
Immaculate Heart has had plenty to celebrate this year, including a goal against Ramapo last night.
I’m going to start this week with a game that is fresh in everyone’s mind: IHA 3, Ramapo 0.Â
There was a lot I took away from that game. 1) Ramapo is going to be a hard out later in the year. 2) Senior midfielder Caroline Chagares is  starting to assert herself in big games. 3) If Ramapo can do more of the little things right, it’s going to score against the likes of IHA and not give up as many goals. 4) IHA’s goalie Taylor Lupi is legit. 5) IHA has as much depth as anyone I’ve seen this year. 6) IHA’s passing ability has teams playing catch up early in games.
But the biggest thing I took away from IHA 3, Ramapo 0 is this: When IHA plays its game — possess, get a couple short passes in tight spaces, open up the defense — it’s as dangerous as any team in the state.Â
“I thought we played good in moments,†IHA coach Brandon Silva told me after the game. “We weren’t as accurate with our passes as I would like. But we persevered.â€
Beating a team like Ramapo by three is more than perservering. It’s excelling.
Sure, Ramapo had some great scoring chances, especially at the end of the first half and beginning of the second. But a team like Ramapo is going to get scoring chances. It has too much talent and too good of a coach not to. You just need a good goalie to come up with big saves in those moments. And Lupi certainly did.
Naturally, after the game was over, I was asked who I thought was better, IHA or Northern Highlands. I answered honestly, saying I’ve only seen Highlands play once, and that was their first game of the season, so it wasn’t really fair to compare that performance to this one.
But I did say what I felt and feel is true, as far as talent is concerned, I think the teams are very equal.
The only way they’ll meet each other is in the Bergen County finals. If that happens, it will be more than just a county final. It will be a battle for state No.1 and (gasp) national rankings.
Moving on to Ramapo, I liked what I saw from the Raiders. Of course someone who wasn’t at the game might look at the 3-0 score and think I’m crazy for liking what I saw. But Ramapo could have easily scored a few times when the game was still 1-0, thus tying it and making it a different ball game.
They didn’t. That’s something they’ll need to do if they’re to compete with the likes of IHA and Highlands (they both beat Ramapo by the same 3-0 margin). That and be a little cleaner on the back line (one of their goals was on a botched goal kick). But I thought their coach, Paul Heenehan, put it perfect after the game.
“The effort was there. Our heads were up,†he said. “If we can build on our chemistry we’ll be a lot more dangerous later in the season.
“I have a freshman keeper and a freshman sweeper. They won’t be freshman in a month from now.â€
In a month from now it will be the Bergen County tournament semifinals where IHA and Ramapo could meet again. I firmly believe if they do, it will be a closer game.
The other impending battles down the road that intrigue me the most are for the North 1, Group 1 title and the Big North Patriot title. I’ll start with N1G1.
Right now Hasbrouck Heights, New Milford and Park Ridge have separated themselves from the pack. They have one loss between them, and that came when Hasbrouck Heights beat New Milford, 2-1. Other than that, it’s been a near-perfect start by all three teams.
New Milford plays Park Ridge on Friday in what could be a preview of the sectional semifinal or final. New Milford beat Park Ridge in the semifinals last year and you know the Owls want not only retribution, but to send a message that things are different this year. Of course New Milford will do what it can to prove it remains the better team. Either way someone is walking out of that match up feeling good about its chances later in the season.
I know Hasbrouck Heights feels good about its chances in the section because the players told me so. They dropped down from N1G2 when they ended their co-op with Wood-Ridge and they believe the change will give them a real shot at states. They already proved why in the win over New Milford. But it’s always hard playing in a new section for the first time and I’m looking forward to seeing how they deal with it.
As for the Patriot league, it really has come down to one game: Pascack Hills at Ramsey on Oct. 10 at 7 p.m. The two teams battled to a 2-2 draw the last time when Bri Musco scored the game tier with one second left. Think that doesn’t sting the Rams? Of course it does, which should make the rematch all the better.
Don’t get me wrong. These teams will have to beat River Dell and Mahwah to claim the title outright. That’s not easy. River Dell has won five straight and Mahwah remains the clear third best team in the league with more than enough talent to knock off the other either Ramsey or Hills. That just adds intrigue to the second half league title race.
As for the rest of Bergen County, you’ll notice in the latest rankings that it rules the top 10 rankings. There is only one Passaic County team in the Top 10 (Clifton) and their loss to DePaul proves how much parity their is in PC. Clifton loses to DePaul which loses to Wayne Hills. Who’s gonna step up come tournament time? I still like the Mustangs but the Patriots aren’t far behind (their only loss this year was a rain-shortened one to Fair Lawn).
The Bergen County seeding meeting is tomorrow. I’ll post a blog with all the seeds as soon as it’s over.