Ramsey in overtime.


MIGUEL JUAREZ staff Freehold's Shannon Mayrose heads the ball toward the net during the Group IIIfinal in Ewing.

"When you're playing on the last day of the soccer season in New Jersey, you know you've done something special," said Moses.

The team that the '06 Colonials have been compared to was the '97 squad that won three titles, Shore Conference Division, Shore Conference Tournament and Central Jersey. This year's team duplicated that feat and went them one better, adding the State Group III crown to their achievements.

To the credit of both Freehold Borough and Ramapo (20-3-1), both teams played to win right up to the very end. This wasn't a play-it-safe, play-not-to-lose tie. Both teams had their chances, limited as they were by strong defenses.

The Colonials had the best chance when a shot off the foot of Shannon Mayrose (whose overtime goal against Shawnee put the Colonials in the state final) clanked off the crossbar late in the second half. Earlier, Mayrose had tested Raider goalie Samantha Depken on a header off a perfect restart serve from Amy Flanagan.




Ramapo's Brittney Steinbruch showed why she is headed to the University of Miami on a scholarship. The midfielder made a number of dangerous runs through midfield, but like everyone who has played Freehold Borough this fall, found finishing scoring chances close to impossible.

"I don't ever remember anyone in the Shore having 20 shutouts in a season," said Moses.

Sweeper Alexandra Eagle is the conductor of what is as good a defense as any in the state.

"We communicate all the time," said Eagle. "It starts with our forwards coming back to help and then our midfielders playing back.

"I make sure I talk to everyone," she added. "Every time we play a high-scoring forward or center midfielder, we have Amy [Flanagan] and Shannon [Mayrose] marking her."

The team's security blanket is goalie Ashley Lewis. As Eagle pointed out, the team has complete confidence and trust in their goalie. And, for good reason: she'll make the save.

The one time that Steinbruch broke through the Colonials' defensive fortress, Lewis was there to stonewall her. In overtime, she left the net to smother a shot by JoJo Pisani. Both Eagle and Moses pointed to the off-the-field bond between the players as being very important.

"We're all friends," said Eagle. "We've all connected somehow."

Their friendship, Moses noted, made them put the team above all else. Everyone had one another's back covered.

With a perfect overtime record in 2006, the Colonials were as stunned by the fact that they didn't win it in the extra session as anything else.

"We didn't know how to react," said Eagle. "We wanted to win."

In time, she said, it has sunk in that the Colonials are state champions and that they exceeded expectations.

"To be honest, I didn't think we'd go this far," she said. "We lost early in the SCT and the states last year, and we wanted to go further this year. Four championships, you can't ask for anything more."

The difference between last year, when the Colonials went through the regular season unbeaten, and 2006?

"We just wanted it more this year," Eagle said.

For Moses, who coached his last game, the championship was bittersweet. There was the historic run to the school's first state championship, but also the knowledge that it was his final time around with the team and school he is so synonymous with.

"This season was a gift to me," he said. "They played like champions. They did everything they could possibly do. I'm so proud of them.

"They played up to their potential better than any team I've coached," he added.

High praise indeed, worthy of a state champion.

[Marc LeVine]

FHS soccer team and coach lauded for a great season


Kudos to the Freehold High School girls soccer team and also to Coach Heshy Moses for a job well done. On Nov. 18, the team along with fans were given a heroes escort through Freehold Borough to the high school by the Freehold Borough Police Department and the Freehold Fire Department. I think it has been a great ride, not only for fans, but for the entire town of Freehold.

Not often do we get a chance to hear about all of the good stuff our kids are doing. We always seem to hear the negative stuff.

Now I think this is a chance to recognize our kids on a job well done. Congratulations again on winning the Shore Conference B North Division championship, the Shore Conference Tournament, the Central Jersey Group III championship and becoming state Group III co-champions.

On a personal level, I would like to personally congratulate Coach Moses. I have known Heshy for a long time. Not only was he a great teacher, but he was also an excellent mentor. He was a person that I definitely looked up to. Heshy, good luck in your future endeavors. I never thought I would finally get to see you retire. Again, good luck!

Finally, what this soccer team has accomplished this season was far from any other. Not only is it a great time for the school, but for the town of Freehold as well. Again, congratulations to the Freehold High School girls soccer team and good luck to Coach Moses.


Jaye Sims

Councilman

Freehold Borough

[Freehold Resident]

Town gets together to honor Colonials team
TIM MORRIS




Heshy Moses (l), head coach of the Freehold Borough High School girls soccer team, and Kevin Kane (r), chairman of Boro Girls Soccer '06 fundraising organization, check out the sign heading into Freehold Borough that acknowledges the state championship won by the Colonials in the fall. The signs, from funds raised by the committee, were put up all around the entrances to Freehold Borough.

The Freehold Borough High School girls soccer team continues to reap the rewards of their magnificent state championship season.

The Colonials and head coach Heshy Moses were honored previously by the Freehold Borough Council, which gave each team member and the coaching staff a copy of the council's resolution congratulating them on becoming the school's first State Group championship team.

The Freehold Regional Board of Education had give them medals for their accomplishment at its December meeting.

Boro Girls Soccer '06, a fundraising organization headed by chairman Kevin Kane, was able to raise enough funds through its sponsorship program to purchase championship rings for every member of the team and coaching staff. They received their rings and other commemorative items at a dinner at the Freehold Elks Lodge No. 1454 on March 28. In addition to the rings, the girls received championship jackets, a championship patch for their varsity jackets, a commemorative booklet and a DVD of the season and the championship-game day by Glenn Mayrose (who works for WABC TV).

Road signs signaling that Freehold Borough is the home of the 2006 State Championship girls soccer team were put up at entrances to the town last week.

Kane said the idea behind the awards ceremony was that the girls "deserve all the recognition they can get."

The 2006 Colonials were 21-1-1 and won four championships. They captured the Shore Conference B North Division and Shore Conference Tournament crowns before beginning their run to the NJSIAA State Group III title.

The Colonials won the Central Jersey Group III title at home beating Hopewell Valley, 1-0, in overtime on a golden goal by Shannon Mayrose assisted by Jenn Paulicci.

Freehold Borough went on to win its fifth overtime match of the year, 1-0, over Shawnee. Amy Flanagan's perfect serve on a corner kick was headed in by Mayrose and sent the Colonials to the Group final in Lawrenceville at The College of New Jersey. The State Group III final turned into a scoreless tie between the Colonials and Ramapo. After two overtimes didn't settle the issue, the two teams shared the state crown.

Freehold Borough finished the year with 20 shutouts in its 22 games.

- Tim Morris